[10 Best Templates for Jira] Recruitment Plan Template for Jira

[#1]

Hiring mistakes cost companies up to 50% of an annual salary (Railsware internal stats). Recruitment isn't just about filling vacancies—it's about building the right team at the right time. A structured recruitment plan prevents costly errors and aligns stakeholders from the start.

In this guide, you'll learn how to build a scalable recruitment plan template in Jira using Smart Template and Smart Checklists, reflecting real hiring practices from product-focused teams.

What Is a Recruitment Plan Template?

A recruitment plan template provides a reusable framework for organizing, assigning, and tracking the hiring process from the initial hiring request to job postings and collecting applications.

Instead of managing multiple spreadsheets, emails, or documents, Jira centralizes all recruitment tasks. Your HR and hiring teams clearly understand timelines, goals, and responsibilities before the recruitment begins.

A strong recruitment template addresses:

• Role definition and hiring goals

• Stakeholder alignment

• Salary research and recruitment budget verification

• Job description drafting

• Interview process setup and onboarding

• Promotion via job fairs, employee referrals, and recruitment events

Standardizing recruitment ensures you don’t overlook critical steps. Each candidate experiences a consistent hiring process aligned with your business and company culture, ensuring the selection of the right person.

Many teams begin recruitment without sufficient preparation, risking time and resources on unsuitable candidates. Smart Templates preserve your recruitment structure, and Smart Checklists clearly define each workflow step.

Why Use a Recruitment Plan Template in Jira?

A recruitment plan template in Jira organizes and aligns your team before recruitment starts, offering significant benefits:

• Save Time and Costs: Centralize recruitment tasks and avoid searching scattered sources for information.

• Collaborative Workflow: HR teams and hiring managers view responsibilities and deadlines clearly.

• Accountability: Tasks assigned via checklists prevent missed steps.

• Efficiency: Reuse templates and maintain consistent hiring standards, speeding up your recruitment process.

• Consistency: Candidates enjoy a uniform experience, boosting your employer brand and candidate satisfaction.

Next, we’ll demonstrate exactly how to create your Jira recruitment template using Smart Templates.

How to Build a Recruitment Plan Template in Jira

A recruitment plan template in Jira standardizes hiring preparation through Smart Templates and Smart Checklists, ensuring all tasks and milestones are completed.

Step 1: Create a Role-Specific Template

Start by creating a role-specific Jira issue using a Smart Template. Customize it based on role, department, or hiring manager.

Example structure:

Recruitment Plan for {{position}} at {{project}} at {{department}}

• Pre-planning for {{position}} at {{project}}
• Research & market calibration for {{position}} 
• {{position}} discovery and validation
• Design of the hiring process for {{position}}
• Applicant tracking system setup for {{position}}
• Sourcing & recruitment strategy for {{position}}

In order to create such a template from scratch you can follow this guide and copy paste the issue names below to repeat this hierarchy for your purposes. You can easily edit this template later if required.

Use Smart Variables for flexible templates:

• {{position}}

• {{department}}

• {{project}}

A parent issue (Recruitment Plan) can structure related tasks clearly among recruiters, talent acquisition specialists, and hiring managers. A master template easily adapts to each new vacancy.

📌 Pro tip: You can create one master template and adapt it for each new vacancy in just a few clicks.

Explore Smart Templates in Jira 

Step 2: Break Down the Template with Smart Checklists

Once you've created a recruitment plan issue, use Smart Checklists to detail each actionable step in the hiring workflow. Clearly define tasks for stakeholders based on real hiring processes.

Here’s how the checklist might look inside the recruitment plan issue in Jira:

📋 Recruitment Plan Checklist

## Pre-Planning

- Validate the hiring request & add it to the hiring plan

- Share the Job requisition form to collect the full information about the role

- Assign the responsible recruiter

- Send Job Requisition Form to hiring manager

## Research & Market Calibration

- Collect a filled requisition form from the Hiring Manager 

- Research similar roles and market benchmarks (e.g., skills, salaries, role namings)

- Validate role fit and requirements based on market data

- Gather role posting analytics

• Understand where such roles are usually posted
• Investigate whether people typically apply from posting of this role
• Determine the need for sourcing specialist for this role
  
  

## Position Discovery & Validation

- Prepare Position Discovery file with key role details based on the Job Requisition Form and conducted research:

• Hard & soft skills
• Competencies
• Role requirement
• Position goals 
• Team/Function
• Hiring Location(s)
• Salary range
• Hiring Stages

- Schedule call with hiring manager and hiring team

- Finalize role profile and responsibilities during call

- Define required hiring materials (job description, technical task, etc.)

