Email / Outlook help

Diddums

Diddums

Diddums

Caporegime
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I'll try keep this short:

Helpdesk, two operators, both using a shared helpdesk inbox.

Emails are getting ignored, so we need to implement something.

Any suggestions? Can we make every email a specific colour or something and only have it change colour once it's been responded to?

Cheers :)
 
Is there not a column you can add in the settings that show the little "reply" arrow when a reply has been sent?

I don't use outlook but I know our system does this
 
I guess it depends why they're getting ignored. If it's laziness with one thinking the other is going to read it then nothing you set in outlook will make any difference.
 
Surely there are additional folders etc... they can move mails into? I've not used outlook for a while.

Get a proper system in place and then check it regularly yourself - like all issues to be picked up/self-assigned to one of the two numpties every day, the inbox should be clear at the end of the day.

"good to trust, better to check"

Get yourself in a position where you can just take a quick glance at it at the end of the day and see the inbox is empty, all those days e-mails are assigned to one of the two team members.

If you don't have a CRM system then perhaps even some shared doc/spreadsheet where they can list open items assigned to either of them might be useful, though I'd perhaps try to get the problem of e-mails not even being answered sorted first!
 
dowie said:
Surely there are additional folders etc... they can move mails into? I've not used outlook for a while.

Get a proper system in place and then check it regularly yourself - like all issues to be picked up/self-assigned to one of the two numpties every day, the inbox should be clear at the end of the day.

"good to trust, better to check"

Get yourself in a position where you can just take a quick glance at it at the end of the day and see the inbox is empty, all those days e-mails are assigned to one of the two team members.

If you don't have a CRM system then perhaps even some shared doc/spreadsheet where they can list open items assigned to either of them might be useful, though I'd perhaps try to get the problem of e-mails not even being answered sorted first!
Click to expand...
^ Helicopter boss checking in.

I think diddums just wants two (two!) people to manage one Inbox effectively. I'm not sure he wants to add himself into this already awkward situation.
 
dowie said:
Surely there are additional folders etc... they can move mails into? I've not used outlook for a while.
Click to expand...
That's how I ended up sorting a similar issue. We had a Shared Mailbox and users weren't sure if emails had been dealt with by someone else. Now when one user deals with a query, they move it to the relevant sub folder.
 
[FnG]magnolia said:
^ Helicopter boss checking in.

I think diddums just wants two (two!) people to manage one Inbox effectively. I'm not sure he wants to add himself into this already awkward situation.
Click to expand...

No one suggested he should, the suggestion was to set up a system to solve it and then be able to check in; ultimately *if* it is his team then it's still his problem if stuff is being ignored. If anything that sort of thing is more awkward than just fixing it and being able to check.
 
Diddums said:
I'll try keep this short:

Helpdesk, two operators, both using a shared helpdesk inbox.

Emails are getting ignored, so we need to implement something.

Any suggestions? Can we make every email a specific colour or something and only have it change colour once it's been responded to?

Cheers :)
Click to expand...

Easiest thing we found with working on multiple users in one inbox with outlook was to create a folder for completed and favouriting it along with categorising emails if you are working on it. When an email has been done drag it in there and forget about it. You are then just left with an empty inbox apart from anything new that comes in. Very little training required and the staff were onboard with it after trailing since it made the inbox so much easier to deal with.
 
Someone at some point must have done a study on the impact of not having a functioning inbox (mods!) in a similar way to when you go on holiday and set your out office but you could just set it up indefinitely and ignore anything which comes via email. Email is a very lazy way of communicating so maybe it'd work?

(it would not work and your business will crap the bed, do not do this)
 
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