Change the Voicemail Greeting for a Department or Shared Line

Questions

• How do I change my department's voicemail greeting?
• How do I update the greeting callers hear when they reach a shared phone line?
• Can I change my department voicemail greeting myself in Teams?
• How do I submit a request to IT to change a department voicemail?
• Can I upload an audio file for my department's voicemail greeting?
• Can IT use text-to-speech to create a department voicemail greeting?
• How do I schedule a voicemail greeting change for a specific date?

Environment

This article applies to Bowdoin College faculty and staff who are responsible for a department or shared Teams Calling phone line and need to update the voicemail greeting callers hear.

• Method 1 (self-service): Available to users who have been granted call queue or auto-attendant management permissions by IT. If you are not sure whether you have this access, try Method 1 first — if the call queue option does not appear in your Teams settings, use Method 2.
• Method 2 (IT request): Available to all faculty and staff. IT will make the change on your behalf during normal business hours.
• Personal voicemail greeting: For changing the greeting on your own personal Teams phone line, see Record or Change Your Voicemail Greeting in Microsoft Teams in the Related Articles section.

Resolution

Method 1 — Update the greeting yourself in Teams (call queue access required)

1. Click the ellipsis (…) to the left of your profile picture in the upper-right corner of the Teams window.
2. Click Settings.
3. In the left menu, click Calls.
4. Along the top of the Calls settings pane, you will see tabs for any call queues available to your account. Click the tab for the queue you want to manage.
5. Find the Greeting section and click the dropdown to select your preferred option:
   • Add a greeting message — type the greeting text in the field provided. This text will be read to callers by a computer-generated voice.
   • Play an audio file — upload an MP3, WAV, or WMA file to be played for callers. The file must be under 5 MB.
   • No greeting — callers are not played any greeting before reaching voicemail or the queue.
6. Click Save.

Method 2 — Submit a request to IT

If you do not have call queue access, IT can make the greeting change on your behalf. Choose one of the two options below based on the type of greeting you want.

Option A — Submit your own audio recording

Use this option if you want the greeting to feature a real person's voice.

1. Call your own Bowdoin phone number and leave yourself a voicemail with the exact greeting text you want to use.
2. Open your Bowdoin email and find the voicemail notification email. Download the MP3 attachment.
3. Email servicedesk@bowdoin.edu with the following:
   • Subject line: Voicemail greeting change request
   • The phone number you want the greeting changed for
   • The date you want the change to take effect
   • The MP3 recording attached to the email

Option B — Provide text for a computer-generated greeting

Use this option if you prefer a simpler process and are comfortable with a computer-generated voice reading the greeting.

1. Email servicedesk@bowdoin.edu with the following:
   • Subject line: Voicemail greeting change request
   • The phone number you want the greeting changed for
   • The date you want the change to take effect
   • The exact text of the greeting you want used — IT will enter this text as-is into the system, so review it carefully before sending

Additional Help

If you need further assistance, you have several options:

• Bowdoin Bot: Chat with Bowdoin Bot directly from any KB page for instant answers.
• Phone: Call the Bowdoin College Service Desk at (207) 725-3030.
• In person: Visit the Tech Hub in Smith Union during business hours.
• Submit a ticket: Request assistance through the Service Catalog.

Additional Resources

• Microsoft: Manage a call queue in Microsoft Teams