Out of Office Plan Template

Even the best teams can feel off-balance when a key member is out. A clear out-of-office (OOO) plan ensures projects continue seamlessly, responsibilities get covered, and communication stays consistent. Whether you’re taking a well-deserved vacation, heading out for parental leave, or recovering from illness, solid planning helps your team stay focused and confident. It also helps protect much-needed recharge time, enabling a better work-life blend and empowering teammates to succeed in your absence.

Instead of a static, automatic OOO email, use Slack’s out of office plan template to document your time-off details and coverage plan within your workspace. It provides a dedicated channel where teammates view, comment, and collaborate on handoffs, keeping your workflow organized, visible, and stress-free.

How to use this out-of-office plan template

Slack’s template makes preparing for time off intuitive and collaborative. Built with canvas in Slack, it combines structure and flexibility so you can easily share your plan and adjust details as needed. Here’s how:

• Click “Get Template.” Add the preconfigured channel and canvas for your OOO plan to your workspace.
• Open the canvas tab. This appears in the new channel.
• Opt for a new “Out of Office Coverage Plan.” You’ll see sections pre-filled with prompts to help you delegate and organize. These include:
• Type of leave. If desired, share the reason for the absence, such as business travel, vacation time, or medical leave.
• Dates offline. Specify when you’ll be away.
• Availability. Detail whether you’ll check in occasionally, fully disconnect, or some combination of the two. Share specific dates, times, and your time zone(s). For example, share if you’ll get online to check in after a big product launch.
• Project coverage. Explain active initiatives, their statuses, and the teammates responsible.
• Contacts. Identify key people to reach if urgent questions arise.
• Resources. Include important links, documents, or Slack canvases for reference.
• Confirm and share. Review the details, then share the channel with your manager and teammates so everyone can view and comment.

In Slack, it’s easy to tag teammates with mentions under “Contacts,” add status notes for “Project Coverage,” and insert links or canvases under “Resources.” Your entire out-of-office communication plan is in one place — so even if multiple teammates are covering for you, your plan is clear and accessible.

What is an out-of-office plan?

An out-of-office plan is a documented guide for how your work will be managed while you’re away. It typically includes your leave dates, communication preferences, delegated responsibilities, and instructions for handling urgent issues.

A well-structured plan helps your team maintain continuity without needing to track you down for questions. It sets expectations, clarifies ownership, and allows everyone to keep moving forward confidently.

When your plan lives in Slack, it becomes part of your existing workflow — integrated with the channels, messages, and files your team already uses daily.

Benefits of using an out-of-office plan template

Planning for time away is an investment in smoother collaboration — and peace of mind while you or a teammate is out. Use Slack’s out of office plan template to:

• Ensure seamless task handoffs. Within the template, you can clearly document responsibilities and task handoffs before you leave.
• Keep communication transparent. Managers, peers, and clients always know who to contact for updates.
• Reduce team stress. Teammates don’t need to guess or send “checking in” messages that add stress all around. They have everything they need in the template.
• Centralize information. Storing your plan in a shared Slack channel ensures visibility for all, minimizing confusion or missed steps.
• Integrate with other workflows. Pair this built-for-purpose OOO plan with the PTO/time-off request process template or automate notifications with Workflow Builder.
• Support boundaries and well-being. Nothing dulls a vacation vibe quite like work email notifications or Slack messages starting with “Sorry to bother you, but. . .” With clear documentation and coverage, you can fully disconnect, knowing your team has what they need.

The combination of visibility and automation makes the handoff process more reliable and helps you return to a calmer, more organized workplace.

Out of office plan examples

The Slack out-of-office plan template adapts to different types of leave. Explore these examples for how to use it effectively.

Vacation leave

When taking time off for a vacation, use the OOO Details section to list your dates offline and specify availability. For example, “Slack notifications off” or “Limited check-ins on Fridays.” In the Project Coverage section, list each major project, its current status, and tag teammates who will handle updates while you’re gone. Under Resources, include links to key canvases, shared docs, or dashboards your team might need.

Before you leave, update your Slack status and create an automatic response using Slackbot custom replies. This ensures anyone messaging you gets information about your return date and coverage.

Business travel

If you’ll be online, but in transit or in meetings, use the Availability field to indicate when you can respond. For example, if you’re on an airplane for six hours doing deep work on a presentation or document, you can specify that you can respond to Slack messages but are unable to huddle or join a meeting. Add your travel schedule and relevant time zones in the OOO Details section, and note which projects you’ll continue to monitor. You can also link to travel documents or itineraries under Resources for quick access.

Teammates can comment directly in the canvas to confirm responsibilities or update task progress — making your coverage plan a living document rather than a static note.

Medical or family leave

For time away for medical reasons or family leave, detail your communication preferences — such as checking messages weekly on Mondays. Include coverage contacts for all major projects, and make sure urgent issues are routed appropriately. You can even use Slack Workflow Builder to set a workflow that automatically notifies your team when your OOO period begins.

By creating clarity around your absence, you empower your team to operate smoothly and respectfully during your time of recovery or caregiving.

Best practices for communicating your out-of-office plan

An effective OOO plan isn’t just written, it’s shared and reinforced across your team. This information can become second nature within your team’s workflow, and that starts with effectively communicating your plan. Before you go offline:

• Share your plan in Slack channels. Post your canvas link in your team’s main channel to make the plan visible to everyone.
• Update your tools. Set your Slack out of office status, email autoresponder, and digital calendar to indicate when you’ll be away.
• Confirm coverage and responsibilities. Review your plan with your manager and each delegate.
• Use an OOO checklist. Before leaving, confirm open tasks get documented, with deadlines and key contacts noted.
• Add Slack autoresponder messages. Create auto-replies in Slack to make sure everyone gets the right information quickly whenever they contact you.
• Link your resources. In the Resources section, insert relevant canvases, documents, or project boards.
• Automate notifications. For recurring absences or coverage reminders, consult the guide to Slack workflow builder to automate as much of the process as possible.

Want additional ideas to optimize your employee absence plan? Check out the Slack guide to taking time off and practical tips for how to set up Slack for when you’re away.

Breathe easier with an out-of-office plan

Preparing an out-of-office plan keeps your team connected and confident in your absence. When your plan lives in Slack, everyone can find the information they need — without long email threads, reaching out to you for clarification, or confusion. It also reinforces a respectful way of working within boundaries, which helps the team and organization operate in a more efficient and trustworthy manner.

Explore more ways to work smarter with Slack’s template gallery — from project management to employee onboarding, every template helps teams stay aligned and productive.