Managing Workflows and Statuses in Jira

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In project management, Jira has emerged as a go-to tool for teams aiming to streamline workflows and enhance productivity. Jira has something to offer, whether you're following agile methodologies or traditional project management practices.

At the core of Jira are its issue status categories, statuses, and workflows. These features help you organize tasks into different stages, such as "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done," making it easy to track the progress of your projects. Workflows define the sequence of steps an issue must go through from start to finish, ensuring everyone is on the same page.

However, more than simply having these features in place is required. To optimize your project efficiency, you must regularly audit your workflows and statuses.

Is your workflow accurately designed for your processes? Are all statuses up to date? Let's delve into these nuances, starting with the simplest.

Understanding Jira Issue Status Categories and Statuses

To maximize Jira's potential, you must understand its workflow system's building blocks: issue status categories and statuses. These elements help you track the progress of your tasks and ensure that your projects stay on course. Let's explore what they are and why they matter.

Definition and Importance of Issue Status Categories

Issue status categories are high-level groupings that help you organize and manage the various statuses within your workflow. Jira comes with three default categories:

1. To Do: This category includes statuses where work has yet to begin.
2. In Progress: This category contains statuses where work is currently being done.
3. Done: This category includes statuses where work has been completed.

These categories provide a clear overview of your tasks, making prioritizing and managing your workload easier. They also help generate reports and dashboards that give you a bird' s-eye view of your project's progress.

Common Statuses in Jira

Within each category, you'll find specific statuses representing the stages of a task's lifecycle. Some of the most common statuses in Jira include:

• To Do: Tasks that are planned but have not yet been to be started.
• In Progress: Tasks that are currently being worked on.
• Done: Tasks that have been completed.

Other common statuses might include:

• Backlog: Tasks that are in the backlog and awaiting prioritization.
• Selected for Development: Tasks chosen for the next sprint or development cycle.
• Code Review: Tasks that are undergoing code review before being merged.
• Testing: Tasks that are being tested for quality assurance.
• Ready for Release: Tasks that have passed testing and are prepared to be deployed.

Customizing Statuses to Fit Specific Project Needs

While Jira comes with a set of default statuses, one of its strengths is the ability to customize these statuses to fit the unique needs of your project better. Here's how you can do it:

1. Identify Your Workflow: Start by mapping out your tasks' specific stages. This could include additional steps like "Design," "Approval," or "Deployment."
2. Create Custom Statuses: In Jira, you can create new statuses that reflect these stages. This ensures that your workflow accurately represents the real-world process your team follows.
3. Assign Statuses to Categories: Once you've created your custom statuses, assign them to the appropriate categories (To Do, In Progress, Done). This helps maintain a clear and organized workflow.
4. Configure Transitions: Define the transitions between statuses. For example, a task might move from "To Do" to "In Progress" when work begins and from "In Progress" to "Code Review" when the initial development is complete.

By customizing your statuses, you can create a workflow tailored to your project's specific requirements. This will make it easier for your team to track progress and stay on task.

Understanding and effectively using issue status categories and statuses is the first step in optimizing your Jira workflows.

Some Tips About Statuses and More

Set Up Resolution. Set issue resolutions correctly. If you don't, JQL task sampling, using different reports, and gadgets for Jira dashboards won't show you real correct data. Keep this point in mind.

To set up Resolution follow these steps:

1. Go to your Workflow: ⚙️. → Issues  → Workflow (if you don’t have any Workflows, you have default one)
2. Click “…” → Edit on your workflow page → Text 
3. Select your Done transition and сlick Edit
4. Select the Resolve Issue Screen for the Screen field → Configure your screen 

Unmapped Statuses. Make sure that your statuses are all mapped. If there are unmapped statuses, tasks with them will not be visible. 

Automate Status Changes. Use automation rules to change statuses based on specific triggers automatically. For example, a task might automatically move to "Done" when all sub-tasks are completed.

