Download The Big Book of Atlassian
The Unofficial Big Book of Atlassian
Practical guidance for Jira admins who manage real-world complexity
Running Jira in production is rarely simple. As your instance grows, so do the trade-offs: more projects, more fields, more workflows, more opinions. What starts as a helpful tool can quickly become hard to maintain, explain, and evolve.
The Big Book of Atlassian brings together practical lessons from years of hands-on Jira administration. It’s written for admins and system owners who want clarity, consistency, and decisions that still make sense months or years later.
This is not official Atlassian documentation. It’s a community-driven resource built around what actually works.
get to know
The Authors - Alex Ortiz & Bernandina (Lina) Ortiz
Alex Ortiz
Apetech CEO
Alex started making YouTube videos back in 2021 to document his journey of mastering Jira. Little did he know the videos would
help hundreds of thousands of people. In 2024, Alex had the opportunity to partner with Atlassian and create a series of training videos for all types of Atlassian customers.
Two years later, the idea of creating a conference where you could attend the training in person was born. Alex co-created the Atlassian Builders’ Summit as a conference for the community by the community. Whenever Alex isn’t busy creating videos and tutorials, he’s helping people all over the world with their Jira
problems.
Lina Ortiz
Apetech CTO
Lina is an embedded software engineer, editor, and creative problem solver with a passion for programming, AI, and simplifying complex ideas. Lina plays a key role behind the scenes, organizing, designing, and refining the details that bring big ideas to life.
Her thoughtful approach and “get it done” mindset have shaped everything from video productions to large-scale events, including the coordination and preparation that made this book possible.
Driven by curiosity and a love of learning, Lina continues to explore the intersection of technology, creativity, and education, always finding new ways to make knowledge accessible and inspiring.
What you’ll find inside
This book focuses on the decisions that shape your Atlassian instance over time, including:
- How to structure Jira projects so they remain manageable as usage grows
- When to standardize, and when flexibility is the better choice
- Designing workflows that support reporting without unnecessary complexity
- Managing custom fields, schemes, and permissions with intention
- Using automation responsibly, without masking structural issues
- Documenting setups so teams understand how and why things work
Each section is grounded in real admin experience, with explanations that help you understand the impact of each choice, not just how to configure it.
Who this book is for
- Jira administrators and system owners
- Atlassian partners and consultants
- Technical leads supporting Jira at scale
- Teams responsible for long-term Jira governance
If you’ve ever inherited a Jira instance and wondered “why is it like this?”, this book is for you.
Download the Big Book of Atlassian
Submit the form above to get the full guide as a downloadable resource and keep it close when designing, reviewing, or cleaning up your Atlassian setup.
