On-Call Load Distribution

The practice of measuring and equalizing the amount of time and effort each team member spends on on-call duties.

The practice of measuring and equalizing the amount of time and effort each team member spends on on-call duties.

## Measure the Pain Use data to balance the load. If Person A dealt with 10 incidents and Person B dealt with 0, assign Person A fewer shifts next quarter. **Metric: Pages per shift.**

ExLoad Balancing by Incident Severity

"Team tracked "incident burden score" (SEV0=10pts, SEV1=5pts, etc.). Found senior engineer had 2x the average burden due to complexity. Adjusted schedule: gave senior engineer lighter weeks after high-burden rotations. Result: even distribution within 2 quarters."

Impact

Reduced single point of knowledge dependency

Resolution

Load balancing improved knowledge sharing and reduced bus factor risk

Why On-Call Load Distribution Matters

Data-driven approach to fairness.

Identifies when the team is understaffed.

Common Pitfalls

Only measuring time on-call, not incident burden

A week with 10 SEV0 incidents is not equal to a week with 0 incidents. Track incident volume and severity, not just calendar time.

Ignoring the "on-call tax" on career growth

Account for on-call time in performance reviews. Don't penalize people for having fewer side projects due to on-call recovery time.

Related Terms

Fair Rotations On-Call Burnout

Frequently Asked Questions

What metric should I use for on-call load distribution?

Use multiple metrics: total incidents, incident severity score, nights awoken, total on-call hours, and holidays covered. Combine into a single "burden score" for comparison.

How do I balance load unevenly across the team?

Not everyone can do equal on-call. Balance by total contribution: code reviews, documentation, mentoring, and project work count alongside on-call. Recognize different ways people contribute.

What if some people are better at on-call than others?

Skill imbalance is a coaching issue, not a scheduling issue. Train weaker responders, don't just load the strong ones. Over-relying on heroes creates single points of failure.

Learn More

State of Incident Management 2025

Industry benchmarks, On-Call Load Distribution trends, and insights from 25+ engineering teams.

Free SRE Tools

Calculators, generators, and utilities for incident management teams.