Boosting Productivity and Collaboration in Academic Writing With JIRA

In a fast-paced work environment, everyone works together to achieve their goals. Among these, tools like JIRA play an important role by allowing productivity to tenfold and allowing growth to enter. The collaboration between different professionals on such tools has enabled a streamlined process of working. This has allowed many organisations to achieve their targets by collaborating and increasing productivity. Collaboration is not limited to a professional setting where a group of official employees work together. It broadens and encompasses every individual who wants to collaborate on a project. This also includes collaboration among university students to complete their group projects as assignments.

Introduction

There are many questions that come to the mind of a student - “What is this software?”, “Is JIRA free?”, “How can I use JIRA for my assignments?” “Can we collaborate together on this tool for our assignments?” “Why only this tool and not any other software?” “Is it going to help me manage the time on this project?” and many more questions. We are going to answer these questions and provide you with information and a brief overview of how you can use this software for your academic writing. Dive in, and let’s get started!

What is JIRA?

Starting with the most basic questions of the students - What is JIRA ? It is a project management tool developed by Atlassian that allows issue tracking and agile project management. It has been in the market for about more than 22 years and is still among the top choices of businesses. Ranging from SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) to large-scale businesses, companies use this software to collaborate with each other, plan and track projects, track bug issues, test and release a file, tracking of projects with timely delivery, and so on. However, the wider application of this software makes it a tool worth it for any collaborative project management.

Wider Applications of JIRA 

To answer this question - “how can I use JIRA more effectively?”, we must know the wider application of this tool beyond what it was originally developed for. While developers originally made this tool for software development, its application and primary use case have enabled many other industries to utilise it. Other than industrial applications, this application can be used on a personal basis, too. Since it is mainly a project management tool, the features can be utilised by anyone with the right approach. Here are some examples of applications across different domains:

Project Management

The application of JIRA goes beyond software development by providing features to manage tasks. It can also be used to track issues in the particular project, ranging from marketing campaigns to planning of events.

Product Management

It facilitates businesses to create a roadmap for the planning and execution of a particular project dedicated to their product. It helps a team to plan the production and track its progress, monitor backlogs, and align objectives with the end goals of the business.

HR and Recruitment

Even departments such as HR and recruitment also use this software to keep track of job applications, conduct interviews, and coordinate the recruitment process.

Content Management

Can you use JIRA for document management? The content management team answered yes. Such teams can use this tool to manage the content creation workflow, editorial and approvals. It allows individuals to share finalised versions of their written blogs, articles or any other written materials by attaching it in comments.

Education & Research

One of the most important uses of this tool among the universities is providing educational aid to both the students and professionals. It can help students and researchers in managing their academic writing projects, creating collaborative project groups, and meeting deadlines.

How to Get Started on JIRA ?

Many students want to know more about how to start using this tool. Students must follow some basic steps. As explained by our management experts, getting started with this tool requires you to go on the website and create a new account with other considerations. Here is how you can get started with it:

Go to the official website and click on the “Get JIRA Free” button.

Create a new account by registering your email address and clicking “Sign Up”. You can also click on any of the other options below to directly sign up through your existing accounts on either Google, Microsoft, or the other two options.

Once you enter your email address, JIRA will show you your basic email address and name. Click on “Create Your Account” to kickstart the further process.

Provide a human verification by completing the test as shown below and clicking “Verify”.

On the next screen, enter your site name (or university name in your case). Remember that name will be of more than three characters in lowercase and can have numbers. Click “Continue” once you have written a name that is approved by the tool.

In the next step, select the kind of project you are working on. As you are going to work on your project provided by the instructor, choose the “Other” option.

In the next screen, among the three options, select “Project Management”. Your account will be created in this final process.

Key Features of JIRA 

In order to know “how can I use JIRA more effectively”, you must know what are the features of this application. This tool offers many different features that provide efficient project tracking, issue management, and team collaboration. Here are some of the key features:

• Issue tracking based on category, team members and related tasks
• Customisable workflows to shed light on individual progress
• Agile project management through methodologies like scrum and kanban
• Scalability and integration with tools, plugins and third-party apps
• Personalised dashboards to track metrics and real-time updates
• Customisable reports to monitor the progress of the entire project
• Mentions or comments to discuss, provide feedback and communicate
• Automating repetitive tasks & workflows reduces manual effort.
• Control permissions to specify who can view, edit or transition
• Built-in security features for safeguarding data and information
• Also available on mobile apps (ios, android) for efficient management
• Open API allows customs integrations and plugins.

Working On JIRA - An Extensively Brief “How To” Guide

Using JIRA for specific purposes is totally dependent on how you are going to use it or what the requirements of your project are. However, in a general sense, we have created brief step-by-step instructions on how to use the tool utilising the key features. As you use the tool, you will be able to learn more about the other features, but these are some basic yet essential features and their descriptions:

How To Create A Project?

The moment you create a new account, you can create a new project. Enter the project name, choose how you want the tool’s automatic instructions to appear based on the level of familiarity, and click on “Get Started”.

As per what is JIRA software, the basic management of tasks is handled by creating projects and tasks. Create a new task by entering the name and clicking “Create”.

Plan a particular task and create subtasks related to that main task.

