diff --git a/documentation/plugin/customisation.rst b/documentation/plugin/customisation.rst
index 3faa1e303c..5f452df13e 100644
--- a/documentation/plugin/customisation.rst
+++ b/documentation/plugin/customisation.rst
@@ -61,22 +61,14 @@ Finally, make your scheduler be the one that FlexMeasures will use for certain s
 .. code-block:: python
 
     from flexmeasures import Sensor
-
-    scheduler_specs = {
-        "module": "flexmeasures.data.tests.dummy_scheduler",  # or a file path, see note below
-        "class": "DummyScheduler",
-    }
     
     my_sensor = Sensor.query.filter(Sensor.name == "My power sensor on a flexible asset").one_or_none()
-    my_sensor.attributes["custom-scheduler"] = scheduler_specs
+    my_sensor.attributes["custom-scheduler"] = "DummyScheduler"
 
 
 From now on, all schedules (see :ref:`tut_forecasting_scheduling`) which are requested for this sensor should
 get computed by your custom function! For later lookup, the data will be linked to a new data source with the name "My Opinion".
 
-.. note:: To describe the module, we used an importable module here (actually a custom scheduling function we use to test this).
-          You can also provide a full file path to the module, e.g. "/path/to/my_file.py".
-
 
 Adding your own forecasting algorithm
 -------------------------------------
diff --git a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_asset_schedules_fresh_db.py b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_asset_schedules_fresh_db.py
index db5f82fcdc..0ebf0548ef 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_asset_schedules_fresh_db.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_asset_schedules_fresh_db.py
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
 from flexmeasures import Sensor
 from flexmeasures.api.v3_0.tests.utils import message_for_trigger_schedule
 from flexmeasures.data.models.planning.tests.utils import check_constraints
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import (
     handle_scheduling_exception,
     get_data_source_for_job,
diff --git a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_forecasting_api.py b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_forecasting_api.py
index f4e4460523..a621be8290 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_forecasting_api.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_forecasting_api.py
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
     get_data_source_for_job,
 )
 from rq.job import Job
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.api.tests.utils import get_auth_token
 from flexmeasures.data.services.forecasting import handle_forecasting_exception
 from flexmeasures.data.models.forecasting.pipelines import TrainPredictPipeline
diff --git a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules.py b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules.py
index 5710ee493e..0b0e8c14ee 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules.py
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 from flexmeasures.api.tests.utils import check_deprecation
 from flexmeasures.api.v3_0.tests.utils import message_for_trigger_schedule
 from flexmeasures.data.models.data_sources import DataSource
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import handle_scheduling_exception
 from flexmeasures.tests.utils import get_test_sensor
 from flexmeasures.utils.unit_utils import ur
diff --git a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules_fresh_db.py b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules_fresh_db.py
index 9ee352bb4c..3b4db45fb1 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules_fresh_db.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/api/v3_0/tests/test_sensor_schedules_fresh_db.py
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
 from flexmeasures.data.models.generic_assets import GenericAsset
 from flexmeasures.data.models.planning.utils import get_power_values
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import Sensor, TimedBelief
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import (
     handle_scheduling_exception,
     get_data_source_for_job,
diff --git a/flexmeasures/cli/jobs.py b/flexmeasures/cli/jobs.py
index d0df364122..e0d97e217a 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/cli/jobs.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/cli/jobs.py
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@
 from flexmeasures.data.schemas import AssetIdField, SensorIdField
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import handle_scheduling_exception
 from flexmeasures.data.services.forecasting import handle_forecasting_exception
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.cli.utils import MsgStyle
 from flexmeasures.utils.flexmeasures_inflection import join_words_into_a_list
 
@@ -58,16 +59,37 @@ def fm_jobs():
     required=True,
     help="Job UUID of the job you want to run.",
 )
-def run_job(job_id: str):
+@click.option(
+    "--dry-run",
+    is_flag=False,
+    help=(
+        "Run the job function directly, without executing it as an RQ job. "
+        "This skips RQ bookkeeping such as job metadata updates, registry transitions, "
+        "and worker context. "
+        "However, if the job itself saved data to the database then that still happens."
+    ),
+)
+def run_job(job_id: str, dry_run: bool):
     """
-    Run a single job.
+    Run a single RQ job by its UUID.
 
     We use the app context to find out which redis queues to use.
+
+    By default, the job is executed using RQ's normal execution mechanism,
+    meaning it runs with a worker context and can update job metadata, move between RQ registries and record its result.
+
+    With the --dry-run flag, the job's callable is executed directly (job.func(**job.kwargs)) without RQ involvement.
+    This bypasses all RQ bookkeeping and is useful for debugging or inspecting job behavior without mutating job state.
     """
     connection = app.queues["scheduling"].connection
     job = Job.fetch(job_id, connection=connection)
-    result = job.func(**job.kwargs)
-    click.echo(f"Job {job_id} finished with: {result}")
+    if dry_run:
+        result = job.func(**job.kwargs)
+        click.echo(f"Job {job_id} finished (dry-run) with: {result}")
+    else:
+        work_on_rq(app.queues["scheduling"], job)
+        result = job.perform()
+        click.echo(f"Job {job_id} finished with: {result}")
 
