Use Contact Sync, Outlook Contact Sync, and Smart Connect to manage how contacts move between Outlook, a user’s personal contacts, and the firm list in InterAction+™ AI.
These sync features help firms bring contact management into InterAction+™ AI so administrators can manage sync settings from Firm Settings, while users can review new contacts and decide whether contacts should remain personal or be contributed to the firm.
In this article
- How the sync features work together
- Who uses these features
- Setup and access
- Contact Sync: User-to-Firm
- Outlook Contact Sync
- Smart Connect
- Limitations and considerations
How the sync features work together
The sync features support different parts of the contact contribution process.
| Feature | What it does | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Contact Sync: User-to-Firm | Lets administrators manage sync settings for individual users from Firm Settings. | Administrators no longer need to leave InterAction+™ AI to manage sync settings that were previously managed from the On-premise Administrator Client. |
| Outlook Contact Sync | Lets users review possible new Outlook contacts and choose whether to contribute them to the firm list or keep them personal. | Users can help build firm contact data while still reviewing and controlling which contacts are contributed. |
| Smart Connect | Uses firm-defined rules to determine what should happen when contacts are added to a user’s phone or directly to Outlook and then sync into InterAction+™ AI. | Firms can make contact contribution more consistent by applying rules instead of relying only on one-off user decisions. |
These features are related, but they are not the same. Contact Sync manages user-to-firm sync settings, Outlook Contact Sync supports review of possible new Outlook contacts, and Smart Connect applies rules that help determine how synced contacts are handled.
Who uses these features
| Feature | Primary users | Secondary users | Typical usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact Sync: User-to-Firm | InterAction Administrators | Data Stewards | Used as needed when users are onboarded or offboarded. |
| Outlook Contact Sync | Lawyers and PAs acting as proxies | Administrators who configure sync settings | Requires initial setup. Users should regularly review possible new contacts. |
| Smart Connect | Lawyers and PAs acting as proxies | Administrators who configure Smart Connect rules | Requires initial setup. Users should regularly review new contacts. |
Setup and access
Administrators manage these features from Firm Settings > Contact Management.
Before using these features:
- The user must have permission to access the relevant Contact Management settings.
- Outlook Contact Sync must be enabled at the tenant level before it can be enabled for users.
- Users must be enabled for Outlook sync where appropriate.
- Smart Connect requires Outlook sync and User-to-Firm Contact Sync to be enabled for the relevant users first.
- New contacts can be contributed only when the firm’s minimum required fields are present.
Contact Sync: User-to-Firm
Contact Sync was previously managed from the On-premise Administrator Client. In InterAction+™ AI, these capabilities are accessed from Firm Settings.
This change lets administrators view and manage sync processes without leaving InterAction+™ AI.
Why this matters
Moving Contact Sync into Firm Settings centralizes the administrative workflow. Instead of managing sync from a separate client, administrators can manage Outlook, Contact, and Smart Connect sync settings from the same area used for other contact management configuration.
Manage syncs for a user
- Go to Firm Settings > Contact Management > Users.
- Search for the user.
- Select the check box next to the user’s name.
- Select Actions.
- Enable or disable the applicable sync:
- Outlook
- Contact
- Smart Connect
- To edit the user’s sync mode, select the pencil icon in the associated row.
- Review or update the available sync options, such as Clear Timestamps and Outlook override options.
Outlook Contact Sync
Outlook Contact Sync provides a process similar to On-premise IA, with an improved review experience in InterAction+™ AI.
Administrators enable Outlook Contact Sync at the tenant level and then enable sync for the relevant users. Users review possible new contacts in New Contact Review in the Outlook Pending Review area.
Why this matters
Outlook Contact Sync gives users a review step before Outlook contacts are contributed to the firm. This helps protect the quality of firm data while still making it easier for users to contribute useful contacts.
Users can decide whether to:
- Promote contacts to the firm list.
