Key Highlights
- Learn Jira project management to organize tasks with customizable workflows.
- Master visual tools like Kanban and Scrum boards to track progress efficiently.
- Understand how to adapt Jira for agile and non-agile teams.
- Boost productivity with tips to avoid pitfalls and use advanced features effectively.
If you’ve ever struggled to keep your projects on track or ensure your team stays aligned, project management in Jira might be the solution you’ve been looking for. Originally built for agile software teams, Jira is now a go-to platform for managing tasks, workflows, and collaboration across any industry. With its customizable workflows, visual boards, and reporting tools, Jira empowers teams to stay organized and productive.
Let me show you how to make the most of Jira for your project management needs.
What Is Project Management and How Does Jira Fit In?
At its core, project management is the process of planning, executing, and tracking tasks to achieve a specific goal. It involves defining objectives, organizing resources, and ensuring that work progresses efficiently to meet deadlines. For this, teams need tools that provide structure and visibility—and that’s where Jira shines.
Jira is a platform designed to help teams manage projects of all kinds, from software development to marketing campaigns. It enables you to break down complex goals into smaller, actionable tasks, assign responsibilities, and track progress in real-time.
But what makes Jira unique is how it handles projects. Let’s take a closer look at how projects are structured in Jira for a Project Management and why they’re so effective.
What Is a Project in Jira?
In Jira, a project is the foundation for organizing your work. Think of it as a container that holds everything related to a specific goal or workflow.
Key Elements of Jira’s Project Management:
- Work Items (previously called Issues): These represent individual work items such as tasks, bugs, or features.
- Workflows: A series of steps (e.g., "To Do," "In Progress," "Done") that define how tasks move from start to finish.
- Team Members: The people assigned to collaborate on and complete the work items.
Each project is fully customizable, allowing teams to design workflows, boards, and reporting tools to match their specific needs. Whether you’re managing a software sprint or planning a marketing campaign, Jira’s project structure keeps your work organized and actionable.
Since you understand how projects are structured, let’s explore why Jira is such a great choice for managing them.
Why Choose Jira for Project Management?
Jira offers more than just task tracking. It’s a versatile tool that adapts to how your team works, whether you’re planning sprints, managing deadlines, or simply keeping tasks in check.
Key Benefits:
Whether you’re a software developer or a marketer, Jira has the flexibility to fit your style.
Let’s break down the steps to set up your first Jira project.
How to Get Started with Project Management in Jira
Step 1: Set Up your First Project
Log in and Click Create Project:
Choose between:
- Team-managed Projects: Best for smaller independent teams.
- Company-Managed Projects: Ideal for larger teams needing standardized workflows.
Step 2: Select a Workflow Template
Jira offers templates to fit your style of work:
- Scrum: Perfect for planning sprints and working from a backlog.
- Kanban: Focus on managing tasks in a continuous flow.
- Bug Tracking: Optimize work items resolution with a list-based approach.
Step 3: Customize Your Board
- Add, delete, or rearrange columns like "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done" with your own IT project status report.
- Use tags, labels, and priorities to keep tasks organized.
With your first project set up, you’ll have the foundation to start managing tasks. But to truly maximize your efficiency, let’s explore the standout capabilities that make Jira a premier project management tool.
Key Features That Make Jira a Project Management Hero
Let’s see how Jira adapts to different team styles…
When to Use Jira Project Management
Jira’s out-of-the-box features are robust enough for many teams to manage projects without additional tools. If your projects require task tracking, workflow customization, or team collaboration, Jira’s core functionalities likely have you covered.
Ideal Scenarios for Using Jira Alone:
- Small Teams: Teams of up to 10 users can effectively utilize Jira’s free plan without needing extra tools.
- Simple Workflows: If your workflow is straightforward—like moving tasks through stages such as “To Do,” “In Progress,” and “Done.”
- Task-Focused Projects: Ideal for managing smaller projects where tracking individual tasks of project status reports is the primary need.
- Agile or Kanban Frameworks: Jira’s built-in boards are sufficient for managing sprints or continuous workflows.
Sticking with Jira’s built-in features allows you to maintain simplicity and reduce overhead.
