Advanced Roadmaps Hierarchy Configuration Guide 2025

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Jira’s default work hierarchy includes three levels: epics, tasks, and sub-tasks. While that’s enough for many setups, this structure doesn’t support cross-team planning or alignment around strategic goals. Your organization may require extra levels, such as initiatives, milestones, or programs. 

Luckily, Advanced Roadmaps can help you with that. This is an additional functionality for Jira, which is available on Jira Premium and Enterprise plans. It allows you to add custom levels that match your processes.

In this guide, I’ll show you how to configure a custom Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy. I’ll also walk you through some hands-on examples and explain how to make your work more efficient with Smart Hierarchy and other tools.

What is Jira Advanced Roadmaps? Is this the same as Jira Plans?

Yes, they’re the same. Advanced Roadmaps is now called Plans inside Jira. It’s part of Jira Premium and Enterprise functionality, and it offers you features that go beyond basic boards and backlogs. The key difference is in planning scope. Standard Jira hierarchy works well for managing tasks inside a single project. Advanced Roadmaps (or Plans) let you work across multiple teams and projects, with a clear structure and big-picture view.

The main advantage of Plans is the ability to create custom issue hierarchies. You define your own structure, decide what each level means, and assign issue types accordingly. This lets you connect high-level goals to everyday tasks. 

Let’s see an example showing how this can work in practice.

Hands-on examples of the Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration

Let’s say an organization wants to roll out a strategic initiative, such as increasing employee satisfaction. As it’s an international company, it has branches in various geographical areas and countries. Local laws, work culture, and other circumstances are different in different branches. 

Also, implementing the program in each country is a multi-step process that requires multiple tasks. However, since it’s the same initiative, it makes sense to manage it as a whole. To organize this in Jira, the company had to set up custom hierarchy levels above epics.

Here’s what it looks like:

• At the top, there is Strategic Priority - a parent issue of the highest level. In this case, it’s Increase Employee Satisfaction. 
• The next level is Regional Area - in this example, it’s European Offices.  
• Below that level is Country - in this case, France.
• Then go Epics. Under each Country, there are multiple Epics. Each Epic represents a key action, like implementing a new feedback system. 
• Epics are broken down into Tasks: creating a survey, distributing it, and collecting feedback. 
• Each task may include Subtasks, such as selecting team members, researching methods, or setting up a survey form.

This custom structure helps the organization to coordinate work across teams and, at the same time, to stay aligned with one shared goal. Every action has a Jira issue (work item), and every issue supports the level above it. As you can see, it wouldn't be possible to do the same with the default Epic - Task - Subtask hierarchy.

Here is another example of a custom Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration: a company-wide marketing initiative aimed at boosting brand awareness:

• At the top of the hierarchy is the Initiative - Boost Brand Awareness. 
• This breaks down into Epics like Digital Marketing Campaign, Content Marketing Strategy, and Social Media Expansion. 
• Each Epic includes Stories, such as launching paid ad campaigns, publishing a blog series, or establishing social media partnerships. 
• These Stories are further broken into Sub-tasks, such as designing ad creatives, drafting blog articles, and negotiating partnership deals. 

With this custom hierarchy, the marketing team can align multiple campaigns under one strategic goal and clearly track how each effort contributes to the bigger picture.

What custom levels can you add to your Advanced Roadmap hierarchy?

Now, it’s time to move from examples to your own Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration. Before you can start, you need to decide what hierarchy types you want to add and how you are going to use them. 

Since the levels are fully customizable, you can tailor them to match the way your teams already work. You’re not locked into a fixed structure - you decide what each level represents. But with that freedom comes responsibility. To make the hierarchy useful, every custom level needs a clearly defined purpose. If the meaning isn’t obvious or shared across teams, your hierarchy will quickly become confusing. 

