Taking time off should mean genuinely disconnecting. But without a clear plan in place, the stress of leaving work behind can feel overwhelming. That’s where an out-of-office plan template comes in.
It helps you set clear expectations, delegate responsibilities, and ensure a seamless workflow, allowing you to unplug and recharge fully.
This guide will explore the best out-of-office plan templates to help you enjoy a stress-free break without work creeping into your downtime.
🧠 Fun Fact: 63% of people feel anxious if they don’t check their work-related messages while on vacation, and 86% have their relaxation interrupted by calls and colleague messages.
Free Out-of-Office Plan Templates for a Smooth Workflow
What Are Out-of-Office Plan Templates?
Out-of-office (OOO) plan templates are pre-made guides that outline everything needed to keep work running smoothly while someone is away. They help organize responsibilities, delegate important tasks, and set clear expectations so nothing falls through the cracks.
Think of them as a vacation safety net—a simple, structured way to ensure work keeps flowing while you’re off the grid. An OOO message helps map out who’s handling what, what tasks need immediate attention, and how to avoid the dreaded ‘Hey, quick question…’ message.
A solid OOO plan does more than just set up an email auto-reply. It is a communication strategy that prepares your team, prevents last-minute chaos, and (most importantly) lets you relax without guilt.
What Makes a Good Out-of-Office Plan Template?
A well-designed out-of-office plan template should be detailed yet easy to follow, ensuring everyone collaborates smoothly while you’re away. Here’s what it should include:
- Out of office message: The template should consist of a pre-written automated email response, informing senders of your absence, your return date, and who they can contact for urgent matters
- Task handoff section: There should be a dedicated space to list all ongoing tasks, who will be handling each one, and any necessary details to keep certain projects moving forward
- Key contacts and responsibilities: A good out-of-office template should have a section that outlines important contacts, including team members covering for you and their responsibilities
- Calendar management and status updates: A section should note which meetings you will miss, whether they’ve been rescheduled, and who will attend on your behalf. Provide a summary of active projects, deadlines, and any pending approvals to optimize your vacation workflow
- Communication guidelines: The coverage plan template should help set clear boundaries on availability. Specify whether you’ll be checking emails (and how often) or if you’ll be completely unplugged
- Essential resources: Share links to key files, reports, login credentials (if permitted), or internal documentation so the relevant stakeholders aren’t left searching for important information
13 Best Out-of-Office Plan Templates
Here are the best out-of-office plan templates to use the next time you take a vacation:
1. Time Off Request Template
First step, getting your manager to approve your time off!
Managing time-off requests can be a hassle, but the Time Off Request Template simplifies the process. It streamlines leave management, ensuring clear communication between employees and managers.
The template adapts to various leave policies, reduces administrative burdens, and promotes fairness. You can centralize requests, tracking, and approvals using multiple views and maintain team productivity.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Streamline the time-off request and approval process
- Leverage various views, like the Time-Off Request Form, to enable employees to create a time-off request
- Use custom fields, such as End of Time Off, Start of Time Off, E-signature of Requestor, Request Type, and Request For, to save important info
🔑 Ideal for: Managers seeking an efficient, transparent system to manage employee time-off requests and approvals.
💡 Pro Tip: Streamline time-off requests with different views of this time-off request template. Track requests by approval stage in the Approval Process Board View. Add new entries manually with the +New Task button. Review request details easily in the Requests List View, including reasons for time off. Access disapproved requests and view rejection reasons in the Rejected List View.
2. Out of Office Coverage Plan Template
Are you wondering how to ensure your team’s workflow remains uninterrupted during your absence? Try the Out-of-Office Coverage Plan Template.
Whether you’re taking time off for two weeks or longer, the template lets you effectively manage your responsibilities and share specific instructions.
Use the Calendar as a PTO tracking tool to check requests and get an overview of who’s available. This includes details like requester, status, start date, end date, and leave type.
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🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Customize statuses like Approved, Complete, and New Requests to monitor leave requests effectively
- Utilize custom fields to capture essential details, such as Leave Type, Department, and Reason for Leave
- Visualize coverage with various views, including Leave Request Form, Out of Office Calendar, and Approval Process
🔑 Ideal for: HR professionals aiming to maintain productivity during employee absences.
3. Out of Office Coverage Plan Task Template
The Out of Office Coverage Plan Task Template makes it easy to keep your team organized during a member’s time off. It ensures that every task is assigned to the right person, allowing you to track progress and manage coverage efficiently.