Adapting Jira for Non-Agile Teams
While Jira is a favorite among agile teams, it works just as well for non-agile workflows. Jira Business Projects (previously called Jira Work Management) makes it easy for business teams to track tasks, timelines, and deadlines.
Best Views for Non-Agile Teams:
- Calendar View: Perfect for tracking deadlines and milestones.
- Timeline View: Map out long-term projects visually.
- Task Filters: Focus on what matters most with custom filters.
Example: A marketing team planning a product launch can use Jira to track tasks like "Create ad copy" or "Design social media posts."
Avoid These Common Pitfalls
Overcomplicating Workflows
Neglecting Updates
Poor Task Assignments
Avoiding these pitfalls will set you up for more efficient project management. To take it further, here are some tips to ensure you get the most out of Jira.
When to Consider Jira Apps
While Jira’s core features are comprehensive, some projects demand advanced functionalities that Jira Apps can provide. The Atlassian Marketplace offers a variety of integrations that enhance Jira’s capabilities, from automation to specialized reporting.
Scenarios Where Jira Apps Thrive:
- Complex Reporting Needs: Jira reports like custom burndown charts or advanced portfolio views are better served by Apps.
- Cross-Tool Integrations: Apps like Slack or GitHub integrations enhance workflows across platforms.
- Test Management and Test Environment Management (TEM): for release or QA organizations looking to centralize their tests and test environments information.
- Advanced Automation: If you need workflows triggered by external events or complex automation rules.
- Enterprise-Level Requirements: Larger organizations benefit from features like time tracking or resource management.
Jira offers robust project management capabilities on its own, but integrating the right Jira Apps can significantly enhance its functionality. Let’s name a few:
- Management Tools like BigGantt simplify timeline visualization with Gantt charts
- The Tempo suite improves time tracking and budgeting
- eazyBI provides advanced reporting options for data-driven decisions
- Smart Checklist Pro adds granularity to task tracking
- Apwide Golive supports teams managing complex IT environments and deployments
- Release Management for structuring your portfolio of cross-project releases
Often, it’s worth looking at other Atlassian products that integrates perfectly with Jira:
- Jira Product Discovery helps align product roadmaps with strategic goals
- Jira Plans (previously called Advanced Roadmaps and part of Jira Cloud Premium) for tracking cross-functional work, such as a program or initiative
- Confluence for documentation and wiki
Managing Releases in Jira? Golive is the answer.
Apwide Golive simplifies environment and release management in Jira by providing a centralized solution for tracking and managing development, testing, staging and even production environments. Teams can easily monitor environment statuses, prevent deployment conflicts, and maintain alignment across development, QA, and operations.
Golive connects deployments to Jira work items and Jira versions, something that is missing in the Jira out-of-the-box features. Its real-time dashboards improve communication by providing up-to-date information on environment and release statuses.
Key Benefits:
Golive is designed for managing complex environments and releases, giving teams greater visibility and control directly within Jira.
Tips for Successful Project Management with Jira
- Use Templates: Jira’s pre-built templates make it easy to get started.
- Automate Notifications: Save time by automating task reminders and transitions.
- Set Priorities: Mark high-priority tasks for your team.
- Schedule Backlog Reviews: Keep your tasks organized by revisiting the backlog weekly.
With these strategies, you’ll be well on your way to managing projects effectively.
Start Managing Projects with Jira
With its robust features and adaptable workflows, Jira makes project management simpler and more effective. Whether you’re managing agile sprints, tracking deadlines, or planning marketing campaigns, Jira helps keep everything on track.
And with a Jira Free plan for up to 10 users, there’s no better time to explore what it offers. Take advantage of its features, tailor them to your team’s needs, and create a workflow that works for you.
Key Takeaways
- Start with simple workflows and expand as needed.
- Regularly update tasks and use labels to stay organized.
- Assign clear roles for accountability and collaboration.
- Review backlogs weekly to prioritize effectively.
- Use automation to save time and improve efficiency.
- Customize workflows, boards, and templates for your team’s needs.
- Explore reports to track progress and identify bottlenecks.
- Consider Jira Apps for advanced features like test environment management.