Below, there are several examples to help you define levels that are both meaningful and practical. The example custom levels are listed in order from the highest strategic level down to the most detailed work items:

• Themes – Strategic pillars, high-level business outcomes (e.g., “Market Expansion”)
• Goals / OKRs – Specific measurable objectives tied to outcomes (e.g., “Increase revenue by 20% this quarter”)
• Initiatives – Big coordinated efforts that move the needle on goals (e.g., “Create a partnership network”)
• Programs – Ongoing areas of work or delivery tracks (e.g., “Implement automation for partnership sells”)
• Capabilities – Cross-cutting functions or systems (e.g., “Automate the order processing system”)
• Complex Projects – Defined scope of work with a deadline (used when multiple Jira projects need to be unified under one effort)

And, of course, you can keep the standard Jira issue hierarchy levels:

• Epics – Large deliverables or features
• Stories / Tasks – Specific deliverables or development tasks
• Sub-tasks – Steps within a task, usually executed by one person

These examples aren’t rules - they’re just starting points. For instance, some teams may use “Tracks” instead of “Programs,” or replace “Initiatives” with “Workstreams.” What matters most is clarity: make sure everyone understands what each level means and how it connects to the others. This will make your hierarchy easier to use, simpler to scale, and more effective for cross-team planning.

How to set up a custom Jira Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy, step by step

Now that everything is ready, let’s see what you need for configuring a custom hierarchy and how you can set it up in just three steps.

The prerequisites for the Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration

Before you start configuring a custom hierarchy, make sure the following conditions are met:

• You’re using Jira Premium or Enterprise – Custom hierarchy levels in Advanced Roadmaps are only available on these plans. If you’re on the Free or Standard plan, this feature won’t be accessible.
• You have admin permissions – You’ll need Jira Administrator rights to create new issue types, edit issue type schemes, and configure the hierarchy.
• Your custom hierarchy is defined – You should have a clear idea of what your custom levels will be and how they map to your planning structure. This includes deciding which issue types you’ll need to support each level.
• You already created a Plan in Jira (formerly Advanced Roadmaps) – As a custom hierarchy is created in your Plan, you need to have one before you begin.

If you haven’t used Advanced Roadmaps yet, you can quickly start with Jira’s Planning template. Then, select the relevant projects and boards from each team to include in your Plan.

Step 1. Create custom issue types

Prior to adding new levels to your hierarchy, you need to have matching issue types to assign to them. For example, if you’re adding a level called “Initiative” or “Program,” you’ll need to create those issue types first.

To do this, go to Settings -> Work items -> Work types -> Add work type. Then, enter the name and description for the new work type. Choose the type format: Standard for regular issues or Sub-task if you’re creating a level below tasks. Once done, click Add.

Repeat this for each new level you are planning to introduce. You can always rename, update, or remove work types later, but it’s best to define the structure upfront. This will make it easier to stay organized as you move through the rest of the setup.

Step 2. Add issue types to schemes

Once your custom work types are created, the next step is to add them to the right scheme. A scheme is what connects your defined work types to the projects that will use them.

Go to Settings -> Work Items -> Work type schemes. Find the scheme used by your project and click Edit. On the left, you’ll see a list of available work types. Drag the ones you created into the list on the right named Work types for current scheme.

You can also set a default work type for newly created items in the project. When you’re done, click Save.

This step is required to make sure your custom work types are actually available when creating new work items in your project. If they’re not added to the scheme, they won’t show up later when you configure your hierarchy.

Step 3. Associate the work type with the hierarchy level

Now that your custom work types are available in your project, it’s time to connect them to specific levels in your hierarchy.

Select Work type hierarchy from the menu on the left. This is where you can map out your issue type hierarchy. To add a new level, select + Create level at the bottom of the menu. Enter a name for the new level (for example, Initiative or Program) and choose its position in the hierarchy. 

Then, in the column on the right, use the dropdown to select the custom work type you created for that level. Repeat these actions for each level you want to add. If you need to rearrange the hierarchy levels, simply drag and drop them in the correct positions. Once you’re finished, click Save changes.

After this, your custom hierarchy is ready and available for your team.

How to visualize custom hierarchies in the Plan Timeline

Your new hierarchy won’t be automatically reflected in your Advanced Roadmaps Timeline (Plan Timeline). You will need to configure additional settings to be able to view your custom levels. On your timeline view, open Filters and adjust your hierarchy filters to include the levels you want to show.