Use intuitive visualizations to track which tasks are covered. Collaborate with teams, sharing the template with a public link to ensure everyone’s on the same page.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Share a detailed list of ongoing tasks that need to be reassigned
- Use checklists to ensure everything’s covered
- Assign tasks directly to another team member, along with a timeline for completion
- Check the progress of each task with Board View
🔑 Ideal for: Managers and teams who want to maintain an uninterrupted workflow during employee absences.
4. PTO Calendar Template
Tired of juggling PTO requests and conflicting vacation schedules? The PTO Calendar Template centralizes all time-off requests, letting you manage and track everyone’s leave in one place.
With color-coded entries, you’ll instantly know who’s off and when, avoiding those ‘oops, double-booked’ moments. Plus, it’s customizable, so you can track different types of time off and approve or deny requests at the click of a button.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Create a PTO request form to get important info like duration, PTO reason, type, and any essential files
- Check the PTO requests in the PTO Calendar View
- Keep everyone’s PTO in one easy-to-read PTO Database List View
- Color-code different leave types and time off for quick reference
🔑 Ideal for: Teams who want to track and approve PTO without the scheduling headaches easily.
5. Holiday Planner Template
The Holiday Planner Template keeps everything well-organized, from travel and accommodations to gift shopping and event planning. It provides a centralized space to manage vacation requests, assign tasks before leave, and ensure smooth handovers.
With this template, you can track important dates, manage budgets, and store essential documents—all in one place. Moreover, this template gives a comprehensive view of your budget and vacation plan and makes the most of your time.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Plan trips, manage lodging, and track travel details effortlessly
- Track approvals and maintain visibility on who’s away to avoid disruptions
- Use custom fields, such as Location, Holiday Category, Department, and Holiday Type, to categorize the data
- Open in multiple views, such as the Holiday Request List View, Holidays Table View, and Vacation Leaves List View
🔑 Ideal for: Teams and individuals who want a hassle-free way to plan holidays.
6. Vacation Planner Template
The Vacation Planner Template makes organizing time off stress-free. It helps you track employee vacation schedules, plan to prevent coverage gaps, and manage requests efficiently.
Its custom statuses, fields, and views clearly show who’s off and when, ensuring smooth workflows while employees enjoy their breaks. This streamlines vacation planning and keeps teams on track during absences.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Track all vacation requests in one place
- Use custom statuses, like Open and Complete, to monitor approvals and pending requests
- Check the employee leave data, including leave credits, notes, and related files, using the Employee Master List View
- Simplify team coordination with shared calendars
🔑 Ideal for: HR teams looking for an easy way to track employee vacations.
Did You Know? Employees who don’t take enough PTO are more stressed, anxious, and less productive. Workers with poor mental health take an average of 12 unplanned days off each year. So, remember to take that well-deserved break—your mind (and your workplace) will thank you! 😊
7. Employee Schedule Template
Juggling employee schedules often gets overwhelming. The Employee Schedule Template by makes shift planning seamless. It helps you assign tasks, track hours, and ensure smooth team coordination and communication.
With visual layouts, automated reminders, and real-time updates, you’ll never have to worry about double bookings or last-minute no-shows. Plus, this template provides visibility into labor costs, helping you manage staffing efficiently and stay within budget.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Build and edit schedules with a simple drag-and-drop interface
- Automate shift reminders to keep everyone on track
- Open in multiple views like Employee Capacity, Status Board, Weekly Schedule, and Employee Tasks Views
- Monitor time off requests and ensure compliance with labor laws
🔑 Ideal for: Managers looking for an organized way to assign shifts, track hours, and keep teams running smoothly.
8. Schedule Blocking Template
Staying productive starts with a well-structured schedule. The Schedule Blocking Template helps you map your day by dividing tasks into dedicated time blocks.
The template helps you understand task dependencies, plan your schedule, and prevent overscheduling. It offers a clear, visual plan that ensures high-priority tasks get the attention they deserve.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Plan with daily, weekly, and monthly calendar views
- Use the Locations View to pinpoint the locations of various activities
- List all your activities, including personal life and work life activities, along with their status, locations, and priority
- Gain insight into how tasks are interconnected
🔑 Ideal for: Professionals looking to maximize efficiency with a well-developed schedule.
