On-Call Rotation
Builder.
Design robust rotation schedules that prevent burnout. Visual builder for primary and secondary layers.
Pro tip: A healthy rotation has at least 5 people. This ensures no one is on-call more than 20% of their time.
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Why On-Call Design Matters
A poorly designed on-call rotation leads to burnout, attrition, and slower incident response. Engineers who are constantly on-call become fatigued and start ignoring alerts.
The best on-call systems have clear escalation paths, fair distribution of load, and built-in training through shadow rotations.
The Golden Rules
Rotation Layer Types
Best-in-class on-call systems use multiple layers for resilience
First responder. Gets paged immediately. Expected to acknowledge within 5 minutes.
Backup responder. Escalates when Primary doesn't acknowledge within your policy (commonly 5–10 minutes for high severity).
On-Call Rotation FAQ
Common questions about building fair, effective on-call rotations
What is on-call rotation?
On-call rotation is a system where engineering team members take turns being the primary responder for incidents. Instead of one person always being on-call, the responsibility rotates through the team on a scheduled basis—often weekly. This spreads the load, prevents burnout, and ensures 24/7 coverage without relying on a single person.
What is the difference between on-call and on-call rotation?
"On-call" means being available to respond to incidents. "On-call rotation" refers to the scheduling system that determines WHO is on-call and WHEN. A rotation ensures responsibility is shared across the team fairly, rather than one person carrying the pager indefinitely.
How do on-call handoffs work?
A handoff is the formal transfer of on-call responsibility from one person to the next. Best practice: the outgoing on-call engineer briefs the incoming person on any active incidents, ongoing issues, or context they need. This happens at a fixed time—often 9 AM Monday morning for weekly rotations. Good handoffs include a written summary and 10-15 minute sync.
How many people should be in an on-call rotation?
Aim for at least 5-6 engineers. With fewer than 5, each person is on-call too frequently (every 3-4 weeks), which increases burnout risk. More than 8 can lead to skill atrophy—engineers go so long between rotations they forget how to respond. The sweet spot is 6-8 people for weekly rotations.
What is the ideal on-call rotation length?
Weekly rotations are the standard for most SRE teams. Daily rotations are too disruptive—context switching kills productivity. Bi-weekly or monthly rotations lead to skill atrophy and extended fatigue. Weekly strikes the right balance: enough time to build incident context, short enough to prevent burnout.
What is a secondary on-call layer?
A secondary on-call is your backup responder. If the primary doesn't acknowledge within your escalation window (typically 5-10 minutes for high-severity incidents), the secondary gets paged. This prevents incidents from going unaddressed and gives the primary a safety net for emergencies or brief unavailability.
Want automated on-call scheduling?
Runframe handles rotations, escalations, and Slack-native paging automatically.