 
 @fm_jobs.command("run-worker")
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/models/planning/storage.py b/flexmeasures/data/models/planning/storage.py
index a0d6f8da19..f31fdb2f16 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/models/planning/storage.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/models/planning/storage.py
@@ -1332,6 +1332,12 @@ def compute(self, skip_validation: bool = False) -> SchedulerOutputType:
             for d, sensor in enumerate(sensors)
             if sensor is not None
         }
+        # Obtain the aggregate power schedule, too, if the flex-context states the associated sensor
+        aggregate_power_sensor = self.flex_context.get("aggregate_power", None)
+        if isinstance(aggregate_power_sensor, Sensor):
+            storage_schedule[aggregate_power_sensor] = pd.concat(
+                ems_schedule, axis=1
+            ).sum(axis=1)
 
         # Convert each device schedule to the unit of the device's power sensor
         storage_schedule = {
@@ -1341,7 +1347,7 @@ def compute(self, skip_validation: bool = False) -> SchedulerOutputType:
                 sensor.unit,
                 event_resolution=sensor.event_resolution,
             )
-            for sensor in sensors
+            for sensor in storage_schedule.keys()
             if sensor is not None
         }
 
@@ -1378,7 +1384,7 @@ def compute(self, skip_validation: bool = False) -> SchedulerOutputType:
                 sensor: storage_schedule[sensor]
                 .resample(sensor.event_resolution)
                 .mean()
-                for sensor in sensors
+                for sensor in storage_schedule.keys()
                 if sensor is not None
             }
 
@@ -1386,7 +1392,7 @@ def compute(self, skip_validation: bool = False) -> SchedulerOutputType:
         if self.round_to_decimals:
             storage_schedule = {
                 sensor: storage_schedule[sensor].round(self.round_to_decimals)
-                for sensor in sensors
+                for sensor in storage_schedule.keys()
                 if sensor is not None
             }
             soc_schedule = {
@@ -1402,7 +1408,7 @@ def compute(self, skip_validation: bool = False) -> SchedulerOutputType:
                     "data": storage_schedule[sensor],
                     "unit": sensor.unit,
                 }
-                for sensor in sensors
+                for sensor in storage_schedule.keys()
                 if sensor is not None
             ]
             commitment_costs = [
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/schemas/scheduling/__init__.py b/flexmeasures/data/schemas/scheduling/__init__.py
index 763bd08f50..29f5761866 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/schemas/scheduling/__init__.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/schemas/scheduling/__init__.py
@@ -289,6 +289,11 @@ class FlexContextSchema(Schema):
         data_key="inflexible-device-sensors",
         metadata=metadata.INFLEXIBLE_DEVICE_SENSORS.to_dict(),
     )
+    aggregate_power = VariableQuantityField(
+        to_unit="MW",
+        data_key="aggregate-power",
+        required=False,
+    )
 
     def set_default_breach_prices(
         self, data: dict, fields: list[str], price: ur.Quantity
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/services/scheduling.py b/flexmeasures/data/services/scheduling.py
index 55423287ca..5c408890fc 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/services/scheduling.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/services/scheduling.py
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@
 )
 
 
-def load_custom_scheduler(scheduler_specs: dict) -> type:
+def load_custom_scheduler(scheduler_specs: dict | str) -> type:
     """
     Read in custom scheduling spec.
     Attempt to load the Scheduler class to use.
@@ -59,12 +59,28 @@ def load_custom_scheduler(scheduler_specs: dict) -> type:
         "class": "NameOfSchedulerClass",
     }
 
+    or if the scheduler is already subclassing flexmeasures.Scheduler, simply:
+
+    "NameOfSchedulerClass"
+
     """
-    assert isinstance(
-        scheduler_specs, dict
-    ), f"Scheduler specs is {type(scheduler_specs)}, should be a dict"
-    assert "module" in scheduler_specs, "scheduler specs have no 'module'."
-    assert "class" in scheduler_specs, "scheduler specs have no 'class'"
+    if isinstance(scheduler_specs, dict):
+        assert "module" in scheduler_specs, "scheduler specs have no 'module'."
+        assert "class" in scheduler_specs, "scheduler specs have no 'class'"
+    elif isinstance(scheduler_specs, str):
+        scheduler_class = current_app.data_generators["scheduler"].get(scheduler_specs)
+        scheduler_specs = {
+            "class": scheduler_class.__name__,
+            "module": scheduler_class.__module__,
+        }
+        if scheduler_specs is None:
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"Scheduler {scheduler_specs} does not seem to be registered."
+            )
+    else:
+        raise TypeError(
+            f"Scheduler specs is {type(scheduler_specs)}, should be a dict or str"
+        )
 
     scheduler_name = scheduler_specs["class"]
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs.py
index b20cc1aac8..7901aadb2e 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs.py
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 
 from flexmeasures.data.models.data_sources import DataSource
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import Sensor, TimedBelief
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.forecasting import (
     create_forecasting_jobs,
     handle_forecasting_exception,
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs_fresh_db.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs_fresh_db.py
index 19cf6a758a..25e862fd1f 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs_fresh_db.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_forecasting_jobs_fresh_db.py
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
     check_failures,
     get_data_source,
 )
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.utils.time_utils import as_server_time
 
