M365 Changelog: Outlook for iOS and Android – Sync additional contact folders as category labels

MC245819 – As we announced in December 2019 (MC232127), users who have set up additional contact folders in Outlook on the web, or in Outlook for Windows or Mac, see those folders as a new category in Outlook mobile (iOS and Android). The category label corresponds to the folder name in Outlook on the web or Outlook for Windows or Mac.

The rollout has been delayed to ensure a quality experience for our customers; we apologize for any inconvenience. In addition, we would like to provide updated information about this feature. 

Key points

• Microsoft 365 Roadmap IDs 69139 and 71507
• Timing: end of January through the end of Aprill (was February)
• Roll-out: device level
• Action: review and assess 

How this will affect your organization

Users who have set up additional contact folders in Outlook on the web, or Outlook for Windows or Mac, will see those folders as a new categories in Outlook Mobile.

The category label will correspond to the folder name. As part of the synchronization, each category is assigned a color.

• If a user has created a single additional contact folder, we will create a category and assign it a category color.
• If a user has created multiple folders, we will create a category for each folder and assign it to the associated contacts. Users will have the option to upgrade those categories and assign them a color if needed.
• Changes to category labels in Outlook mobile will not affect folders in the other Outlook experiences.

Users will see changes to the Contact list by navigating to Search > People (iOS) or by navigating to Contacts (Android).  

What you need to do to prepare for this change

You might want to notify your users about this new capability and update your training and documentation as appropriate. 

In addition, users may see duplicate contacts appear if they have saved the same contact in more than one folder. Users can resolve this issue by consolidating the duplicated contacts into a single contacts folder. See Resolve or delete duplicate contacts. 

Blog post: Get organized people!