Once done, your custom hierarchy will appear in your Plan timeline and project views. 

How to recreate custom hierarchies automatically with Smart Templates

Let’s say you have configured a custom Jira work hierarchy. Now, you can create complex sets of Jira work items following this hierarchy. You can do this manually, adding work items one by one, or you can use Smart Templates to save your full custom hierarchy as a reusable template. 

To illustrate this idea, let’s circle back to our example - a company that wanted to improve customer satisfaction. They created the following custom hierarchy: Strategic Priority -> Regional Area -> Country -> Epics -> Tasks -> Subtasks. 

As they have many different countries, they will need to replicate the whole set of Epics -> Tasks -> Subtasks for each country. Instead of doing this manually, they can save the Country -> Epics -> Tasks -> Subtasks hierarchy as a template with Smart Templates. Then, they can create work sets starting from the Country level from this template, change the country name, and simply link the work set to the parent work item Regional Area.

Here’s what it may look like:

Once it’s saved with Smart Templates, the company can generate a complete hierarchy of identical work items from this template. The details of each work item in the structure will be preserved: task descriptions, assignees, custom fields, parent links, checklists, and more. As a result, a team can reuse this set of tasks multiple times without having to create them again from scratch. This is especially useful for recurring tasks and processes. 

For example, this can be quarterly budget reviews, product feedback collection cycles, or complex marketing campaigns with multiple stages and deliverables. This setup keeps your process consistent. At the same time, it gives teams the freedom to adjust tasks and structure based on what each project actually requires.

To turn your custom hierarchies into templates, install Smart Templates from the Atlassian Marketplace. The app works with Jira Cloud (including Jira Service Management) and Jira Data Center.  If you also want to enrich your task structures with detailed checklists (like the ones you see in the example above), I also recommend trying Smart Checklist by Titan apps. It allows you to further document complex processes and improve standardization. As a result, people have a clear step-by-step plan to follow without mapping it out from scratch. 

How to use Smart Hierarchy to work with custom hierarchies more efficiently

While Jira lets you organize work items, navigating complex structures can become overwhelming, particularly in large-scale projects. With five or more levels of work hierarchy, it’s important to find a way that would allow you to track and manage all your work efficiently. Unfortunately, the built-in hierarchy lacks such a comprehensive view. This makes it harder to monitor progress, manage dependencies, or keep teams aligned.

Smart Hierarchy by TitanApps addresses this gap by giving you a visual, easy-to-follow representation of your work structure. It helps teams understand how all levels of work connect: from top-level initiatives, mid-level programs, and epics, to detailed tasks and subtasks with checklists.

Here’s what it can look like. With the help of Smart Hierarchy, all the work levels are clearly displayed in an easy-to-follow chart, which also shows task progress:

With Smart Hierarchy, you get full visibility into your team’s progress and a clear overview of how work is moving forward. What’s important, all this is without switching between tools or screens. In addition, Smart Hierarchy simplifies navigation across work items. It allows you to move through the structure with fewer clicks. And, of course, it helps teams understand how their efforts connect to broader company goals and milestones.

Key Features of Smart Hierarchy that help you manage complex hierarchies in Jira

Complete work hierarchy in one view

Smart Hierarchy presents your entire work structure in a clean, nested layout. This makes it easy to see how different items are connected. You can quickly move between multiple levels of work, from top-level goals to individual subtasks, without losing context. This helps teams grasp the big picture and understand task relationships with minimal effort.

Real-time progress insights

The tool highlights essential fields like story points, assignees, and completion rates. It also pulls in Smart Checklist progress from within each task, giving you a detailed and accurate picture of what’s done and what’s still in motion. You can instantly see how each piece of work contributes to the overall progress of the project.

Cross-team visibility and alignment

Smart Hierarchy makes it clear how day-to-day work supports broader business goals and key project milestones. It reduces the need for external trackers or manual reporting and improves transparency across departments. It also makes it easy for stakeholders to see the progress on the high-level strategic goals. 