If applicable, create a separate column highlighting the progress of work in any way you want. For example, you can create a column for work that requires rectifications.

Name the separate column and click on the tick mark or on the cross if it isn’t required.

Use the drag-and-drop feature to shift your tasks in columns as per their progress.

If you want to connect some tools with your JIRA account, use the right side trail.

How To Add Collaborators?

To add collaborators to your project, click on the highlighted icon, as shown in the image below.

Enter the names or email addresses of the collaborators. You can also use either of the integrating options provided below. Assign the role to the collaborator (only in the paid version) and click “Add”.

Once you have entered the collaborators, click “OK” to add them to your project.

How to Create Tasks/Subtasks?

Create subtasks within the main tasks by planning each element separately. For example - a title page will have written content and design.

Click on the subtask and click “Link issue” to create a linking chain with another related task.

Select the appropriate option in the dropdown dialogue box (as shown in the image).

Select the particular task/issue or search separately for it in the search box.

Once you have entered the particular task/issue in the search box, click on the “Link” button.

How to Use It for Time Management?

Students ask, “Is JIRA a time management tool?” and the answer is - yes. Here’s how -

Click on the “Timeline” option in the right trail of the platform.

Create an epic/main task on your timeline by labelling it.

Click on the created epic, and a dialogue box will open.

Scroll down in the box and assign it to any individual, or choose “Assign to me”.

Assign a particular label to the epic by writing a name and entering.

Click on “Start date” and choose the date on which you want to begin the process of that particular epic.

Click on “Due date” and choose the date on which you want to end the process of that particular epic.

A bar will appear in the timeline according to the time range assigned. You can manually manage the time range by adjusting the bar by clicking and dragging its left and right edges.

Create multiple subtasks and repeat the same process for each one to create a timeline.

How To Attach Documents and/or Comments?

Students ask, “Can you use JIRA for document management?” Yes, you can attach the documents and even comment on anything along the lines of that document sharing.

Go to the created tasks or hover over the left train and select “Issues”.

Select any of them and click on the picture icon, as shown in the image below.

Select the relevant file you want to attach to the dialogue box, and it will appear.

Free vs Paid Version

There is a free and paid version that you can use according to the requirements and the resources available. Here are some of the key aspects of the free version:

• The user limit is up to 10 users for free JIRA while offering flexibility in the paid.
• The core features available in the free version include basic issue tracking, agile boards, customisable workflows, basic reporting and integration, advanced issue tracking, agile project management, advanced reporting and dashboards, automation and integration in the paid version.
• There are additional features in the paid version such as advanced permissions, audit logs, advanced roadmaps, priority support and enhanced security features.
• There is less customisation available in the free version and the opposite in the paid version.
• The free version is suitable for teams of up to 10 members, but having more than 10 will require you to get a paid version.

Comparison With Other Similiar Tools

Compared to other similar tools, if you ask “Can JIRA be used as a timesheet?” then, yes it can be used as a timesheet since it allows you to create a customised timeline and decide the workflow for each task. However, other than this particular feature, what other kinds of tools are available and how are they different from this tool?

Primary Focus

• JIRA is an agile project management.
• Trello is a visual task and project managemet.
• Asana is a task and project management.
• Basecamp is a team communication and project management.

Key Features

• JIRA provides advanced issue tracking and agile management with customisation.
• Trello provides Kanban boards, card-based task management, and simplicity.
• Asana provides task assignments, timelines, and project tracking.
• Basecamp provides messaging, to-dos, scheduling and file sharing.

Ideal For

• JIRA is ideal for agile project management and practices.
• Trello is ideal for small teams and task management with tracking.
• Asana is ideal for team task management and project coordination.
• Basecamp is ideal for remote teams and project coordination.

Integration

• JIRA allows third-party plugins.
• Trello allows third-party integrations but fewer than JIRA .
• Asana allows third-party integrations and a robust API.
• Basecamp allows limited third-party integrations.

Scalability

• JIRA is suitable for small to large teams.
• Trello is suitable for small to medium-sized teams.
• Asana is suitable for small to large teams.
• Basecamp is suitable for small to medium teams.

Have An Expert To Guide You Well

Having an expert by your side allows you to utilise the tool to its full potential. Whether you are working on a software assignment or something similar, our academic mentors will provide you with the guidance you need. With their knowledge and experience, you can be assured that using this tool will be a seamless experience that will increase your productivity and drive excellence. This is one of the parts of “100 days, 100+ tools”, where we bring you extensive information on how to use different tools for your academic writing. Register now to learn more!

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the basics of JIRA?

The absolute basics of JIRA consist of bug tracking, issue tracking and project management.

What are the challenges in JIRA?

Some common challenges users can face with JIRA are that it can be difficult for beginners to learn and understand how to use the tool properly. The free version restricts more than ten people and provides basic features that can be a little troubling for managing tasks up to their full potential.

What are JIRA ’s best practices?

JIRA ’s best practices involve setting correct due dates, using labels to organise tasks, breaking down large tasks into smaller ones, avoiding putting too much description, monitoring the progress of tasks regularly and more.

How many issues can JIRA handle?

There are absolutely no limitations in JIRA when creating and assigning tasks/issues, whether you are using the free version or paid version.