Onboarding new responders

New team members who will participate in on-call rotations need a structured onboarding process to build confidence and avoid mistakes during their first real shift.

Shadow on-call

The shadow on-call feature lets a new responder receive a copy of all alerts without being the official point of contact. The primary responder handles the actual response while the shadow observes the workflow.

Setting up shadow mode

1. Add the new responder to the schedule as a Shadow participant.
2. Shadows receive alert notifications but are not listed as the active on-call responder.
3. The shadow period should last at least two full rotation cycles so the new responder experiences different alert types and times of day.

TIP

Encourage shadows to acknowledge alerts in the platform (using a shadow acknowledgment action) to practice the workflow without affecting the real alert status.

Onboarding checklists

Batida provides built-in onboarding checklists for new on-call responders. Each checklist item must be completed before the responder can be assigned to a live rotation.

Default checklist items

• [ ] Complete the on-call runbook review
• [ ] Join the on-call communication channel
• [ ] Verify notification delivery (email, SMS, push)
• [ ] Shadow at least two full rotation cycles
• [ ] Handle a simulated alert end-to-end
• [ ] Review escalation policies for your schedule
• [ ] Confirm access to all required tools and dashboards

Team leads can customize this checklist by adding or removing items in On-call > Settings > Onboarding Checklist.

INFO

Checklist progress is tracked per user. The schedule detail page shows a badge next to responders who have not completed onboarding.

Backup user for first shift

For a responder's first live shift, assign a backup user who is also notified for every alert. This provides a safety net in case the new responder misses an alert or is unsure how to respond.

Configuring the backup

1. Open the schedule and navigate to the Onboarding tab.
2. Find the new responder and click Assign Backup.
3. Select an experienced team member as the backup.
4. Set the backup duration -- typically one full rotation cycle.

The backup receives all alerts in parallel with the new responder. After the backup period ends, the new responder operates independently.

WARNING

Do not remove the backup prematurely. One full rotation cycle is the minimum recommended duration to expose the new responder to a representative sample of alerts.

Post-onboarding review

After the first independent rotation cycle, the team lead should review:

• Alert response times during the new responder's shifts.
• Any escalations that occurred (and whether they were justified).
• Feedback from the new responder about gaps in training or documentation.

Use this review to update the runbook or checklist as needed.