LLena Marshlena@orbitly.example17:40
Hi team,
We're adding two more teams to the pilot. Could you send us the updated onboarding plan before Wednesday's kickoff?
Missed replies
Reduce missed replies in a shared inbox
Track what still needs an answer apart from what has been read. In Inbox Works, opening an email doesn’t mark it Done, and everyone sees the team’s replies in the conversation.
How it works
Reading an email doesn’t mark it Done. It stays in the Inbox until someone answers it or marks it Done.
A teammate’s reply appears in the conversation for the whole team, and the email moves to Done.
Why it happens
- Read is not answered.1
Where a team shares one mailbox, read status is usually shared too. If your team uses read status as its to-do list, one person opening an email can make it look finished.
- Replies are hard to see.2
By default, a reply sent from an Outlook shared mailbox is saved in the sender’s own Sent Items, not the shared mailbox’s.
- Someone is out.3
Without someone covering, emails that one person usually answers wait until they return.
What you can do with your current tools
| What happens | |
|---|---|
| Outlook shared mailbox2 | An admin can have a copy of every reply saved in the shared mailbox’s own Sent Items, so the team can see what was sent. It doesn’t show who is writing one. |
| A Google Group’s collaborative inbox4 | Mark a conversation complete when it’s done. |
| Any mailbox | Mark an email unread again after reading it, or keep a shared list of open emails. Both rely on everyone remembering. |
| Inbox Works | Opening an email doesn’t mark it Done, and the team’s replies appear in the conversation. |
Limits and sources
Limits
- An email can be marked Done without a reply.
- Emails move to Done on their own only from senders your team has approved: Straight to Done asks about each sender first.
- Someone still has to look at the Inbox. Inbox Works keeps open emails in view; it doesn’t answer them.
- If you’re waiting for the customer’s answer, Follow up brings the email back to the Inbox. It looks for a dated promise or a question in your reply, and won’t catch every one.
- Google Workspace, in early access by approval: forward your shared address to Inbox Works, and replies go out from your own Google account. Microsoft 365, in early access by approval: sign in once to connect your shared address, and replies go out from it.
Sources
- Read is not answered. Microsoft Q&A · r/sysadmin
- Replies are hard to see. Microsoft docs · r/Office365
- Someone is out. r/sysadmin · r/msp
- A Google Group’s collaborative inbox. Google Workspace help
Summaries of the linked threads and help pages, read 12 October 2026.
Related Add-on
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Hand off
Assign an email to a teammate
When someone is away, give an absent teammate’s open emails to the person covering, then give them back when the teammate returns.
Questions
Can we use it with our own email now?
On Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, yes, by approval: early access is open, so ask for it and we write when your team can start. The demo, with sample email, is open now.