Tackling ‘Out of Office’: A Personal Story Leads to an Experimental Approach

Recently, I took a much-needed 10-day vacation. Anticipating an avalanche of emails upon my return, I found myself working extra hours to respond to as many messages as I could before leaving. My concerns extended beyond my own workload – I was worried about clients not receiving prompt responses or being uncertain about whom to contact in my absence.

As an experiment, I turned to Power Automate and set up a simple two-step process:

1. Any email that arrived after hours or during my vacation would be moved into a folder labeled “Hold”.
2. At 8 am each workday, the system would verify whether it was a workday. If so, it would transfer the held emails back into my inbox.

To my delight, this worked wonderfully! I was able to focus on the existing mail in my inbox and handle it without the distraction of new incoming emails. I didn’t feel compelled to check my personal email in Outlook, which was a huge relief.

But on my return, a new problem emerged: How could I quickly identify which emails still required my attention?

This experience sparked a discussion when a team member announced they would be going away for two weeks. What was the optimal policy to ensure that no email was left unanswered during a person’s absence?

To tackle this issue, we’re trialing an experimental Out of Office policy. The aim? To maintain smooth communication without overwhelming the person who’s away.

Here’s our proposed process:

1. Enable Your Out of Office Status: Once you’re heading off, activate your Out of Office status. Our system steps in from there.
2. Automated Email Archiving: All incoming emails during your absence are automatically archived, preventing an avalanche of messages upon your return.
3. Automatic Response Activation: An auto-response is triggered, informing the sender of your absence.
4. Guidance on Email Forwarding: The auto-response includes a table of alternative contacts, organized by type of request. Senders are instructed to forward their email to the appropriate person.

We’re eager to see the potential benefits of this experiment:

1. Reduced Stress: In line with our People-First philosophy, we hope this will allow staff to enjoy their time off without fearing an overflowing inbox on their return.
2. Prompt Responses: Given that one can’t respond to emails while on vacation, our policy could ensure continuity of service by rerouting messages to someone who is available.
3. Greater Efficiency: By categorizing and redirecting emails, we might see a reduction in overlooked messages and a boost in productivity.

This experimental Out of Office policy represents our commitment to continual improvement and a more people-oriented approach to work. Your time off should be just that – time off, free from the dread of a bulging inbox.

As always, we invite your feedback as we test and refine this new system together.