- Keep contacts as personal contacts.
- Review contacts one by one.
- Review contacts in bulk.
Configure Outlook Contact Sync
- Go to Firm Settings > Contact Management > Configuration.
-
Enable Outlook sync at the tenant level.
- Go to Firm Settings > Contact Management > Users.
-
Enable Outlook sync for the relevant users.
Review possible new Outlook contacts
- Go to Contacts > New Contact Review.
- Open the Outlook Pending Review area.
- Review the possible new contacts.
-
Choose whether each contact should be promoted to the firm list or kept as a personal contact.
- Process contacts individually or in bulk, as needed.
Current and new client experience
For existing clients, users who already have Outlook Contact Sync enabled can maintain that enablement. User settings and preferences for Outlook Contact Sync are available for each user.
For new clients, Outlook Contact Sync settings are part of Contact Management in Full Cloud. These settings control sync enablement and the defaults for new users joining the firm. Users can then adjust their Outlook Contact preferences in their user settings.
Smart Connect
Smart Connect uses rules to determine what happens when users add a contact to their phone or directly to Outlook and that contact syncs into InterAction+™ AI.
Smart Connect follows the same general process as On-premise IA, but the rules are easier to access and configure from Contact Management.
Why this matters
Smart Connect helps firms apply a more consistent process to contact contribution. Instead of requiring every contact to be handled manually, the firm can configure rules that determine whether a contact should be pushed to the firm list, recommended for contribution, or left to the user to decide.
Smart Connect rule outcomes
Depending on the firm’s Smart Connect rules, one of the following actions can occur when a contact syncs into InterAction+™ AI:
| Rule outcome | What happens |
|---|---|
| Automatically pushed to the firm list | The contact is added to the firm list automatically. |
| Recommended for the firm list | The user is prompted or guided to add the contact to the firm list. |
| Recommended for a defined number of days, then automatically pushed | The contact is recommended for a set period before being added automatically. |
| User decides | The user chooses whether the contact should be contributed. |
Configure Smart Connect rules
-
Go to Firm Settings > Contact Management > Smart Connect.
- Review the existing Smart Connect rules.
-
Create new rules or update existing rules, as needed.
Enable Smart Connect for users
- Go to Firm Settings > Contact Management > Users.
- Confirm that the relevant users have Outlook sync enabled.
- Confirm that the relevant users have User-to-Firm Contact Sync enabled.
-
Enable Smart Connect for the relevant users.
Current and new client experience
Existing clients can enable Smart Connect rules to support easier batch processing and recommendations between firm contacts and a user’s My Contacts. Existing clients can also configure their own Smart Connect rules.
For new clients, Smart Connect is available under Contact Management > Smart Connect Rules and provides the same experience in fewer steps. New clients have out-of-the-box rules and can configure their own rules once Smart Connect is enabled.
Limitations and considerations
Review the following considerations before configuring or rolling out these features:
- Outlook Contact Sync requires initial setup, and new users need to be enabled for Outlook sync where appropriate.
- Users should regularly review new contacts.
- It is currently not possible to set up different geographic groups of users on different Outlook sync schedules.
- It is currently not possible for Data Stewards to be informed by tickets when new contacts are created through Outlook Contact Sync.
- Outlook Contact Sync works in tandem with Smart Connect.
- New contacts can be contributed only if the minimum fields set by the firm are present.
- Smart Connect requires users to have Outlook sync and User-to-Firm Contact Sync enabled first.
- There is currently a limitation when changing Smart Connect rules.
Contact Sync, Outlook Contact Sync, and Smart Connect work together to help firms manage contact contribution from Outlook and user contact sources.
Use Contact Sync: User-to-Firm to manage user sync settings from Firm Settings. Use Outlook Contact Sync to let users review possible new contacts and decide whether they should be contributed to the firm. Use Smart Connect to apply firm-defined rules to synced contacts and make the contribution process more consistent.