Gmail will allow to send messages deferred

The company defends the new utility as a measure to better reconcile personal and professional life

Receive an email from your boss on a Sunday at seven in the morning can be somewhat disturbing and puts the worker in an uncomfortable situation: if my boss is working at this time, should not I be doing the same? Should I answer despite not being in my workday? 

Google has taken advantage of the celebration of the fifteenth anniversary of Gmail to announce a long-awaited feature that many already used in third-party applications: the ability to send messages later.

It is a function that allows the person who drafts an email to schedule their delivery so that the recipient receives it during work hours and does not confront uncomfortable situations that invade their personal space. Thus, if the head of a department wants to take advantage of the weekend to work, he can write the emails and schedule them so that the recipients receive them on Monday first thing in the morning. Google speaks clearly of the "right to disconnect", a possibility that seems almost laughable in the hyperconnected world in which we live, but which is essential for the welfare of workers.

Gmail will allow sending messages deferred

Send later

This feature is not yet operational but Google will be deploying it among its users in the coming days. As we have pointed out, whoever writes a message will see in the draft next to the button 'Send' a small arrow that allows to schedule the sending of the message in the date and time that we indicate. The recipient, as expected, will not receive that email in their inbox until the date and time indicated.

This new function also incorporates the possibility of canceling this shipment in case it is no longer necessary (provided that the cancellation is prior to the date and time of sending), as well as the possibility of previewing the message before sending it. The new function will also suggest future moments for programming these deferred emails such as "Monday morning" or "next week", allowing the sender to also choose a specific date and time at all times.

While this new function has been developed with the aim of respecting the rest of the workers, those who already used this function through third-party software are well aware of other advantages of its use. Thus, certain moments can be equipped to send a message in which the probability of reading it is reduced. In this way, sending an email on a Friday at 8:00 pm will increase the chances that the email will be 'buried' on Monday by dozens of emails that have accumulated over the weekend.