> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.avoca.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Set up the On-Call Calendar

> Configure emergency recipients, coverage schedules, broadcast history, and on-call routing.

Open **Settings → Business Info → On-Call Calendar**. The feature requires Scheduling access and an appropriate team role.

## 1. Prepare recipients

Start on **Recipients**:

1. Create or review the departments used for emergency routing.
2. Open **Employee Contacts** and verify each on-call employee's phone, email, department, active status, and delivery preferences.
3. Add a Home ZIP if your team uses distance-based routing.

The page warns when a scheduled employee has no department. Fix that warning before relying on department-based routing.

## 2. Build the schedule

Use **Schedule** to assign eligible Employee Contacts to the appropriate on-call coverage periods and departments. Check for gaps and overlaps, and confirm that the intended person is active before saving.

Schedules depend on Employee Contacts, not dashboard Team Members. Adding a user to Avoca does not put them on the on-call schedule.

## 3. Define Emergency Hours

**Emergency Hours** appears when designated emergency windows or the emergency-hours notification filter is enabled.

Enable the applicable days, set one start and end time for each, and save. An overnight period is supported when the end time is earlier than the start time. Do not use identical start and end times; the page treats that row as invalid.

## 4. Review Broadcasted Messages

Use **Broadcasted Messages** to audit emergency broadcasts, recipients, and confirmation state. This is a history view: new entries appear when on-call notification fires for an emergency call.

If a person did not receive a message, verify their Employee Contact details, department, schedule, delivery preferences, and the active configuration before sending another notification.

## 5. Configure routing and message behavior

Use **Configuration** for the options enabled for your team, such as:

* The business-hours and after-hours emergency strategy
* Notification-hours filtering
* Emergency message templates
* Override behavior
* Distance-based routing

Available controls vary by rollout. Follow the descriptions in the dashboard and change one behavior at a time.

<Warning>
  On-call changes can affect live emergency routing immediately. Verify the team's timezone, departments, schedule, and message template, then run an approved test before the next on-call period.
</Warning>