Use of Unified Group Shared Mailbox vs Distribution Lists

[Planehazza]

We have a Team for most departments and subjects through a third part syncing solution between SIMS and 365. If a teacher teachers Art, they're added to the Art group where the SharePoint resources are held and Team is there for meetings. They're then also added to a class team for every lesson they teach as on owner with the students in as members for assignments etc.

 

Now, for anyone that has a similar implementation, how are you handling emails? I've elected to decommission legacy AD synced distribution groups in favour of using the Team group shared mailbox. We have the Exchange options enabled so that messages and and meeting invites etc. are also sent to the mailboxes of group members.

 

This way, I see it that we have a singular central group for each department/subject. Easier to manage, shared calendar, Forms 'repository', Stream channels etc, and easier for staff to remember a single group name. Dist. lists mean that someone that teachers History once a month can be in "History Teacher" email list without needing to be in the Team. It's the one, small pro to using DLs over SMs I can think of...

 

Where we don't have a need for a Team/SharePoint site etc, i.e. 'Year 07 Students', is where we'd fall back to 'legacy' dist. lists.

 

Does any of this jump out at you as a "WTF are you doing that?!"? We also see it as a way of HoDs can prove they sent an email to their staff when the inevitable "oh, I didn't get that" response comes in - they just look at the read only group mailbox, and there it is.

 

 

TL;DR: Shared mailbox belonging to a team enabled unified group, or 'legacy' distribution groups?

Thanks!

Edited January 25, 2022 by Planehazza