Routing and Forwarding

Routing determines how requests get to the right inbox. Nembl offers multiple intake modes so you can choose between manual triage, automated workflows, and AI-assisted routing. Forwarding lets you move requests between inboxes when they need to go somewhere else.

Intake Modes

Every inbox has an intake mode that controls how incoming requests are handled. You can configure this in the inbox settings.

Manual Intake

With manual intake, every incoming request waits in the inbox as Pending until someone reviews it. A person looks at each request and decides to accept, reject, or forward it.

Manual intake is best for:

• Low-volume inboxes where personal review adds value.
• Requests that require judgment calls about acceptance.
• Teams that prefer hands-on triage.

Workflow Intake

With workflow intake, incoming requests automatically trigger a workflow that handles routing and triage. The workflow can evaluate the request data and route it to the correct team or individual based on conditions you define.

Workflow intake is best for:

• High-volume inboxes where manual review would be a bottleneck.
• Requests that follow clear rules for routing (for example, route by category or priority).
• Processes where consistent, repeatable triage is important.

Agent Intake

With agent intake, an AI agent evaluates each incoming request. The agent can:

• Validate inputs — Check that all required information is provided and flag incomplete requests.
• Recommend priority — Suggest an appropriate priority level based on the request content.
• Auto-accept or auto-reject — Handle straightforward requests automatically based on configured criteria.
• Route intelligently — Send requests to the best-fit team or individual based on content, workload, and availability.
• Flag for human review — Escalate requests that need human judgment.

Agent intake is best for:

• Inboxes that need intelligent triage but want to reduce manual work.
• Requests that benefit from consistent evaluation against acceptance criteria.
• Teams that want AI assistance with routing decisions while keeping humans in the loop for exceptions.

The autonomy level of the agent is controlled by your company's policies. You can configure how much authority the agent has, from "recommend only" to "fully autonomous."

Forwarding Requests

Forwarding moves a request from one inbox to another. The request stays the same — it just lands in a different inbox for a different person or team to handle.

How to Forward

1. Open the request in your inbox.
2. Click Forward.
3. Choose the destination inbox (search by team name, service, or individual).
4. Add an optional note explaining why you are forwarding it.
5. Click Send.

The request now appears in the destination inbox as Pending. In your inbox, it shows as Forwarded so you can still see it.

When to Forward

• Wrong inbox — The request was submitted to the wrong service or team.
• Escalation — The request needs attention from a manager or specialist.
• Workload balancing — Your team is overloaded and another team can help.
• Subject matter expertise — Someone else is better equipped to handle this specific request.

Forwarding Chain

A request can be forwarded multiple times. Each forward is recorded in the request timeline, creating a clear audit trail of where the request has been and who sent it where.

Returning Requests

If a request was forwarded to you and you cannot handle it, use Return to send it back to the inbox it came from. Always include a note explaining why you are returning it, so the original team knows what to do next.

Responsibility Assignments

When a request is in an inbox, someone needs to take responsibility for it. There are two ways this happens:

Self-Assignment

A team member opens the request and clicks Accept. The request moves from the team inbox to their personal inbox. This is common in team inboxes where members pick up work as they have capacity.

Direct Assignment

A team lead or manager assigns the request to a specific person. The request appears in that person's inbox with their name as the assignee. This is useful when the manager knows who should handle a particular request.

Configuring Inbox Settings

To change an inbox's intake mode or routing rules:

1. Go to Admin > Inboxes (or open the inbox settings from the inbox view).
2. Select the inbox you want to configure.
3. Choose the intake mode (Manual, Workflow, or Agent).
4. If using Workflow intake, link the routing workflow.
5. If using Agent intake, configure the agent's autonomy level and criteria.
6. Click Save.

Changes take effect immediately for new incoming requests. Requests already in the inbox are not affected.