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Out of Office

When a technician is away, Out of Office keeps the help desk moving: new tickets stop routing to them, their open tickets are handed to a backup, and they slip back into the rotation automatically when they return.

What happens when someone is out of office​

  • New tickets skip them. Automatic ticket assignment (round-robin and random) no longer picks a technician who is out of office.
  • Their open tickets move to a backup. The moment they are marked out, every open ticket currently assigned to them is reassigned to the backup technician you choose. Each reassignment is recorded on the ticket's history.
  • They are clearly flagged. In the "Assign Ticket" and "Assigned To" menus on a ticket, an out-of-office technician appears greyed out with "(Out of Office)" next to their name. You can still choose them on purpose if you need to.
  • They come back automatically. If you set a return date, they are brought back into the rotation on that date without anyone having to remember. With no return date, they stay out until someone clears it.

Tickets that were handed to the backup stay with the backup after the technician returns. They are not moved back automatically.

Mark yourself out of office​

Anyone can set their own status from their profile.

  1. Click your name in the top-right corner and choose Edit Profile.
  2. Scroll to the Out of Office card.
  3. Under Backup Technician, choose the person who should cover for you. Your open tickets will be reassigned to them.
  4. Optionally set a Return Date. You will be brought back on that date.
  5. Click Mark Me Out of Office and confirm.

You will see how many of your open tickets were handed to your backup. To come back early, return to the same card and click I'm back — clear Out of Office.

Mark someone else out of office​

Administrators with the Manage Out of Office permission can set the status for another technician (useful when someone is out unexpectedly).

  1. Go to Administrators and open the technician you want to update.
  2. Scroll to the Out of Office card.
  3. Choose a Backup Technician and, optionally, a Return Date.
  4. Click Mark Out of Office and confirm.

Their open tickets are reassigned to the backup right away. To bring them back, open the same technician and click Clear Out of Office.

Choosing a backup​

  • The backup must be an active technician, and cannot be the person going out of office.
  • Someone who is already out of office cannot be chosen as a backup.
  • If you do not set a return date, remember to clear the status when the technician is back so tickets start routing to them again.

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