{"id":422991,"date":"2017-09-05T00:54:45","date_gmt":"2017-09-05T07:54:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/research\/?post_type=msr-research-item&p=422991"},"modified":"2018-10-16T20:00:30","modified_gmt":"2018-10-17T03:00:30","slug":"built-virtual-scheduling-assistant-microsoft","status":"publish","type":"msr-research-item","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/research\/publication\/built-virtual-scheduling-assistant-microsoft\/","title":{"rendered":"How We Built a Virtual Scheduling Assistant at Microsoft"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many people would agree that scheduling meetings is tedious. Perhaps you have experienced an email chain like this:<\/p>\n

Jenn, a potential client:<\/strong>\u00a0Hey! What day\/time works for a quick call next week?
\nYou:\u00a0<\/strong>(toggling between calendar app and email) I\u2019m wide open Monday.
\nJenn:<\/strong> (several hours later) Sorry. Traveling that day. How about Wednesday at 10 AM?
\nYou:<\/strong> (checking your calendar app again) That should work. Your office?
\nJenn:<\/strong> My office is great. Maybe we should see if Emad can join?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This back-and-forth can carry on, and it can get even more challenging when people use different calendaring systems or meet across different time zones. Not only are these exchanges time-consuming, they also obliterate our ability to focus on more demanding tasks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many people would agree that scheduling meetings is tedious. Perhaps you have experienced an email chain like this: Jenn, a potential client:\u00a0Hey! What day\/time works for a quick call next week? You:\u00a0(toggling between calendar app and email) I\u2019m wide open Monday. Jenn: (several hours later) Sorry. Traveling that day. How about Wednesday at 10 AM? 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