9. Maternity Plan Template
The Maternity Leave Template helps expecting parents and teams stay organized by outlining key dates, responsibilities, and transitions.
It allows managers and HR teams to handle maternity leave requests efficiently. Employees can also use checklists to plan and ensure everything is handled before taking time off.
With a structured checklist, task delegation, and progress tracking, this template ensures that everything runs smoothly before, during, and after leave.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Ensure transparency by giving an itemized list of what you need for the maternity plan using the Budget section
- Use the Action Plan section to develop your 15- to 90-day leave plan and the Basic Information section to list down necessary info
- Organize key dates and milestones to ensure everyone is aware of what needs to be done
- Use the multiple views to manage work handovers and return plans with confidence
🔑 Ideal for: Expecting parents and managers to ensure a smooth transition during maternity leave.
10. Vacation Request Form Template
Managing vacation requests shouldn’t be a messy back-and-forth of emails and approvals. The Vacation Request Form Template simplifies the entire process. It ensures employees submit their requests with all the necessary details and managers approve them quickly.
Ensure transparent leave policies, accurate tracking, and documentation for vacation requests. Plus, it lets you instantly and automatically inform your employees about any changes in their leave application status.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Track requests with statuses like In Progress and Granted
- Capture key details like purpose, manager approval, and department
- Use custom views to see pending and approved requests at a glance
- Receive instant email notifications for status updates
🔑 Ideal for: HR teams who want an organized, efficient vacation approval system.
11. Staff Roster Template
The Staff Roster Template makes team scheduling seamless and hassle-free. With this template, you can easily assign shifts, track employee availability, and ensure that payroll is always accurate.
Plus, this rostering tool lets you keep shifts, roles, and payroll details organized in one place, so there’s no second-guessing who’s working when. You can also track regular hours, overtime, and payouts effortlessly with views like the Weekly Calendar and Staff Payout Board.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Review your team schedules and ensure availability
- Maintain an accurate record of hours worked
- Improve internal communication by keeping everyone on the same page
- Stay organized with multiple views, including Staff Payout Board, Staff Roster, Work Progress, and Weekly Calendar
🔑 Ideal for: HR managers, team leads, and business owners looking to simplify staff scheduling.
💡 Pro Tip: Track employee roles and easily update details with a click in the Staff Roster List View. Need to manage shifts? The Weekly Calendar View shows employee schedules in a color-coded, drag-and-drop format.
Also, stay on top of workloads with the Work Progress Box View, giving you a quick snapshot of your team’s tasks to see if they’re ready to take on more. Finally, the Staff Payout Board View lets you quickly track payouts with a Kanban board grouped by staff ID!
12. Attendance Sheet Template
The Attendance Sheet Template simplifies and organizes attendance management. It enables you to effortlessly monitor employee hours, manage absences, and spot trends.
Use custom statuses like Absent, Late, and Present for quick updates and better tracking. With multiple views like the Attendance Form and List of Attendees, this template enables you to manage attendance data effortlessly.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Save essential info about students or team members with fields like Phone Number, Instructor, Lesson for the Day, and Email
- Spot attendance trends, identify discrepancies, and take quick action
- Set up easy reminders for your team about their work schedules
- Find out the number and details of people present using the List of Attendees View
🔑 Ideal for: HR teams, instructors, and any organization looking for a clear, reliable way to track attendance.
13. Personal Schedule Availability Template
Do you ever find yourself double-booking or struggling to fit everything in? The Personal Schedule Availability Template is designed to help you manage your time effectively.
With this template, you can see your day clearly by organizing work, appointments, and personal commitments. Plus, it lets you visualize and customize your schedule, track availability, and identify potential scheduling issues well in advance.
🌟 Why you’ll love it
- Set reminders for activities to ensure you don’t miss anything
- Quickly visualize your availability with the Availability View
- Use the Activities View to get an overview of all the scheduled activities
- Set task statuses, such as Cancelled, Complete, Done, and Scheduled, to better track activities
🔑 Ideal for: Busy professionals and anyone juggling multiple commitments.
Maximize Your Out-of-Office Management with
Out-of-office plan templates are necessary for smooth transitions and seamless communication when you’re away. They give you important access to track progress, manage time-off requests, delegate tasks, and communicate seamlessly with your team.
, the everything app for work, offers a streamlined approach to managing time-off plans, ensuring efficient workflows even when you’re out of the office. With automated notifications, task delegation, and customizable features, staying organized has never been easier.
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