4_8_Incident_Severity_Matrix.xlsx

	A	B	C	D	E	F
1	Automation Incident Severity Matrix
2	Classification and Response Guidelines for Automation Incidents
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4	Severity Level	Definition & Examples	Response Time	Resolution Target	Escalation	Communication
5	Severity 1 CRITICAL	Complete automation failure affecting business operations Examples: • Bot completely down • Critical data loss • Security breach • Production system unavailable	15 minutes	4 hours	Immediate escalation to: • Senior technical staff • Management • On-call engineer	• Hourly updates to all stakeholders • Executive notification • Status page updates
6	Severity 2 HIGH	Major functionality impaired with significant business impact Examples: • High error rates (>20%) • Critical feature not working • Data quality issues • Integration failures	1 hour	8 hours	Escalate to technical lead if not resolved within 4 hours	• Twice daily updates to key stakeholders • Business owner notification • Impact assessment communicated
7	Severity 3 MEDIUM	Moderate impact with workaround available Examples: • Non-critical errors (5-20%) • Performance degradation • Minor feature not working • Delayed processing	4 hours	24 hours	Escalate to technical lead if not resolved within 2 business days	• Daily updates to affected users • Include in status reports • Document workaround
8	Severity 4 LOW	Minor issue with minimal business impact Examples: • Cosmetic issues • Minor logging problems • Nice-to-have enhancements • Documentation updates	Next business day	As resources permit	None required Review in weekly triage meeting	• Include in regular status reports • No special notifications required • Track in backlog
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10	Usage Notes:
11	• Response Time: Maximum time to acknowledge and begin working on the incident
12	• Resolution Target: Expected timeframe to fully resolve the incident
13	• Escalation: When and to whom the incident should be escalated
14	• Communication: Frequency and audience for status updates
15	• Severity should be determined based on business impact, not technical complexity
16	• When in doubt, escalate to higher severity and adjust as needed
17	• All times are in business hours unless otherwise specified for Severity 1
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19	Related Templates:
20	Template 4.8: Automation Maintenance Checklist - Appendix B
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