Monitor Transitions. Keep an eye on transitions between statuses. If issues frequently get stuck in a particular status, it might indicate a bottleneck in your workflow that needs addressing.

Use Statuses for Reporting. Leverage statuses to generate meaningful reports. For example, you can track how long issues are spent in each status to identify areas for improvement.

As an example of such monitoring, we suggest using the Time in Status app.

Here's a typical example of a report where you can analyze how many of your tasks are in a particular status. The calculation is based on your work calendars, which you can customize in the addon.

Avoid Status Overload. While it's important to have enough statuses to reflect your workflow, avoid creating too many. A complex workflow can be confusing and hard to manage.

Regular Workflow Audit. Are you certain that, despite having set up the ideal number of statuses, they are all actively being utilized? Or could it be that you have so few statuses that your team members are reverting tasks back to certain statuses because there isn't a suitable next one? Try conducting an audit using the Time in Status app. Generate a Transition Count report and assess how frequently each status is being used.

A Quick, No-Nonsense Workflow Health Check (with Time in Status)

If your board looks fine but delivery still feels sticky, run this lightweight check. It takes one coffee, tops.

1) Pull a clean slice of work

Use JQL to grab only the issues that represent real delivery (not spikes or chores). For example:

• Last 2–3 sprints (Scrum) or the past 30–60 days (Kanban).
• Exclude tech spikes, drafts, and anything that might skew the time.

The goal: a small, honest sample you’d be comfortable discussing in a retro.

2) Spot the slow patches with average time in status

Open the Average time report. Don’t overthink it—just ask:

• Which one or two statuses eat the most average time?
• Is that intentional (a real queue), or accidental (work waiting, unclear exit criteria, blocked handoffs)?

If one status is clearly the time hog, pick one change to try (rename, add/remove a step, or add simple guidance).

3) Check for back-and-forth churn

Now glance at Transition Count. You’re hunting for ping-pong patterns (e.g., “Testing → In Progress → Testing” on repeat).

• If you encounter bounce-backs, note the reasons (missing information, flaky tests, unclear definition of “ready”).
• Add a tiny rule of thumb to the status description (e.g., “Move to Testing only when acceptance notes are updated”).

Small guardrails beat big process overhauls.

4) Validate with a before/after snapshot

• Before: note the current average time in your slowest status.
• Make your tweak (rename a status, split one step into two, or add a short checklist).
• After two weeks/sprint: re-run the same view and compare the average. If the average drops, keep the change. If not, roll it back—no drama.

5) Three simple experiments to try

Pick just one:

• Split a catch-all status: If “In Progress” hoards the average, try “In Dev” → “Code Review.” This often reveals where time actually slips.
• Add a “Waiting/Blocked” status: Pulls idle time out of “active” work so your averages reflect real progress, not waiting.
• Tighten a handoff: Add a one-line exit rule (e.g., “Attach test notes before moving to Testing”). Re-check the average a sprint later.

6) How to read the numbers without a PhD

• High average in a status = a queue, a dependency, or unclear criteria. Fix the policy before you add more steps.
• Falling average after a change = a signal that the tweak helped flow. Keep it.
• No change indicates the bottleneck is likely elsewhere (earlier/later step, or outside the team).

If you do nothing else, find the one status with the highest average time, try one tiny change, and check again in two weeks. That feedback loop is where the real improvements come from.

To Sum Up

Jira is a powerful tool for project management, but maximizing its potential requires understanding and customizing issue status categories and statuses. Align your Jira setup with your team's processes to ensure smooth task progression.

Regularly audit your workflows and statuses to keep things running smoothly. Ensure all statuses are mapped correctly, set up resolutions properly, and use automation to streamline status changes. Monitor transitions and use statuses for reporting to identify bottlenecks and areas for improvement.

Avoid overcomplicating your workflow with too many statuses. A well-structured and regularly reviewed workflow will help your team stay organized, productive, and focused on delivering great results.

• Try Time in Status 
• Prefer a guided setup? Book a quick demo—we’ll wire it to your queues together.

Happy project managing! 🚀