Excel export for Virtual assistants

By the Mail → Excel team · Updated 2026-10-20

Assistants triage other people’s inboxes. A daily table turns «I think I saw it» into a tracked task list. This page lists the exact columns, an example row and the command that produces it.

Columns to keep

Column	Why it matters
`sender`	Who wrote in; used for triage and routing.
`priority`	A fixed scale (high/normal/low) that you define once.
`task`	The one-line action extracted from the message.
`deadline`	ISO date — empty means «no deadline», which is itself information.
`folder`	Source folder or label, so every row has a traceable origin.

Example row

One real-shaped row from this role’s export:

sender	priority	task	deadline	folder
billing@vendor.com	high	Renew domain	2026-10-22	Admin

Export it in one command

python mail_to_excel.py \
  --host imap.example.com --user you@example.com \
  --days 31 --fields sender,priority,task,deadline,folder \
  --out virtual-assistant.xlsx

The --fields option is what turns a raw dump into a report your role can use.

Provider notes

Shared mailboxes may need delegated access, which IMAP does not always support; check with the mailbox owner first.

Two pitfalls that ruin the file

The client’s mailbox gets marked as read — Open the folder read-only in the script — this is the default and must stay that way.
Deadlines are missed because dates are text — Store dates in ISO 8601 and sort the column in the spreadsheet.

Next step

Step-by-step: export virtual assistant email to Excel · all roles · ready script ($3)

FAQ

Will this work with a shared inbox?

Only if the provider exposes it over IMAP with your own credentials. Otherwise export per-user and merge.

Can I schedule the report?

Yes — run the script from cron or Task Scheduler every morning and email the file to yourself.

Is there a ready script for this?

Yes — the Python script exports any IMAP mailbox with the fields listed above; it costs $3 and runs locally.

Related guides

Export virtual assistant email to ExcelStep-by-step with the same columns and command.
All roles20 professions, one export method.