Usually the IT lead's tab. Several later features are gated on these connections, so doing them early unblocks other people.
The Two Kinds
Workspace connections are made once, by an admin, for the whole organisation: the email sending domain, the voice provider, AI keys, data-source connectors. These live in Operations, under Apps and Import, and in Settings.
Personal connections are made by each individual for their own account: their Google or Microsoft mailbox and calendar. These live in each person's own account settings, under Connections, so nobody needs admin access to connect their own mailbox.
That split confuses people. If someone asks why their mail is not sending from their address, the answer is almost always the personal one.
Order
- Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. The biggest single unlock - mail, calendar, meeting links, file picking. Admin-level consent first if your organisation requires it, then each person connects their own.
- Email sending and your domain. Needed before anything sends on your behalf. Domain verification involves DNS and waiting, so start it early. See Connecting Your Own Domain.
- Inbound addresses. Shared queues like support or accounts. See Email Addresses and Where Mail Lands.
- Voice, if you take calls in the platform. See Phone Setup.
- Data connectors, for tools you are migrating from or running alongside. See Migrating From Another CRM.
What Stays Off Until You Connect
Worth knowing, so a missing connection is diagnosed rather than mistaken for a broken feature:
| Not connected | What does not work |
|---|---|
| Personal mailbox | Sending from a deal under your own address |
| Calendar | Real availability, booking slots, meeting links |
| Sending domain | Outbound email, including automations |
| Inbound address | Shared queues; mail simply never arrives |
| Voice provider | Calls in and out |
Caution
An automation whose send action has no channel behind it does not fail loudly. It completes its step and the message dies at the provider. If a workflow reports success and nothing arrives, check the connection before the workflow. See Automation Actions and What They Need.
Verify Each One
Do not trust a green tick. For each connection, prove it end to end:
- Mailbox - send a test from a deal record and check it arrives from your address.
- Domain - check every DNS record verified, not just some.
- Inbound - send from an outside account, not from your own domain, and confirm it lands in the right area.
- Voice - place a call out, then call in from an outside phone, and check what happens when nobody answers.
Each takes a minute and each has caught a real problem.
Common Questions
Google or Microsoft - can we run both? Yes. People connect whichever they use, and mixed teams work.
Do I need to be an admin? Not for your own mailbox and calendar. Workspace-level connections need the Operations capability.
Something disconnected on its own. Tokens expire, and a password change or revoked consent ends a session. Reconnect from the same place.
Which one first, if I only do one? Your own mailbox and calendar. It changes your day more than anything else here.
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