Top 5 Challenges of On-Call Scheduling for Incident Response Teams

Ensuring consistent coverage for unexpected issues is crucial for maintaining smooth operations. On-call scheduling assigns employees to be readily available to address critical incidents outside of regular working hours. This applies to various roles, including IT specialists and healthcare professionals.

While on-call schedules and employing an on-call for incident responses software are essential for businesses, they can also be demanding for staff. Here, we explore five common pitfalls of on-call scheduling for incident response teams, along with solutions to avoid them:

Unclear On-Call Responsibilities

On-call duties can vary significantly depending on the organization and the specific service or system being monitored. For instance, some teams might require on-call staff to simply acknowledge and escalate alerts, while others might expect them to resolve issues independently.

Solution: Clearly define the scope of responsibilities for on-call staff. This includes outlining what constitutes an incident requiring intervention and the situations where escalation is necessary. Documenting these expectations ensures a shared understanding and reduces ambiguity for both the organization and the employees.

Lack of Flexibility in On-Call Scheduling

Life throws curveballs, and on-call employees may encounter unexpected personal situations that necessitate schedule changes. A rigid on-call structure that doesn’t account for these eventualities can lead to stress and burnout.

Solution: Implement an on-call for incident responses system that allows staff to swap schedules with colleagues. Empower teams to manage their own rotations whenever possible. This fosters a sense of control and promotes work-life balance. As a backup, consider having secondary on-call members designated to handle situations where schedule changes are unavoidable.

Infrequent On-Call Rotation

Relying on the same staff for on-call duties can lead to resentment and hinder work-life balance. A well-defined rotation plan distributes on-call responsibility fairly among team members, ensuring everyone gets a chance to recharge.

Solution: Establish a fair and consistent on-call rotation schedule. Ideally, provide employees with advanced notice of their on-call periods. When possible, consider employee preferences when crafting the rotation to optimize work-life balance.

Inadequate Backup Plans for On-Call Staff

Even the best-laid plans can go awry. On-call staff may be unavailable due to emergencies, or they might encounter situations beyond their individual expertise that require additional support.

Solution: Develop a comprehensive backup plan for on-call rotations. Include a secondary and potentially even a tertiary tier of on-call responders who can step in when the primary on-call staff is unavailable or requires assistance. Ideally, the notification system should automatically escalate alerts to backup responders if the initial on-call member doesn’t acknowledge the alert within a designated timeframe.

Failing to Account for Location and Time Zones

The rise of remote work has diversified teams geographically. On-call scheduling across time zones presents a unique challenge.

Solution: Consider adopting a “follow the sun” method for on-call scheduling. This approach assigns staff to on-call duties during their typical working hours in their respective locations. This not only fosters work-life balance but also encourages rotation as the responsibility shifts across time zones. However, this method might not always be feasible, so open communication and accommodating employee preferences are key.

By addressing these common pitfalls, organizations can implement effective on-call scheduling that ensures both business continuity and staff well-being. Investing in an incident management solution like Squadcast can further streamline the process by automating tasks and facilitating communication during critical situations.

Squadcast is an incident management tool designed specifically for Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) teams. It helps eliminate irrelevant alerts, ensures you receive only important notifications, and integrates with popular ChatOps tools. Squadcast fosters collaboration through virtual incident war rooms and automates routine tasks to reduce workload for your team. Learn more about how Squadcast can improve your on-call management and SRE practices today!