Dynamic Distribution Groups in Microsoft 365 (or more accurately, Exchange Online) are really useful things. You’re probably not using them (though you really ought to) but if you are then they are about to get better.
Firstly, what is a Dynamic Distribution Group (or DDG)? Well its basically a list of email recipients that is dynamically created (the clue is in the name) from users that meet a set of conditions YOU define.
This means that it is easy for these lists to update their membership without any input from you – very useful say if you are frequently onboarding of offboarding staff. Or if someone for example changes department or location they can be automatically shifted into the right distribution group.
The way these groups have worked up to now is that the list is calculated on the fly each time an email is sent to the group. This often means that it can take some time for the email to send as the list needs to be compiled first. For big lists, this can take some time. It also means that it is not possible to see who is in the group as no central record is kept.
However, Microsoft have announced that from April (expected early to mid April) the membership of a Dynamic Distribution Group will be stored in Microsoft 365 and the list will be updated with any changes every 24 hours. This will make things a lot easier as end user will be able to see the membership of the list before sending.
Great news, but just remember that any changes won’t be instant – so plan accordingly!
