Recipe: Shared Inbox Triage

Process open items in shared inboxes. Review each item, assign to the right person, respond where possible, and mark resolved items as done.

Prerequisite: Read the spark base skill for tool reference and filter syntax.

Access level required: triage.

Steps

Step 1: List open items

emails { "folder": "shared@company.com:Inbox", "filter": "is:shared_inbox_open" }

Replace shared@company.com:Inbox with the actual shared inbox identifier from folders.

Step 2: Check unassigned items (highest priority)

emails { "folder": "shared@company.com:Inbox", "filter": "is:shared_inbox_open assigned_to:unassigned" }

These need someone to own them.

Step 3: Review each item

thread { "message_id": "<id>" }

Read the full conversation to understand the request.

Step 4: Take action

Assign to the right person:

action { "action_name": "assign", "message_ids": ["<id>"], "assignee": "specialist@co.com", "comment": "Billing question, your area" }

Respond directly if you can:

draft { "reply_to": "<id>", "body": "..." }

Comment for internal coordination:

comment { "message_id": "<id>", "body": "I've contacted the vendor about this, waiting for their response" }

Mark as done if resolved:

action { "action_name": "markAsDone", "message_ids": ["<id>"] }

Step 5: Review completed items

emails { "folder": "shared@company.com:Inbox", "filter": "is:shared_inbox_done" }

Periodically check that completed items are truly resolved.

Tips

• Start with unassigned items - they're the most urgent because nobody is handling them.
• Use team to see team members and their current assignment load before assigning.
• Always add a comment when assigning to explain why that person should handle it.
• Process the queue in a batch: list all, review, assign, then move on - don't switch between inbox and individual items.
• Mark items as done immediately after resolution to keep the queue accurate.
• Use folders to find the exact shared inbox identifier (e.g., shared@company.com:Inbox).