Outlook calendar synchronization made easy
One of the key advantages of the seamless integration between absentify and the Microsoft 365 environment is the synchronization feature with the Outlook calendar. No more worrying about entering absences in both absentify and your Outlook calendar!
This guide will show you how to effortlessly sync your users’ personal absences with Outlook, ensuring your leave management is smooth and efficient.
Note: This article covers the synchronization of personal absences only. For information on syncing group or shared calendars, check out our article on Upgrading to Shared Calendar Sync.
Wouldn’t it be great if your absences could automatically appear in your Outlook calendar without lifting a finger? With absentify, you can make that happen in just a few clicks.
An absentify account with tenant admin access.
An upgraded plan if you want access to updating the Free/Busy Options in Outlook when setting up absence display
Start by activating the Outlook Calendar Synchronization integration under Settings > Microsoft > Outlook Calendar Synchronization.
With this feature enabled, absences will automatically sync to the requester’s Outlook calendar, saving time and eliminating hassle.
For further information on all Microsoft integrations provided by absentify, visit this article on setting up Microsoft integrations.
If you leave this feature off, users will receive an email invitation via iCal whenever an absence is created. This invitation will allow them to add the absence to their Outlook calendar manually.
For example, here’s an email Diego received. By accepting the invite by clicking Yes, the absence will be instantly added to his Outlook calendar.
Activate automatic synchronization for a more hands-off approach. With this option, absences are synced directly to Outlook—no emails, no manual steps required. This makes it easy for your team to keep track of their leave across all platforms.
After enabling the automatic sync under the Microsoft integrations settings, follow these steps:
Go to Settings > Leave types.
Select the synchronization rule under "Enable Calendar Synchronization" for each leave type.
Synchronize upon entry creation: Sync absences as soon as they’re requested.
Synchronize approval only: Only approved absences will be synced.
Synchronize disabled: This leave type won’t sync with Outlook.
Once you're satisfied with your changes, click Save. Now users will see the scheduled leave in absentify mirrored in their Outlook Calendar
If you’re on the Business or Enterprise plan, you can also decide how absences are displayed in Outlook’s Free/Busy Options. This feature is helpful when scheduling meetings, as it allows others to see if a user is available, busy, or busy with reservations.
To customize this setting:
Go to Settings > Leave types > Edit.
Choose how the absence should be displayed.
After setting up the synchronization, users will see the leave type displayed as the selected option from their Outlook calendar
If the Microsoft Outlook sync is deactivated, absentify will still send invitations to users’ Outlook email if their leave request is canceled. This allows them to remove the event from their Outlook calendar if needed.
And that’s it! With this setup, your users’ leave tracked in absentify will automatically sync to their Outlook calendar, streamlining your workflow and allowing you to focus on what matters most.
For more information on Microsoft integrations available within absentify, check out our guide on Setting Up Microsoft Integrations.
For further assistance, feel free to contact absentify support. If you have suggestions for new features, please leave recommendations on the absentify roadmap. We're here to help you make the most out of absentify!
Create and share Outlook calendars
Install absentify in Outlook
Upgrade: Shared calendar sync
This guide will show you how to effortlessly sync your users’ personal absences with Outlook, ensuring your leave management is smooth and efficient.
Note: This article covers the synchronization of personal absences only. For information on syncing group or shared calendars, check out our article on Upgrading to Shared Calendar Sync.
Let's get started
Wouldn’t it be great if your absences could automatically appear in your Outlook calendar without lifting a finger? With absentify, you can make that happen in just a few clicks.
Prerequisites
An absentify account with tenant admin access.
An upgraded plan if you want access to updating the Free/Busy Options in Outlook when setting up absence display
Start by activating the Outlook Calendar Synchronization integration under Settings > Microsoft > Outlook Calendar Synchronization.
With this feature enabled, absences will automatically sync to the requester’s Outlook calendar, saving time and eliminating hassle.
For further information on all Microsoft integrations provided by absentify, visit this article on setting up Microsoft integrations.
If the feature is deactivated
If you leave this feature off, users will receive an email invitation via iCal whenever an absence is created. This invitation will allow them to add the absence to their Outlook calendar manually.
For example, here’s an email Diego received. By accepting the invite by clicking Yes, the absence will be instantly added to his Outlook calendar.
Automatic sync
Activate automatic synchronization for a more hands-off approach. With this option, absences are synced directly to Outlook—no emails, no manual steps required. This makes it easy for your team to keep track of their leave across all platforms.
After enabling the automatic sync under the Microsoft integrations settings, follow these steps:
Go to Settings > Leave types.
Select the synchronization rule under "Enable Calendar Synchronization" for each leave type.
Synchronization Options:
Synchronize upon entry creation: Sync absences as soon as they’re requested.
Synchronize approval only: Only approved absences will be synced.
Synchronize disabled: This leave type won’t sync with Outlook.
Once you're satisfied with your changes, click Save. Now users will see the scheduled leave in absentify mirrored in their Outlook Calendar
Setup absence display
If you’re on the Business or Enterprise plan, you can also decide how absences are displayed in Outlook’s Free/Busy Options. This feature is helpful when scheduling meetings, as it allows others to see if a user is available, busy, or busy with reservations.
To customize this setting:
Go to Settings > Leave types > Edit.
Choose how the absence should be displayed.
After setting up the synchronization, users will see the leave type displayed as the selected option from their Outlook calendar
Leave cancellation
If the Microsoft Outlook sync is deactivated, absentify will still send invitations to users’ Outlook email if their leave request is canceled. This allows them to remove the event from their Outlook calendar if needed.
And that’s it! With this setup, your users’ leave tracked in absentify will automatically sync to their Outlook calendar, streamlining your workflow and allowing you to focus on what matters most.
For more information on Microsoft integrations available within absentify, check out our guide on Setting Up Microsoft Integrations.
Need help?
For further assistance, feel free to contact absentify support. If you have suggestions for new features, please leave recommendations on the absentify roadmap. We're here to help you make the most out of absentify!
Related articles
Create and share Outlook calendars
Install absentify in Outlook
Upgrade: Shared calendar sync
Updated on: 13/08/2024
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