- Assign responsible team members for each step

- Confirm who will participate in interviews

- Define interview stages:

• Intro call
  
  
• Technical task
  
  
• Collaboration interview
  
  

- Final interview with hiring manager

## Hiring Process Design

- Align on interview scope, sequence, and expectations

- Assign responsibilities to interviewers

- Finalize required hiring materials (test tasks, interview questions, intro script) with the hiring team

## Applicant Tracking System Setup

- Create position in ATS (e.g., Greenhouse)

- Upload hiring stages, checklist and add hiring team

- Create emails templates based on recruitment flow and materials

- Add requisition details and approvals

- Review with the hiring manager

## Sourcing & Recruitment Strategy

- Define sourcing approach

- Align on posting locations and internal budget approvals

- Post the job on the company's careers page

- Make an external posting on job boards 

- Request marketing support (LinkedIn post, internal newsletter, ads campaign)

- Create and distribute referral form to internal team

Assign responsibilities, link relevant documents, and set deadlines for clear accountability. You can add subtasks or linked issues like test task preparation or LinkedIn postings for better tracking.

Smart Checklists allow for flexible scalability using dynamic fields like:

• {{job_title}}

• {{team}}

• {{hiring_manager}}

• {{location}}

• {{start_date}}

This structure works whether you're hiring support staff or senior product roles.

Step 3: Automate Recurring Tasks

Use Jira Automation to handle routine actions:

• Automatically trigger recruitment plans when adding new vacancies

• Notify stakeholders about task assignments

• Send reminders for pending tasks

• Block issue progression until necessary steps complete

Automation removes manual follow-ups, keeping the recruitment flow smooth and efficient.

Step 4: Track and Iterate

Regularly evaluate your template’s effectiveness by checking:

• Completion rate of required tasks

• Commonly missed or misunderstood steps

• Time spent per recruitment phase

Adjust your template based on real-time hiring metrics, user feedback, and observed inefficiencies.

Conclusion

An effective recruitment plan sets the foundation for successful hiring. Clear, consistent, and centralized processes speed up recruitment and reduce errors.

Using Jira, your recruitment template allows you to:

• Align stakeholders early

• Document responsibilities, decisions, and deadlines clearly

• Automate routine tasks

• Continuously optimize your recruitment pipeline

Smart Templates and Smart Checklists organize complex recruitment workflows effectively, helping you secure top talent efficiently.

Explore Smart Templates in Jira 

FAQ: Recruitment Plan Template in Jira

What is a recruitment plan template?
It is a structured hiring plan outlining your recruitment strategy, job descriptions, hiring process, and onboarding steps. It defines responsibilities for hiring managers and stakeholders.

How does a recruitment plan template help streamline the recruitment process?
It organizes recruitment efforts, defines clear hiring goals, and manages timelines. It standardizes sourcing, interview processes, and outreach, improving candidate experience and retention.

Can I customize job postings and hiring plans per role?
Yes. Use Smart Variables like {{job_title}} to tailor your recruitment templates for new hires across different departments, optimizing your hiring strategy.

Does Jira integrate with applicant tracking systems (ATS)?
Yes. Jira integrates with popular applicant tracking systems, helping manage vacancies, social media outreach, LinkedIn postings, and coordination with recruitment agencies.

Can I measure recruitment metrics like time-to-fill and time-to-hire in Jira?
Yes. Jira tracks recruitment metrics to forecast hiring needs accurately, evaluate talent acquisition effectiveness, and improve hiring decisions to secure top talent and the ideal candidate.

Explore Smart Templates in Jira