SOP: Shared inbox vs ticketing system for requests

SOP: Shared inbox vs ticketing system for requests

Run this whenever a queue of requests starts dropping or duplicating.

Stage 1 — Measure the pain (owner: queue owner)
☐ Requests per week, and how many slipped past SLA last month.
☐ Do you need reporting on volume, response time, or category?
☐ How many people share the queue?

Stage 2 — Choose
☐ Shared inbox: fast to set up, feels like email, zero training. Use under ~30 requests/week with 2-3 handlers. Cost: no SLA tracking, easy to double-reply or drop.
☐ Ticketing: assignment, statuses, SLA, reporting. Use above ~30/week or when you must prove response times. Cost: setup, training, and a triage owner.

Stage 3 — Either way (owner: queue owner)
☐ Define states: new → assigned → waiting → done.
☐ Name a triage owner who assigns within one business day.
☐ Done-when: no request sits unassigned overnight.

Trigger: queue is leaking. Done-when: tool and triage owner set.

Save this. Run it every time.