Feature update: Email sending behavior for Groups in Outlook

[Ravin Sachdeva]

We have recently fixed the email sending behavior to a group, where senders had complained about receiving the emails they send to a group, back in their personal inbox. With this fix, senders will no longer receive the emails they send to a group, back in their personal inbox. The sender can receive email sent to group in there Inbox, they have to login to there mailbox  using OWA, and then Settings->Mail->Groups->"Send me a copy of email I send to a group"

The primary complaints we heard were about reading the same message users sent to a group multiple times - in their sent messages, and their inbox.

We believe sending an email to a person or to a group should be consistent, and this circling back of an email from a group was just leading to confusion, unnecessary triage, and inconvenience for a lot of our users.

We understand that some users had started using this inconsistent behavior as a way to confirm if their emails were delivered to a group. An email sent to a group is already available in the group's conversation archive as well as in the sender's sent email.

Update (4/7/2017):

Thanks for all your valuable feedback. Though a good majority of our users have embraced this change for Groups, there's also a section of our users who complained about this change affecting their workflows. We value all the feedback from our users and hence we are considering enhancing this feature to address the negative feedback. Please watch this space for further updates on this feature in the coming weeks.

[#2]

@Alpha66100 - The roadmap item is apparently so old that it is no longer available. Are you referring to this setting? 

[#3]

@Ravin Sachdeva 

Hello -  I think that I may have figured out the problem... but I was not receiving emails from the group in members' inbox (this is not the same as a distribution group) nor were my members.

Step one:  Open  your groups folder and click on 3 dots: 

Step two:  Click on settings:

Step 3:  Change settings for you as needed. If you are the owner, change settings for group:

Step 4:  Change settings for Group as needed.  

I hope this helps.

[#4]

@Ravin Sachdeva 

My manager recently started using Outlook Groups, so I am no longer receiving messages that I send to the group email address in my inbox. I just looked under Outlook Options, Groups, and I do not see an option where I can check to receive emails that I send to a group address in my inbox. Will this functionality be added for those of us who do want to see our own messages in the inbox?

[#5]

I don't know that our organization minds this. Not sure. But, then again, I have had things become an issue with users that I never thought would be an issue. And I've seen things requested that I never foresaw someone requesting.  I don't think this is a big surprise, but the fact is that users don't always agree with each other in their preferences, even on something as "seemingly" trivial as this.  (It bet this issue did seem trivial a while back, didn't it?)  Like most features like this one, there will be some users who will want it one way, while others will want it another way... and yes - there will be another set of users that don't care either way.  So, I wouldn't be surprised if I saw a request for the old way tomorrow.

And generally, I could also see a CEO or VP asking their IT Department for this feature back. Maybe they used it before and haven't needed it in while. But, now they had a new group created and they are wondering why their emails to the group aren't showing up in their own inbox, they way the prefer it. I mention a CEO and VP because I think in most companies, if the CEO or a VP asks the IT Department for something, the IT Department really wants to provide that to them.  

But, with that said, I would recommend making it an option that can be changed both full-tenant-wide and per user account.  And even better, make it an option to let the user select their preference for the option.  Then companies and their users can have the flexibility to decide for themselves on how they want to manage this feature - if they really care about it.  

I suggest this approach for most features that any provider (including Microsoft) is planning on just completely changing based on complaints. You aren't hearing the complaints the other way until you throw that big switch. And then it's too late. The complaints are there. Your customers are unhappy.  Sure you can have meetings and discussions and planning and then correct or change the option. But, you've already made your customers users unhappy.  And now your customers are unhappy.  Why do that to yourselves?

Look at the situation, and if it isn't some special situation where this flexibility simply won't work, then don't completely change the option. Instead of changing the option, widen the option INTO MORE OPTIONS. When you can, offer more options instead of forcing a change of the option onto everyone. If you give more options (rather than taking some away) you make more of your customers users happy.  That will make your customers happy.  

Your focus should be more on your customers users, not your customers. Very often your customers users can make your customers either very happy or very unhappy. If your customers users are happy, the customer is happy. And they will really be happy if a the CEO or a VP requests an option and they were able to respond with "Yes, we can do that." Win-Win. Happy users. Happy customer. When you can, consider expanding your options rather than "big switch" changing them. That's what I would do here. And now... I am really hoping that you do this soon because I am pretty sure that by writing this, I have destined our team to receiving complaints about this exact issue from a bunch of users in the near future. If you work in IT, you know it can happen. Karma. Here it comes... (holding breath)

[#6]

Yes @kreera , I am asking for the same feature, but it looks like this setting is already been turned off on my account and still getting the email.

[#7]

@Ravin Sachdeva 

I have the below requirement and my IT says it's not possible however I used to use this way previously.

Currently, the mail ID is in exchange.

Wanted to create one group id, so anyone marked mail to this id we all members should receive in our personal email id where as while replying we should have options which id need to use for reply. This is to avoid two different mail "Inbox".

Please help if this is possible.

[#8]

Just enable the From field and select the From: address before sending.

[#9]

I am signed in to my Outlook account and I cannot receive emails. I can send and all my emails are in my mailbox and files, just can't receive? Help