Workflow Series: Email Delegation for Assistants, Leaders, and More.
The role of executive support has evolved a lot. Whether you're a Chief of Staff, Executive Assistant, or Team Lead, managing someone else's communication is no longer just about forwarding emails and sending basic responses. Today's email delegation requires strategic thinking, careful prioritization, and the right tools to make it all work seamlessly.
With Missive, email delegation is easy and secure. You decide to whom and what to delegate, the type of access, and actions permitted.
Modern Email Delegation
Gone are the days of sharing passwords or setting up complicated email forwarding rules. Modern email delegation is about creating efficient workflows while maintaining security and accountability. Here's what that looks like in practice:
Executive Assistants
- Managing multiple executive inboxes
- Drafting responses for review
- Triaging urgent matters
- Coordinating cross-department communication
- Maintaining relationship management through timely responses
Chiefs of Staff
- Overseeing strategic communications
- Coordinating between executive team members
- Handling sensitive information with discretion
- Aligning communication with company objectives
Team Leads
- Distributing customer inquiries
- Managing shared department inboxes
- Coordinating project communications
- Training new team members
- Maintaining communication standards
Missive Configurations for Email Delegation
Missive offers powerful workflows designed for modern email delegation:
| 1. On-demand | 2. Full delegation | 3. Automated | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type of delegation | Available to all team members | Available to all team members in the Team Inbox | Content-based access as per predefined rules |
| Accountability | Shared responsibility among team members | Specific accountability for assigned users | Roles are accountable based on delegation rules |
| Best Use Case | Ideal low volume delegation | Useful for teams with individual task ownership needs | Works well for teams who can clearly define sharing rules |
| Pros and Cons | + No setup needed - Not scalable |
+ Clear accountability - Requires high degree of trust |
+ Role clarity - Initial configuration can take time |
1. On-demand (aka @mentions)
Basic delegation requires no setup. Team members can mention @coworkers in the chat bar to collaborate. No more forwarding endless email threads—everything stays in Missive for easy tracking and reference.
You can also use assigments to clearly define who needs to take care of what.
Other settings, such as sharing aliases, can be used to allow a team member to send emails from another team member's address. With this configuration, a team member can reply on your behalf but won't have access to all incoming emails unless they're being shared.
You will always have access to all emails sent by a delegated user.
2. Full Delegation with Team Inboxes
For roles that need full access to another’s inbox, such as an executive assistant needing a CEO’s inbox, Missive offers a Team Inbox solution. Connecting an email account to a Team Inbox allows all communications to be managed in one centralized space. This makes it easy to stay organized and adapt as your organization grows. Simply add new members to the Team, and they’ll instantly gain access to the shared emails.
With team inboxes, there’s no need to mix shared emails with personal inboxes, and multiple team members can work together seamlessly, which is especially helpful for distributed teams.
Assistants can be made members of the team, and owners can be observers, these don't get notified of new emails, but they can keep an eye on everything at all times.
The assistant can reply as the owner of the account (ceo@acme.com). Also, a custom signature can be created.
Assistants can also triage emails by creating color-coded shared labels.
The owner can pin labels to the sidebar to quickly access emails that need their response.
Pro tipIn the sidebar, do a right-click on a label and click on Show if unread. The label will be hidden until there are unread messages. This can help you keep a clutter-free screen.
2.1 Triage-only access
Similar to the case above, all email arrives in a Team Inbox but through a shared address.
The big difference is the shared addresses nature. In this configuration, the assistant can see all incoming emails but cannot reply as the owner (ceo@acme.com), only as themself (assistant@acme.com).
3. Automated, Privacy-First Delegation
If an account contains private messages, Missive allows you to set up rules to filter these from the assistant’s view. For example, family, friends, or finance-related emails can be hidden, ensuring personal information stays private. This setup balances delegation with privacy, providing peace of mind while maintaining workflow efficiency.
In this case, the owner imports a private account. Here, email sharing is done automatically through rules. This configuration of delegation is essential when the content of some emails is private and can’t be seen by the assistant.
The owner (ceo@acme.com) can create rules to share only some emails with the assistant (assistant@acme.com) and keep the rest private.
In the next example, a rule is set to keep all family/friends/finance related emails from going to the assistant's inbox.
Actions such as removing a conversation from the owner's inbox can also be achieved with rules. For instance, when the assistant labels an email as "Non-essential", the rule will close the conversation, removing it from the owner's inbox, keeping it tidy.
Pro tipIf a private email needs to be delegated, a simple @mention to the assistant can grant temporary access to it, it can be removed in the future.
Creating a Delegation System That Works
The key to successful email delegation isn't just about tools – it's about creating a system that works for both the delegate and the owner. Here's how to build one:
Establish clear guidelines for:
- Which emails need executive review
- Standard response templates
- Urgency levels and response times
- Internal communication protocols
Communication Management:
- Draft responses in your executive's voice
- Maintain relationship continuity
- Track important conversations
- Keep contextual notes
Collaborative Efficiency:
- Set up shared response canned responses
- Create Team Inbox protocols
- Establish assignment rules
- Maintain consistent communication standards
- Track team performance metrics
Remember, effective email delegation isn't just about managing messages – it's about facilitating communication that moves your organization forward.
Whether you're just starting with email delegation or looking to improve your existing system, the most important thing is creating a framework that works for your specific situation. Start with the basics, refine as you go, and always keep security and efficiency in balance.
