Weekly Wonder: Crafting an Annual Events Calendar that Aligns with Atlassian Releases

[#1]

Hi CUG Members!

Planning events one quarter at a time can work, but if you really want to maximize impact, an annual calendar that lines up with Atlassian’s product releases and big announcements gives your group a serious edge.

When your sessions echo what’s happening in Jira, Confluence, Jira Service Management, Trello, or Atlassian Guard right now, your CUG becomes the go‑to place for timely learning, experimentation, and internal advocacy.

Below are five tips to help you build a year‑long events calendar that maps to Atlassian releases while still staying flexible for your members’ needs.

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1. Start with the “known anchors” in the Atlassian year

Begin by plotting the major Atlassian moments you can reliably expect each year, then build your CUG calendar around those anchors.

These could include things like Atlassian flagship events, key Cloud launches or announcements, and major product theme pushes (e.g., AI, DevOps, ITSM, or work management).

Once those are on your calendar, you can schedule CUG meetings just before or after them, using sessions to either prepare your members for what’s coming or help them digest what’s just been announced.

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2. Align topics to product roadmaps and release themes

Instead of planning topics in isolation, design each meeting to naturally connect to what’s happening in your Atlassian tools.

For example, if you know significant changes are on the way for Jira or Confluence, you can plan sessions on “navigating the new experience,” “admin best practices for the latest release,” or “hands‑on labs with the newest features.”

When the theme of your CUG event matches what your members are seeing in release notes and their day‑to‑day work, they’re far more likely to attend, engage, and share feedback.

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3. Build in “reaction” sessions after major releases

Not every session needs to be fully scripted months in advance. Intentionally leave a few “reaction slots” in your calendar to host timely events shortly after big updates land.

These can be informal feedback roundtables, live demos of new capabilities, or show‑and‑tell sessions where teams share how they’re adopting recent features. Position these as safe spaces to ask questions, surface issues, and crowdsource workarounds. This helps your CUG become a feedback loop between users, admins, and stakeholders inside your organization.

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4. Mix core release content with evergreen themes

While release‑aligned content is powerful, your calendar will be even stronger when you balance it with evergreen topics your organization always cares about.

For example, you can pair a session focused on new AI features with a broader meeting on “governance and change management for rolling out new Atlassian capabilities.” Or follow a feature‑heavy release session with a more strategic discussion on adoption, training, or measuring value. This blend ensures your CUG isn’t just chasing what’s new, but also helping members build sustainable practices.

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5. Review and adjust your calendar quarterly

An annual plan shouldn’t be rigid. Use quarterly check‑ins to tune your calendar based on what actually shipped, how your members are responding, and what priorities have shifted inside your organization.

During these reviews, look at event attendance, questions asked, and feedback from stakeholders. You can then swap topics, shift dates, or add extra sessions where there’s clear demand - such as deeper dives on newly released features or repeat sessions for teams in different time zones. This keeps your events relevant while still preserving the structure of an annual plan.

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Crafting an annual events calendar that tracks with Atlassian releases helps your CUG stay timely, useful, and strategic.

By anchoring around key moments, aligning topics with product changes, leaving room for reaction sessions, and reviewing your plan regularly, you’ll create a rhythm your members can rely on.

Over time, your CUG becomes not just a meetup series, but a core part of how your organization understands, adopts, and succeeds with Atlassian.

Takeaway resources

• Confluence Resources

• Product Roadmaps - When Good Enough Just Isn't Good Enough

[Jimmy Seddon]

Hey @Blake Hall!

That's a really good point I hadn't thought about.  Building CUG events around Atlassian's pillar events makes sure that more people at our company are more informed and less surprised when new features roll out into our Cloud instance.

I'll definitely add this into planning our events.

Thanks! 

[Omotola Omotayo]

Thanks for putting together, @Blake Hall 

This is really helpful as I'm currently reaching out to Champions to know what their plans for the year look like. I will share this article with them to review and use as a guide. 

[Blake Hall]

@Jimmy Seddon Glad you like it!

I can imagine it takes a bit of time to start synching things up training-wise with releases. Still, it seems like that's a great way to not only get people up-to-speed but also get governance / plicy out there more quickly for how to use any new features.

[Blake Hall]

@Omotola Omotayo Glad it helped! It feels like our Champions team is always eager to share ideas, and I've benefited greatly from that so I'm glad I can pass it on to others. :D