Most users will agree that Jira, a widely used issue-tracking software from Atlassian, is an excellent product. It enables you to carry out a wide array of projects, from test case management to agile software development. Beyond IT projects, you can also define and track HR and marketing projects. It has 20 years of history and serves over 180,000 organizations with millions of individual users. At the same time, Jira is probably known more for its extensive range of features than for its simplicity. But what if there was an app that could help make Jira immeasurably easier to use, especially for the all-important admins? Well, now there is!

NOT QUITE PERFECT

Balázs Szakál works for META-INF, a Budapest-based company specializing in Atlassian products. As a regular Jira admin and general user, Balázs enjoyed using the system but grew frustrated with some of its perceived flaws. Perhaps because Jira has grown organically from its original tracking function to fulfill an array of different roles, there are times when it can feel a little unwieldy or overelaborate. Balázs, however, was convinced that a solution could be found and identified three core issues that needed solving:

Time-consuming documentation

Producing documentation to a deadline has long been one of the trickiest issues for Jira admins. If your company or department has to submit to regular audits, the admin will have to extract detailed documentation from the software. However, as Balázs explains, “This can take several days, if not weeks, and it always felt like by the time I had created the documentation, it was already out of date.”

Cumbersome change tracking

There was also no option to produce a fast, detailed overview of the Jira projects. This might be fine if you have a simple, small-scale project, but the greater the number of variables and users, the harder it is to keep track. “When the number of project settings exceeds the admin’s capacity, or there are multiple administrators, it becomes tough to identify problems quickly enough,” says Balázs. “For instance, if a Jira administrator goes for a two-week vacation and another admin finetunes a few post functions and permissions, it becomes really hard to detect changes and work in unison.”

Confusing terms and concepts

Perhaps because Jira has such a large number of features, many new users are either unaware of them or don’t know how to get the most out of them. This means the onboarding process can sometimes be unnecessarily time-consuming, while even more experienced users don’t always manage to exploit Jira’s full potential. Balázs says, “I work with companies where employees have been using Jira for years, yet they are still not familiar with the concept of workflows and transitions.” 

THE THREE-STEP GUIDE TO SIMPLIFYING JIRA PROJECT ADMINISTRATION

Determined to resolve the situation, Balázs convinced his colleagues at META-INF to help him tackle these specific issues. The result? Glass Project Documentation for Jira, a productivity app specially designed to add a dash of simplicity to the lives of Jira admins and general users.

Step one: Fast and painless documentation

Arguably the main mission for META-INF’s team: to design a feature they knew would save a lot of time. Now, with Glass, you can access full project documentation in a few seconds in a striking, easy-to-read format. Moreover, you can extract the data as a printable PDF or a Confluence page to ensure easy access for other users. 

• Full project documentation in seconds
• One-click access to project information 
• Export project & workflow configuration to Confluence/PDF

Step two: See important details

The developers at Glass also worked hard to produce a fast and wide-reaching overview function. “Even without admin access, users with our custom View Glass permission can browse Jira project configuration at the deepest level,” explains Balázs. “For example, you can see all users and groups in the project, check permission levels, and view any highlighted properties, conditions, validators, and post functions.”

• Analyze roles, groups, permissions, and notifications
• Create snapshots and compare Jira project configurations
• Deep dive by drilling down into workflow settings

Step three: Education

To help guide users through Jira's basic and more detailed functions, Glass provides training and onboarding features in the form of educational content featuring short tutorial videos and official Atlassian documentation. These features are particularly useful for new employees, who are guided through their initial steps, with expert staff on hand to answer any doubts or queries they might have.

• Training and onboarding videos
• Fast links to official Atlassian documentation
• Partner support and free online meetings

WINNING COMBINATIONS

But that’s not all! In addition to its three main functions, Glass also has a range of additional features:

• Change control: Track differences, including between Jira project versions
• Hosting on-premise or cloud
• Assistance with cloud migration
• Flexible pricing scheme based on the number of users

Conclusion

Overall, for Jira administrators and regular Jira users, Glass is sure to improve productivity and project transparency, promote seamless collaboration and offer a more user-friendly experience of this vital platform.

Want to get even more value from Jira and ease the burden of your admins? Then download Glass Project Documentation now and take a giant leap to even more effective business management! Start your free 30-day trial today!