https://myaccount.microsoft.com/ and how to edit pronouns

Question

I have long had the option to add or edit my profile at the Microsoft/Office365 account page. We can upload pictures, change bio information, and so on, to and including pronouns, and how/whether this information would be displayed, including Teams and in Office documents.

Due to recent updates/changes, I noticed that I can no edit pronouns on my account. As some of this information is managed by my organization, I reached out to our IT dept first, with an inquiry. I was told that a few features had indeed been removed/disabled, including but not limited to pronouns. They said that my org's IT administration did not specifically disable these features, but it was a Microsoft issue (they later backpedaled on this and confirmed that the option has been disabled). They also told me that they no longer had any way to manage this profile information. I was told that I could reach out directly to Microsoft for a solution on how to edit these moving forward, as they still appear in Teams, comments to new documents, etc.

Where can I go now to make these changes? Thanks so much!

Answer 1

Hi @Charlie Birkner, 

Welcome to the Q&A Community 

I’m here to assist your problem. 

Based on your description, the ability to edit pronouns (and related profile details like bio, pictures, and display options) in Microsoft 365 work or school accounts hasn't been globally removed by Microsoft. However, it is an optional feature that is disabled by default and must be explicitly enabled by your organization's Microsoft 365 Global Administrator 

Assuming the feature is enabled in your organization, you can no longer edit pronouns directly on the My Account page for work/school accounts - this appears to be a change, as that portal doesn't support the pronouns field. Instead, make changes via your profile card in Microsoft Teams: 

In Microsoft Teams (Desktop or Mobile App): 

1. Open Teams and click your profile picture in the upper-right corner. 
2. Select your name or email to open your profile card. 
3. Click + Pronouns (or the existing pronouns below your name). 
4. Add or edit your pronouns (choose from English examples like "she/her/hers" or enter custom text up to 60 characters). To delete, clear the field. 
5. Click Save. Changes apply immediately across Microsoft 365 apps (e.g., Teams, Outlook, profile cards in documents). 
6. Click Got it to close the confirmation (desktop only). 

If the + Pronouns option doesn't appear, the feature is disabled at the organization level. In that case: 

• Double-check with your IT department, as they (or a Global Admin) can enable it:  

1. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center. 
2. Go to Settings > Org settings > Security & privacy. 
3. Select Pronouns. 
4. Check the box to turn it on and save. (It may take up to 7 hours for users to see the option.) 

• If your IT insists they can't manage it (e.g., due to tenant restrictions or higher policies), ask your IT Admin contact Microsoft directly for escalation. Because only your Global Admin can create a ticket for support to Microsoft. 

You can refer to: Pronouns on your profile in Microsoft 365 - Microsoft Support 

Turn pronouns on or off for your organization in the Microsoft 365 admin center - Microsoft 365 admin | Microsoft Learn 

How to turn on pronouns in Microsoft 365 [he, him, she, her, they] | Microsoft Community Hub 

Since your IT suggested reaching out to Microsoft, here's how: 

To resolve this, Microsoft’s support team will need to step in. A technical support engineer can perform a remote session to investigate the situation, verify the backend configurations, and run any necessary synchronization tools to resolve the problem. If the issue requires further attention, they can escalate it to a specialized team for deeper analysis.   

  Here’s what your Office 365 Global Admin should do next:       

• Submit a Service Request: The Global Admin should create a service request with Microsoft support to get advanced technical assistance and diagnostics. For detailed instructions on how to get support, please refer to Get support - Microsoft 365 admin.     
• Find Your Microsoft 365 Admin: If you’re unsure who the Global Admin is within your organization, you can find guidance on locating them here: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support.   

 

We appreciate your kind patience and understanding that sometimes the initial response may not immediately resolve the issue or there may be some misunderstandings about your scenario, but we would love to hear updates from you and find out further suggestions. 

 

Thank you for your kindness and understanding. If you need anything else, please feel free to contact me.  

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Answer 2

If you are using an organizational (i.e. not personal) account, your IT folks are the ones responsible for making changes to what features are available, not Microsoft. Ask them to check and make sure that pronouns are enabled in your organization, by following the instructions in this article: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/add-users/turn-pronouns-on-or-off?view=o365-worldwide

Once that is done, you can use the Teams client or the profile card in Outlook to update your information, pronouns included. If you need more detailed instructions, check out this article: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/pronouns-on-your-profile-in-microsoft-365-232c3bfb-a947-4310-86db-b22d63663d85