# Assign an Incident Role to an Escalation Policy

Assigns an Incident Role to an escalation policy so whoever is currently on call in that policy fills the role automatically.


> **Availability:** See the [Incident Workflow Actions Overview table](/workflow-actions) for the plans this workflow is available on.

## Description

Assign an **Incident Role** to an **Escalation Policy** to automatically designate the current on-call responder in that policy to a specific role during an incident.

This action promotes sustainable incident response by distributing key responsibilities (e.g., _Incident Commander_, _Customer Liaison_) across on-call rotations, ensuring consistent coverage and preventing responder fatigue.

> **Prerequisite:** Ensure Incident Roles are configured in your account before using this action. You can create and manage incident roles under **Incident Settings**  →  **Incident Roles**.

## Instructions

1. If you have not done so, follow the instructions to [Create an Incident Workflow](/ai-automation/automation/incident-workflows#create-an-incident-workflow).
2. When the instructions prompt you to [add actions](/ai-automation/automation/incident-workflows#add-actions), select **this action**.
3. Enter the following **Inputs** and click **Save**.
4. Continue following instructions to **Publish** the Workflow.
5. When the action runs, you will see the **Outputs** listed below.

## Inputs

| Name              | Description                                                                                                                                         |
| :---------------- | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Incident Role     | Select the role to assign to the escalation policy. This assigns the role to whoever is currently on‑call in the specified escalation policy.       |
| Escalation Policy | Select the escalation policy to assign the role to. The current on-call responder from this policy will be assigned to the specified incident role. |

## Outputs

| Name           | Description                                                               |
| :------------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Result         | Indicates whether the action was successful — "Success" or "Failed."      |
| Result Summary | Briefly describes what the action did or explains the reason for failure. |
| Error          | Provides an error description if the action failed.                       |

## Examples

**Example 1: Automatic Incident Manager Assignment**

When a major incident is triggered, automatically assign the Incident Commander role to whoever is currently on-call for the Incident Management escalation policy:

- **Incident role**: Incident Commander
- **Escalation Policy**: Incident Management On-Call

This automation removes the need to manually identify the on-call incident manager during active incidents.

**Example 2: Customer Communication Assignment**  
When an incident is escalated to a major incident, use a workflow trigger to automatically assign the Customer Liaison role.

- **Incident role**: Customer Liaison
- **Escalation policy**: Customer Communications Management

This ensures the appropriate Customer Liaison is engaged immediately to coordinate updates and communication with customers.