Change the business timezone
This guide explains how to set the project_business_time_zone attribute and what can go wrong if the incorrect timezone is selected.
🚨 WARNING
An incorrect timezone affects appointment scheduling, working hours detection, call routing, and reporting. Always verify this attribute is correct after creating an AI Employee.
What the timezone controls
The Business Time Zone attribute (project_business_time_zone) defines the timezone the AI Employee uses for all time-based operations. Nearly every time-sensitive feature in the system depends on this setting:
Working hours status: The agent compares the current time in the business timezone against the working hours schedule to determine if the business is open or closed.
Schedule phrases: The agent generates messages like "We are currently open and will remain open until 9 PM Pacific Time."
Appointment and booking times: The timezone is sent to booking systems (Google Maps, OpenTable, etc.) to ensure appointments are scheduled correctly.
Calendar generation: The system generates a 45-day calendar with dates in the business timezone, helping the agent understand references like "tomorrow" or "next Friday."
Call transfer routing: Determines whether to use the working hours or non-working hours escalation phone number.
Report timestamps: All conversation logs and email reports use the business timezone.
Set the timezone
Open the Builder.
Navigate to Attributes > Business.
Locate the Business Time Zone attribute (
project_business_time_zone).Select the correct IANA timezone for the business location from the dropdown. Common values include:
America/New_York(Eastern Time)America/Chicago(Central Time)America/Denver(Mountain Time)America/Los_Angeles(Pacific Time)Europe/London(GMT/BST)Asia/Tokyo(Japan Standard Time)Click Save.
🗒️ NOTE
If the business is a call center and serves multiple time zones, use the time zone of the main office.