Every colleague on every employee's iPhone
An iPhone only syncs each user's own Outlook contacts. Colleagues are left out, so when they call, the screen shows a bare number. ModernSync takes the colleagues from your Microsoft 365 groups and writes them into every employee's mailbox each night. The iPhone then syncs them into its own contacts, as Android phones and Outlook do.
Works withiPhoneAndroidOutlook for Windows, Mac and web
Why colleagues are missing on the iPhone
The iPhone only syncs the user's own Outlook contacts. Colleagues sit in the global address list, which the phone can only search online, so a call from a colleague shows just a number.
Your options in Microsoft 365
| Option | Works well | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| The Microsoft 365 account on the iPhone | Syncs the user's own contacts reliably. | Colleagues from the directory are not included. |
| Save contacts in the Outlook app | Copies the user's own Outlook contacts to the phone. | Each user has to turn it on, and colleagues are still missing. |
| Directory search in the mail app | Finds colleagues when there is a connection. | Works online only and gives no names on incoming calls. |
How ModernSync does it
Set-up takes about five minutes.
Approve the app
A global admin approves ModernSync in Microsoft 365. Nothing is installed on phones or servers.
Choose the groups
Pick who becomes contacts and who receives them. A test run shows exactly what would change before anything is written.
Contacts on every phone
Every night the contacts are updated in employees' mailboxes, and phones and Outlook pick them up from there.
A test run first
The test run shows exactly how many contacts would be created, updated and removed in which mailboxes. Nothing is written until you switch synchronisation on.
Data, hosting and the DPA
- Contact data stays in Microsoft 365
- Contacts are written straight from Microsoft 365 to employees' mailboxes. We only keep what the portal needs to show status.
- Hosted in Azure in the EU
- Your data is processed in Microsoft Azure in the EU, and we hold no passwords. The app's permissions are listed on the permissions page.
- Data processing agreement included
- It is part of the terms and accepted when you sign up.
Questions
Do employees need to install anything?
No. The contacts are written to the mailbox, and the iPhone picks them up through the Microsoft 365 account on the phone.
Does it work on Android too?
Yes. Android phones and Outlook pick up the same contacts from the mailbox.
What happens when someone leaves?
Their contact disappears from the other phones after a short grace period. If the account becomes active again before then, the contact stays.
Do employees have to use the Outlook app?
No. The contacts come through whether the iPhone uses the Exchange account in Settings or the Outlook app with Save Contacts turned on.
What about old contacts employees saved themselves?
When a new colleague gets a mobile number that used to belong to someone else, the phone can show the old name if the user saved the former colleague. The free check for outdated contacts finds cases like this, and the user deletes the old contact.
Related guides and other solutions
- How to sync Outlook contacts to iPhone
The two built-in ways, why colleagues from the directory never appear, the usual reasons sync stops, and how to cover every iPhone at once.
- Which phones and apps show the contacts?
iPhone, Android and Outlook on Windows, Mac and the web, plus the one limitation to know about.
- Check for outdated contacts
Find contacts users saved themselves that show the wrong name on calls. What the check reads, what it stores, and how users fix the findings.
- Outlook contacts on AndroidColleagues in the Android phone's contacts, Samsung included.
- Shared contacts in OutlookOne shared contact list in every mailbox and on every phone.
- GAL sync for iPhone and AndroidThe global address list as real contacts, so calls show who is ringing.
- Push contacts to iPhone and AndroidApprove the app once and choose the groups. There are no scripts to maintain.
- Company directory on the phoneThe directory in the phone's own contacts app instead of one more app.
Try it on your own groups
Sign up in the portal and see the test run for your own groups before you decide. Free for 14 days.