PROCESSES
Escalation Policy
Predefined rules for when and how to escalate incidents to additional resources or management.
Escalation Policy
Predefined rules for when and how to escalate incidents to additional resources or management.
"Call for Backup"
An Escalation Policy (EP) ensures that if the first person can't fix it (or is asleep), the next person is called.
Types of Escalation
- Functional Escalation: "I don't have access/knowledge." (Call the Database Expert).
- Hierarchical Escalation: "This is too big for me." (Call the Manager/VP).
- Automatic Escalation: "Primary didn't ACK in 5 minutes." (Call the Secondary).
The Golden Rule
Escalating is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of good judgment. It is better to wake up the boss than to let the site stay down for 4 hours.
ExThe Silent Pager
"The primary on-call engineer dropped their phone in the toilet. The alert fired, but they didn't answer."
Impact
Without an escalation policy, the alert sat unacknowledged for 2 hours.
Resolution
Added a policy: If not acknowledged in 15 mins, page Secondary. If not in 30 mins, page Manager.
Why Escalation Policy Matters
Escalation policies prevent incidents from stalling when the primary responder is unavailable or stuck.
Clear escalation paths reduce stress on on-call engineers and ensure faster resolution.
Common Pitfalls
Dead Ends
Escalation paths that end with a generic email address (e.g., "support@company.com"). Escalation must go to a *person*.
How to Use Escalation Policy
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Time-Based: Escalate after X minutes of no response.
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Multiple Paths: Primary, secondary, manager paths.
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Include Contacts: Phone, Slack, email for each level.
Related Terms
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I escalate?
If you are stuck for more than 15-30 minutes, or if the severity increases (e.g., SEV2 becomes SEV1).