Escalation
Escalation is a process in software development and IT operations where issues, incidents, or requests are moved to higher levels of authority or expertise when they cannot be resolved at the current level. It involves structured communication and decision-making to ensure critical problems receive appropriate attention and resources. This methodology is commonly used in incident management, support workflows, and project risk handling.
Developers should understand escalation to effectively manage incidents, bugs, or blockers that impact system availability, security, or project timelines. It is crucial in DevOps and SRE practices for maintaining service-level agreements (SLAs) and minimizing downtime. Use cases include production outages, security breaches, or complex technical issues requiring senior engineer intervention.