Founder Erik Fjellborg on starting out on the frontline, AI breakthroughs, and why fair rotas will soon be as important as salary
Global workforce management pioneer Quinyx is marking its 20th anniversary with a bold vision for the future of frontline work – predicting scheduling will become as seamless as streaming music and as central to employees as pay.
Founded in 2005 by former McDonald’s employee Erik Fjellborg, Quinyx began with a simple realisation: messy rotas create messy operations.
“Spending my evenings flipping burgers, I saw first-hand how chaotic schedules led to stressed teams and unhappy customers,” said Erik. “One night in the back office, staring at a wall of crossed-out shifts, I thought: there has to be a better way.”
That moment sparked the creation of Quinyx’s first scheduling platform, and a mission to bring transparency, fairness and efficiency to frontline workforces.
Today, Quinyx powers workforce operations for leading employers in over 50 countries, for brands in the UK including Starbucks, ODEON Cinema and HMV.
An early AI adopter
“We bet early on AI because we saw that demand forecasting and scheduling were moving too fast for humans to manage manually,” Erik continued. “That early move means our AI isn’t a buzzword – it’s been battle-tested in stores, warehouses and hospitals for years.”
Now offering a fully integrated platform combining intelligent scheduling, demand forecasting, employee engagement and real-time communications, Quinyx’s evolution reflects the changing shape of frontline work.
“Back in 2005, we were solving shift planning problems,” he added. “In 2025, we’re solving wellbeing, agility, compliance, and culture challenges.”
Solutions for today’s frontline
Quinyx helps organisations address some of their most pressing frontline operational challenges:
- Reducing burnout: By automatically matching staff levels to demand, companies cut overtime and fatigue — one client reduced payroll processing from two days to just five minutes per store.
- Boosting retention: With real-time, mobile-first tools, teams get fair, flexible rotas and the ability to swap shifts easily — keeping frontline staff engaged and loyal.
- Driving efficiency: Clients like Starbucks in the UK have reduced their scheduling time by 75% using the Quinyx app.
“In many sectors, people are still managing shifts with spreadsheets and sticky notes,” Erik said. “We bring it all together in one app – scheduling, communication, engagement – so frontline teams can do more with less stress.”
Workforce management in 2050
Erik’s vision for the future is radical yet human-centred: “In 2050, workforce management will be invisible. AI will build rotas in the background, predict staffing needs, and help managers spend time coaching people, not chasing shift swaps. The tech will fade into the background. Empowerment will come to the foreground.”
Despite rapid advancements in automation, he is firm on one point: “Frontline workers won’t be replaced. Machines can’t deliver empathy, care or service — but they can take the load off behind-the-scenes planning.”
The big shift employers can’t ignore
Quinyx is also sounding the alarm on a fundamental labour market trend: the demographic crunch. “Many employers are still behaving like talent is abundant,” Erik warned. “But the workforce is ageing and shrinking. By 2030, the WHO (World Health Organisation) predicts a shortage of 10 million caregivers across Europe. That’s why we believe intelligent scheduling isn’t just operational — it’s strategic.”
His bold prediction? “By 2050, the quality of your rota will be more important to jobseekers than your salary offer. Shift flexibility will define your employer brand.”
What’s next?
As demand for smarter workforce tools grows across sectors from retail to healthcare, Quinyx is scaling rapidly. “We’re expanding into new markets – with a huge focus on the UK, and solving new problems,” said Erik. “The space is crowded, but what sets us apart is the depth of our platform and the years of real-world AI training behind it. We’re not here to patch up rotas — we’re here to transform the frontline experience.”
The convergence of tech and brands 