On call

On call answers three questions in the order somebody actually asks them. Who is covering right now, which is what a responder needs at three in the morning and needs as one name. When it changes over the coming days, which is what a manager reads on a Tuesday to see the shape of the cover. And where the holes are, because an uncovered rotation is the one thing this screen exists to make impossible to miss. Setting up is deliberately not between those three: rotations, escalation policies and alert sources are created in a Set up panel at the bottom, so the live page stays readable under pressure. Below the band the page also shows the escalation ladder, a simulator that asks who an escalation would reach without paging anyone, and an editor for correcting a rotation.

• Who is on call now, at the top, as a name rather than a rota to interpret
• A band showing every handover over today, 7 days or 14 days, so the shape of the cover is visible at a glance
• Uncovered stretches drawn in the band, with the ability to put somebody on from the lane where the hole is
• An override, for arranging cover when a colleague cannot answer
• Rotations, escalation policies and alert sources in a Set up panel at the bottom, away from the live view

• Covering a hole and arranging an override are response rather than configuration, so they sit beside the band. Creating rotations, escalation policies and alert sources is in the Set up panel at the bottom.
• The band covers up to fourteen days and shows a week by default. It is a preview of what the schedules produce, not a separate record you can edit directly.
• An override changes who answers for a period. It does not change the underlying rotation, which resumes afterwards.
• Everything is scoped to your workspace, including the cached answer. Switching workspace never shows the previous one's rota.
• The list of people who can be put on call depends on your permissions. If it could not be read, the screen says so rather than showing an empty picker.

1. 1Open On call. The name at the top is who is covering right now.
2. 2Read the band underneath for the handovers ahead, and choose Today, 7 days or 14 days.
3. 3If a stretch is uncovered, put somebody on from the lane where the hole is drawn.
4. 4Add an override when a colleague cannot answer for a period. The rotation resumes after it.
5. 5Open Set up at the bottom to create rotations, escalation policies or alert sources, and use the rotation editor to correct an existing rotation.

Why is configuration hidden at the bottom?

Because the live page is read under pressure. A responder at three in the morning needs one name, not a creation form, so creating rotations, policies and alert sources sits in a Set up panel at the bottom.

Does an override change the rotation?

No. It changes who answers for a period. The underlying rotation resumes when the override ends.

How far ahead does the band go?

Up to fourteen days: choose Today, 7 days or 14 days, with a week shown by default. It is a preview of what the schedules produce, so changing a schedule changes the band.

Why can I not see everybody in the picker?

Listing workspace members needs permission. If the list could not be read, the screen says so rather than leaving you looking at an empty picker and guessing.

I switched workspace. Is this the right rota?

Yes. Every cached answer here is scoped to the workspace, because answering who is on call with another workspace's rota is the worst wrong answer this product could give.