Jira Best Practices

Owned by Guanglin Zhang
Jan 28, 2023
3 min read

 

Issue Best Practices

  • Write short and clear summaries
    The summary is the title of an issue. Summaries are required for every new issue you create. The best practice is to keep each summary between 4-7 words. Write them in crisp and precise language so anyone on your team can understand at a glance.

  • Make sure an issue is in the correct status
    Don’t leave an issue in “Open” status until you’re done. When you’re done working on an issue, resolve it and and use the correct resolution. If necessary, comment on why you transitioned an issue.

  • Use email notifications to stay connected
    Email notifications help you stay on top of your issues. By default, Jira sends you a lot of emails. But they're all important!
    📥 Anytime an issue changes status or you are @mentioned in a comment, you'll get an email. While it may feel like overload, these emails keep you well-connected to your issues and your team.
    Every email from Jira includes a direct link to the issue. While you can change your email notification settings in Jira, we recommend that you keep your notifications turned on. It'll help you be efficient and in the know on all work related to you.

  • Use comments for every communication
    Comments should be your go-to feature in Jira. They are the ultimate tool to collaborate with your team and keep work organized.
    Use comments to document any update, question, or request, even if it feels trivial. This way, your team will see the entire history of an issue's progress through the workflow. This can help you more accurately plan your future work.
    The best practice is to use comments to communicate progress, ask questions, find resources, ask for opinions, get ideas, request feedback, and @mention teammates. When used consistently, comments create a source of truth for your work. They gather updates in one place and allow anyone on your team to get up to speed quickly.

  • Flag important issues
    You can add a flag to any issue to indicate its importance. When a flag is added, a small flag icon will be visible on the issue card and the issue card will turn yellow.
    It's a great way to bring awareness to any issue that requires escalation. You may need to flag an issue that is in danger of missing its delivery date. Or flag an issue that's blocked by another task or problem.

    🚩To add a flag to an issue:
    Open an issue
    Select the ellipses ••• and select Add flag

  • Create multiple issues at a time with the roadmap or backlog
    You may need to create more than one issue at a time. When planning new initiatives from start to finish, you can create a sequence of new issues from a single view. Both the roadmap and backlog provide this option.

 

Adjust your personal settings

  • Select your profile picture icon at the top right

  • Select 'Personal settings'

  • Update your preferences

    • Watch your issues?

    • Homepage?

      • Don’t just use the default “SystemDashboard” – be creative and create your own dashboards.

    • Email preferences?

      • If you feel you're receiving too many emails from Jira, set up a filter using your email client.

  • Select 'Save changes'

 

Continuous learning

  • Atlassian university

    • https://university.atlassian.com

  • Jira documentation

    • https://confluence.atlassian.com/alldoc/jira-documentation-directory-71598773.html

  • Atlassian community

    • https://community.atlassian.com

 

Get Help

  • Atlassian support

    • https://support.atlassian.com

  • If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact us：

    • service desk:

      • https://xdevpod.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/3

    • email:

      • support@devpod.cn