On-call contact sheet you can copy for your team

An on-call contact sheet is one page that says who covers alerts this week, who backs them up and how to reach both. Copy the plain-text version below, fill it in and pin it where the team will see it. It also tells you exactly what to set in your alert rules.

Start free trial Book a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

Published: October 6, 2026

What the contact sheet is for

Alert texts only help if they reach someone who knows they're on duty. Most missed alarms on small teams come down to a mix-up about whose week it is.

The sheet settles that in writing. It also gives a new hire, a supervisor or the office manager one place to look when something goes wrong. Find wording for the texts themselves in our copy-ready alert templates.

The on-call contact sheet

Plain text, so it pastes into an email, a shared doc or a printed page. Replace the parts in angle brackets.

On-call contact sheet

ON-CALL CONTACT SHEET: <Team name>
Updated: <date>   Owner: <name>

WEEK OF        ON CALL           MOBILE          BACKUP            MOBILE
<date>         <name>            <number>        <name>            <number>
<date>         <name>            <number>        <name>            <number>
<date>         <name>            <number>        <name>            <number>

COVER HOURS
Weeknights:   <time> to <time>
Weekends:     <day> <time> to <day> <time>
Handover:     <day> at <time>

WHICH ALERTS GO TO THE ON-CALL PHONE
<System>:     <alarms that text>        (stays in email: <alarms that don't>)
<System>:     <alarms that text>        (stays in email: <alarms that don't>)
Voicemail:    <urgent line or mailbox>

IF THE ON-CALL PERSON CAN'T BE REACHED
Backup calls them after <n> minutes. If no answer, call <supervisor> at <number>.

EMERGENCIES
Anyone hurt or in danger: call 911 first.

Turn your contact sheet into working alert rules

Invite everyone on your sheet to join Welco from their own phone, then set the same cover hours.

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

Start free trial Book a demo

How to fill it in

List the weeks and the people
Fill in at least a month of weeks. Pair each on-call person with a backup who isn't on vacation the same week. The mobile column is only for your team's records. Each person joins Welco themselves from an email invite.
Write the cover hours
Note when the office is staffed and when it isn't. These hours become the time windows in your after-hours routing.
Decide which alerts text
For each system, write which alarms need a person now and which can wait for the morning. Those lines become your alert rules.
Agree what happens when nobody answers
Every phone on a rule gets the text together, and no calls are placed. So write down, in plain words, how your team handles a text nobody acts on.

How each line of the sheet maps to an alert setting

The sheet is the plan, and Welco carries it out. Each part of the sheet points to one setting you change when the plan changes.

Welco sends the text to every phone on the rule at the same time. It does not place calls or move an alert to the next person.

Cover hours

Where it lives in Welco: The time windows in on-call routing
When to change it: When office hours or the night shift change

On call this week

Where it lives in Welco: The phone on the night and weekend rule
When to change it: At every handover

Backup

Where it lives in Welco: A second phone on the same rule, using several phones per alert
When to change it: When the backup changes or goes on leave

Which alerts text

Where it lives in Welco: Your alert rules: sender, subject words and time
When to change it: After a noisy week or a new system

New team member

Where it lives in Welco: An invite they accept from their own phone, then a YES reply
When to change it: On their first week

If nobody responds

Where it lives in Welco: Your team's own plan on paper
When to change it: Whenever the team agrees a new step

Welco sends the text to every phone on the rule at the same time. It does not place calls or move an alert to the next person.

Cover hours	The time windows in on-call routing	When office hours or the night shift change
On call this week	The phone on the night and weekend rule	At every handover
Backup	A second phone on the same rule, using several phones per alert	When the backup changes or goes on leave
Which alerts text	Your alert rules: sender, subject words and time	After a noisy week or a new system
New team member	An invite they accept from their own phone, then a YES reply	On their first week
If nobody responds	Your team's own plan on paper	Whenever the team agrees a new step

Weekly handover checklist

Run through this at each handover. It takes about two minutes.

0 of 5 done

The new on-call person joined Welco from their invite and is on the rule.
The new person has replied YES to their confirmation text.
Last week's person is off the rule, unless they are the backup.
Nobody on the rule has replied STOP by mistake.
The sheet shows the right name and date at the top.

Tips for keeping the sheet useful

Keep it to one page. If it needs scrolling, nobody reads it at 2 AM.
Store personal mobile numbers somewhere only the team can see.
If someone replies STOP, their phone stops getting alerts until they reply START. It's the first thing to ask about if someone's alerts stop.
Review the alert list after any noisy week. The on-call basics guide has ideas for cutting noise.

Common contact sheet mistakes

Most sheets fail quietly. These are the gaps that show up the night something breaks.

A backup who is on leave the same week as the person they cover.
Cover hours that end at 5 PM while the office stays open until 6.
A sheet that was updated, but the alert rule still points at last week's person.
A desk or landline number in the mobile column. Landlines can't take a text, so that person gets nothing.
No line for what happens when a text goes unanswered, so everyone assumes someone else will act.

Frequently asked questions

What should an on-call contact sheet include?

The weeks, who is on call, their backup, the cover hours and the handover time. Add which alarms reach the on-call phone and what the team does if nobody responds. Keep the owner's name and the date at the top so people trust it.

How far ahead should we fill in the sheet?

At least four weeks, so swaps and holidays show up early. Many small teams fill a whole quarter and fix gaps at the weekly handover. The further ahead it runs, the fewer last-minute phone calls about whose week it is.

Can Welco follow the sheet for us automatically?

Partly. Routing by time of day and day of week is built in, so night and weekend alerts reach the phones you choose. There is no rotation calendar, so someone updates the rule at each handover. It takes a minute and the checklist above covers it.

Should the backup get every alert too?

That depends on your team. Some put both phones on the rule so two people see each alarm. Others keep the backup off and only call them when needed. Write the choice on the sheet so nobody has to guess at 2 AM.

Where should we keep the contact sheet?

Somewhere the whole team can reach from a phone, such as a shared drive or a pinned email. Print one copy for the control room or front desk too. Keep personal numbers out of public places, since the sheet holds staff mobiles.

Match your alert rules to this week's contact sheet

Invite this week's on-call person and backup, set the hours, and you're covered.

Start free trial Book a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing