Overview
Parent and Child Dispatch Workflows allow a single dispatch to automatically create a related follow‑up dispatch when escalation is required.
This enables teams to manage complex responses — such as requesting backup or a secondary unit — without manually creating and tracking separate dispatch tasks.
What are Parent and Child dispatches?
A parent dispatch is the original dispatch task.
A child dispatch is a second, independent dispatch task that is automatically created from the parent based on a defined status change or escalation condition.
Each dispatch:
- exists as its own task,
- runs its own workflow,
- and is tracked independently.
How Parent and Child workflows work
When a specific status change occurs in an active dispatch:
- a child dispatch is created automatically,
- the child dispatch receives its own job type, assignee, and workflow,
- both dispatches remain linked for visibility and reporting.
Actions can be applied to:
- the parent dispatch,
- the child dispatch,
- or both.
This removes the need for manual task creation during escalations.
Why Parent and Child workflows are important
Before this workflow model, escalating a dispatch required dispatchers to:
- manually create a new task,
- assign it,
- and track response time separately.
This introduced delays and made it difficult to measure end‑to‑end response performance.
Parent and Child workflows make escalations:
- instant — no manual setup required,
- traceable — tasks remain linked,
- measurable — response time is visible across the escalation.
How this improves SLA visibility
Because parent and child dispatches are connected:
- response performance can be tracked across both tasks,
- escalation time is no longer invisible,
- operational reporting reflects the full response lifecycle.
This is especially valuable for incidents that require additional responders or specialized support.
Who this impacts
Parent and Child Dispatch Workflows are most relevant for:
- Dispatchers, who can escalate incidents without interrupting active workflows,
- Operations managers, who gain clearer visibility into escalated responses,
- Administrators, who configure workflows that support structured escalation paths.
What this does not change
This feature does not:
- remove existing dispatch workflows,
- require manual creation of child tasks,
- alter how individual dispatch tasks behave once created.
It adds structure and visibility to escalations without changing core dispatch concepts.