Install Smart Hierarchy from the Atlassian Marketplace to see how it works for your team.

Best practices for Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration

A custom hierarchy can bring structure and clarity to large-scale planning and greatly improve cross-department alignment. Below are a few tips to help you get the most out of it:

• Keep it simple. Don’t add extra levels just because you can - managing too many levels can get challenging. Start with the minimum structure you need, and only add more if a clear use case appears.
• Match the hierarchy to how your teams already work. Use naming that feels familiar. If your organization talks about “Tracks”, “Workflows”, or “Workstreams,” make those the level names. This improves adoption and reduces confusion.
• Define what each level means. Everyone should be on the same page about what a Strategic Priority, Program, or Capability actually represents. Document this or share a short guide internally.
• Use the same structure across teams. If each department builds its own version of the hierarchy, reporting and cross-team coordination will suffer. Try to align on one shared model, especially for higher levels.
• Assign clear ownership. In larger setups, it’s common for different roles to own different levels. For example, executives own initiatives, project managers handle epics, and team leads manage tasks. Without clear ownership, updates can fall behind quickly.
• Test it in a pilot Plan. Try the new structure in one Plan first. This gives you a safe space to validate how it works and get feedback from the team before scaling it across the organization.

The benefits of configuring a custom hierarchy in Advanced Roadmaps (Jira Plans)

A well-structured hierarchy helps you plan, track, and deliver work more effectively. This is especially useful when multiple teams or departments are involved. Here’s what you gain by setting up your own custom Jira work hierarchy:

• Clear connection between strategy and execution. Custom hierarchies help teams understand how their day-to-day work supports larger goals. This makes planning more focused and reduces the gap between what’s being done and why it matters.
• Better cross-team planning. With shared structure and consistent terminology, teams can coordinate efforts without constant clarification. It’s easier to align timelines, avoid overlaps, and surface blockers early.
• Scalable tracking. Custom levels make it easier to manage large volumes of work, especially with cross-project initiatives. You can track progress at any level, from a single Epic to an entire program.
• Aligned reporting. Structured hierarchies give you clean data for high-level reports. You can group work by business area, region, product line, or whatever makes sense for your organization.
• Faster project setup. Combined with templates and automation, a defined hierarchy helps you spin up new projects without building everything from scratch. Every team starts with the same structure and naming, so there’s less friction.
• More ownership and accountability. When each level has a clear purpose and owner, it’s easier to manage progress, catch delays, and keep initiatives moving.

Custom hierarchies aren’t just for structure; they’re a way to bring order to complexity and connect strategy with delivery.

Frequently asked questions about Jira Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration

What are the hierarchy levels in Jira?

By default, Jira software uses three main work tiers: the epic level, task (or story) level, and sub-task. If you have a Jira Premium or Enterprise subscription, you can also use Advanced Roadmaps. This tool lets you add custom levels above epics, such as initiatives, programs, or strategic goals.

How to configure hierarchy levels in Jira?

Default hierarchy levels (epic - task - subtask) are already configured out of the box. Custom hierarchy levels can be configured in the Work type hierarchy menu in the left pane. It should be available if you have Jira Plans or Advanced Roadmaps. From there, you can add new levels, name them, and assign work types (Jira issue types) to your custom levels.

How do I set up and manage hierarchy levels in Advanced Roadmaps for Jira?

To manage hierarchy levels, first create custom work types matching your custom levels. Then, add the new work types to your work scheme. And finally, assign your new work types to the custom hierarchy levels in the Work type hierarchy menu on the left. You can rearrange levels as needed and apply them across your Plans. I already explained this in more detail earlier in this blog post.

How to configure initiatives in Jira?

Create an “Initiative” work type, add it to your issue type scheme, and assign it to a new level above epics in the Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration. Once set up, Initiatives will appear in your Plans. Please note that you need to have a Jira Premium or Enterprise subscription for this.

I hope this Advanced Roadmaps hierarchy configuration Guide was helpful to you!

[Josh]

Great article, @Olga Cheban _TitanApps_ !