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs.py
index f2a9198a3b..7384bd4efd 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs.py
@@ -14,7 +14,8 @@
 from flexmeasures.data.models.planning.utils import initialize_series
 from flexmeasures.data.models.data_sources import DataSource
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import TimedBelief
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq, exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import (
     create_scheduling_job,
     load_custom_scheduler,
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs_fresh_db.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs_fresh_db.py
index 096fa7ebd2..812bf44301 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs_fresh_db.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_jobs_fresh_db.py
@@ -7,7 +7,8 @@
 from flexmeasures.data.models.data_sources import DataSource
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import TimedBelief
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import create_scheduling_job
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq, exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 
 
 def test_scheduling_a_charging_station(
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs.py
index 61bf291054..c7ad33eea9 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs.py
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@
 from flexmeasures.data.models.data_sources import DataSource
 from flexmeasures.data.models.generic_assets import GenericAsset
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import Sensor
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq, exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import create_scheduling_job
 from flexmeasures.data.services.utils import hash_function_arguments, job_cache
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs_fresh_db.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs_fresh_db.py
index 98e7533c0d..63d5a4424a 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs_fresh_db.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_repeated_jobs_fresh_db.py
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@
 
 import pytz
 
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq, exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import exception_reporter
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import create_scheduling_job
 from flexmeasures.data.models.planning import Scheduler
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import load_custom_scheduler
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_sequential.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_sequential.py
index 3e0f17a197..254c386c86 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_sequential.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_sequential.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 import pandas as pd
 from rq.job import Job
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import create_sequential_scheduling_job
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import handle_scheduling_exception
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import Sensor
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_simultaneous.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_simultaneous.py
index 5e31e598f1..57671f4fa6 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_simultaneous.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_scheduling_simultaneous.py
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
 from flexmeasures.data.services.scheduling import create_simultaneous_scheduling_job
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.models.time_series import Sensor
 
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_train_predict_pipeline.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_train_predict_pipeline.py
index 06979c8c88..5af5722a47 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_train_predict_pipeline.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/test_train_predict_pipeline.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
 
 from flexmeasures.data.models.forecasting.pipelines import TrainPredictPipeline
 from flexmeasures.data.models.forecasting.exceptions import CustomException
-from flexmeasures.data.tests.utils import work_on_rq
+from flexmeasures.utils.job_utils import work_on_rq
 from flexmeasures.data.services.forecasting import handle_forecasting_exception
 
 
diff --git a/flexmeasures/data/tests/utils.py b/flexmeasures/data/tests/utils.py
index c6df948a10..ec022ade49 100644
--- a/flexmeasures/data/tests/utils.py
+++ b/flexmeasures/data/tests/utils.py
@@ -1,29 +1,10 @@
-import os
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from traceback import print_tb
 
 import click
 
 
-def work_on_rq(redis_queue, exc_handler=None, max_jobs=None):
-
-    #  we only want this import distinction to matter when we actually are testing
-    if os.name == "nt":
-        from rq_win import WindowsWorker as SimpleWorker
-    else:
-        from rq import SimpleWorker
-
-    exc_handlers = []
-    if exc_handler is not None:
-        exc_handlers.append(exc_handler)
-    print("STARTING SIMPLE RQ WORKER, seeing %d job(s)" % redis_queue.count)
-    worker = SimpleWorker(
-        [redis_queue],
-        connection=redis_queue.connection,
-        exception_handlers=exc_handlers,
-    )
-    worker.work(burst=True, max_jobs=max_jobs)
-
-
 def exception_reporter(job, exc_type, exc_value, traceback):
     print_tb(traceback)
     click.echo("HANDLING RQ WORKER EXCEPTION: %s:%s\n" % (exc_type, exc_value))
diff --git a/flexmeasures/utils/job_utils.py b/flexmeasures/utils/job_utils.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..6cf5d11b25
--- /dev/null
+++ b/flexmeasures/utils/job_utils.py
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+from rq import Queue
+from rq.job import Job
+
+
+def work_on_rq(
+    redis_queue: Queue, job: Job | str | None = None, exc_handler=None, max_jobs=None
+):
+
+    #  we only want this import distinction to matter when we actually are testing
+    if os.name == "nt":
+        from rq_win import WindowsWorker as SimpleWorker
+    else:
+        from rq import SimpleWorker
+
+    exc_handlers = []
+    if exc_handler is not None:
+        exc_handlers.append(exc_handler)
+    print("STARTING SIMPLE RQ WORKER, seeing %d job(s)" % redis_queue.count)
+    worker = SimpleWorker(
+        [redis_queue],
+        connection=redis_queue.connection,
+        exception_handlers=exc_handlers,
+    )
+
+    if job:
+        if isinstance(job, str):
+            job = Job.fetch(job, connection=redis_queue.connection)
+        worker.perform_job(job, redis_queue)
+    else:
+        worker.work(burst=True, max_jobs=max_jobs)