Managing Calendar Invites with Sedna and MS Teams

How to Manage Inbound Calendar Invites received in Sedna

Sedna has defined a workflow that reads your inbound email and applies the Category Tag - “Calendar Invite” to it. 

To ensure you don’t miss any calendar invites we will create a “Live Search” that looks for this Tag and lets you know when you have a new invite. 

When you receive a new invitation you should go to your MS Teams calendar and accept/deny the invitation.

Ideal workflow for inbound mail to Sedna:

1. You receive a calendar invite
2. Sedna notifies you that you have received a calendar invite
3. You can then navigate to your Teams calendar and accept the invite

This Live Search will also capture updates to calendar invites so you can be sure you haven’t missed any. 

How to get notified of new calendar invites in Microsoft Teams

The MS Teams calendar can notify you of an upcoming calendar invite in your “Activity Bar”, “a desktop notification” and/or a Banner in Teams. 

To do this, ensure you have the following settings enabled in your MS Teams Calendar: 

1. Enable MS teams to send desktop notifications 
2. “New invites, updates and cancellations sent to me” = “Show in Activity and Banner”
3. “When people forward meetings I’ve organised” = “Show in Activity and Banner”
4. Missed Activity Emails = “Daily” 

These settings will ensure that you receive notifications when a calendar invite is sent to you/RSVP’d or changed. 

Step 1: Setting Up a Sedna Workflow for Calendar Invites

To organise calendar-related messages in Sedna:

1. Access Workflow Configuration:
   • Log in to Sedna as a user with access to the Workflows feature.
   • Navigate to Settings > Workflows.
2. Create a New Workflow Rule:
   • Set the rule to apply to all inboxes.
   • Use the following criteria for identifying calendar-related emails:
     • Subject contains:
       • Invitation:
       • Accepted:
       • Declined:
       • Updated invitation:
       • Updated invitation with note:
       • Cancelled event:
       • New Time Proposed:
     • From contains: Specific email addresses such as notification@cron.com.
     • Attachment name contains: .ics (to capture calendar file attachments).
3. Apply an Action:
   • Add the Category Tag: Calendar Invite.
4. Save and Activate the Workflow:
   • Once saved, this Workflow will automatically tag relevant messages with "Calendar Invite."

Step 2: Setting Up a Live Search in Sedna

To quickly find calendar-related messages:

1. Go to Search > Create Live Search.
2. Set the search criteria to look for the Category Tag: Calendar Invite.
3. Save the search as "Calendar Invites" for easy access.

This Live Search ensures you never miss new invites or updates.

Step 3: Managing Calendar Invites in Teams

Once calendar-related emails are tagged in Sedna:

1. Check the Invite in Sedna:
   • Navigate to your "Calendar Invites" Live Search in Sedna.
   • Open the tagged message to review the details of the invite.
2. Action the Invite in Microsoft Teams:
   • Open your Microsoft Teams Calendar.
   • Accept, decline, or modify the invite directly in Teams.

Step 4: Optimising Notifications in Microsoft Teams

To ensure you're notified about updates:

1. Enable Calendar Notifications:
   • In Teams, go to Settings > Notifications.
   • Under Meetings, enable:
     • New invites, updates, and cancellations: Show in Activity and Banner.
     • When people forward meetings I’ve organised: Show in Activity and Banner.
2. Set Missed Activity Emails:
   • Under Settings > Notifications, enable Missed Activity Emails to Daily.

Ideal Workflow for Calendar Management

1. Receive Invite in Sedna:
   • Sedna identifies and tags calendar-related emails.
   • Use the Live Search to find these emails.
2. Review the Invite:
   • Review the email in Sedna to understand the meeting details.
3. Action in Teams:
   • Manage your invite directly in the Teams Calendar.
   • Rely on Teams notifications to stay updated on changes.

Benefits of Using Microsoft Teams Calendar

• Centralised Scheduling: Teams integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365, pulling all calendar invites into one place.
• Real-Time Notifications: Stay updated with desktop banners, activity alerts, and emails.

Improved Collaboration: Teams meetings include direct links for joining, streamlining communication.