What should I use whiteboards for?

[Valerie Knapp]

Hey all,

I am mostly in the habit of using Confluence for documentation, so pages. Can anyone give me some ideas for what I can use a whiteboard for so I can practice / get acclimated to this functionality?

Cheers

[Mikael Sandberg]

Teams at my previous job used whiteboards for snaking/issue planning instead of Lucidchart. Lately I have used it to document automations to give a quick overview how they are linked to each other. And by doing that you can also get a quick overview if you have multiple automations that triggers at the same time that could be combined.

[Melek Jebnoun_Vectors_]

Hello Valerie,

It can be useful to brainstorming with remote team members! Although there is collaborative editing in Confluence Pages, it's more visual and especially the sticky notes can help on making ideas/content short. Better than listing that content as bullet points :) 

From my side, I see it usefulness especially to write down content with dependencies (to use arrows/ lines for linking) or that have a hierarchy. 

You can write down you mind map there for example, or plans with steps and hierarchy! 

Hope it helps! 

[Dave Liao]

@Valerie Knapp - Create a whiteboard in your Confluence instance, and a template browser should appear. A lot of the templates should be self-documenting and give you an idea of how you can use that feature solo, or with teams.

I like to use Whiteboards to:

• 🗺️ Map out process workflows (these workflows might end up in Jira, or elsewhere) - use the workflow or timeline workflow template, depending on complexity)
• 🔮 Make a vision board, for inspiration (think Pinterest) (use the Vision board template)
• 🗓️ Plan your travel schedule (use the Annual calendar template)

[Rune Rasmussen]

I've had great use of Whiteboards to generally visualize how things interconnect.

Examples:
What happens when someone submits and Access Request? What team does it default to? Who approves? Does automation trigger?

When a certain automation triggers, what happens? Where does it make changes?

I have also blatantly stolen and recreated the diagram from this great post:
https://community.atlassian.com/forums/Jira-Cloud-Admins-articles/All-in-one-Jira-configuration-elements-diagram/ba-p/3094953
Partly because it was a good exercise building a Whiteboard but mostly because it's real handy when you need to explain to people why sometimes settings up a Jira Space isn't always just a five minute job.

[Andrei Eleodor Sirbu]

Hello Valerie, 

We like to use whiteboards for quickly creating Jira issues straight from post-its. Mostly whenever we do a brainstorming session or a sprint retrospective it's nice to transform post-its into backlog items. Just select one or several post-its then click "Create Jira issue", fill up the required fields and you're good to go. 

Since I have to do a lot of communication through Confluence blog posts I keep a whiteboard with an annual calendar and I place post-its with the title of the future blog post in the dates cell. This way I can quickly move them, reschedule without having to edit a real calendar. 

With Jira Product Discovery, you can integrate a roadmap straight into the whiteboard. It's useful to always have the roadmap on top of any whiteboard which involves brainstorming or any team collaboration session. 

Kind regards

[Barbara Szczesniak]

@Valerie Knapp I also use Confluence for documentation and wonder about the use for me of whiteboards. In general, I use such an application to create process flow diagrams:

1. to get straight what the flow is before I try to document it (a whiteboard that others can contribute on is great for them to correct my understanding or see where we have not considered cases/branches for the process)
2. to get a screenshot that I can insert on a page for my readers—the "picture is worth a thousand words" concept

I am hoping that the rest of my team will start using Confluence when planning new features and that they will either:

• create new diagrams describing the new process
• update my existing flow diagrams with the changes they plan to make

I'm sure there are many other ways that my dev/qa team could use whiteboards, but these are ones that would be relevant to me, the tech writer.

I plugged this event on another post this week, but you might want to check out this article: https://community.atlassian.com/forums/App-Central-articles/Know-your-Content-Whiteboards/ba-p/3140416 and the live training event @Robert Hean is presenting on Nov 10: https://ace.atlassian.com/events/details/atlassian-community-led-classes-presents-know-your-content-confluence-whiteboards-1/ 

[Mohana Sundar J]

@Valerie Knapp Happy November :D 

Awesome question! Whiteboards in Confluence aren’t just a blank space—they’re a game-changer for teamwork.

Here’s how I’ve seen them make a big difference:

💡 Brainstorming & Ideas

• Start with sticky notes, quick sketches, and free-flow thoughts. Perfect for kicking off projects.

📈 Visual Planning

• Map out sprints, workflows, or roadmaps so everyone’s on the same page.

🤝 Team Alignment

• Great for retros and planning sessions. Everyone gets a voice, and it keeps things transparent.

🎉 Fun Stuff Too!

• Whiteboards aren’t just for work. Try icebreakers like “Two Truths and a Lie”, virtual Pictionary, or doodle challenges. These little things really help teams bond—especially remote ones.

🔗 Link Ideas to Action

• The magic? Connect whiteboard items to Jira issues or Confluence pages so nothing gets lost.

Why I love it: It makes collaboration visual and inclusive. If you’re new to it, start simple—create a brainstorming board for your next planning session and invite the team to co-create.

Pro tip: Use templates for speed and consistency. And if you need help with permissions or Jira integration, just ping me—I’m happy to share admin hacks!

Collaboration isn’t just about tools; it’s about making everyone feel part of the process. Whiteboards do exactly that. 🙌

[HIROTA Takayuki_Ricksoft_]

Hi @Valerie Knapp,

Maybe these could give you a few ideas — I wrote about how we’ve been using Confluence Whiteboards for agile workshops and retrospectives:

• No Slides, No Docs—Just One Confluence Whiteboard: How We Learned Agile and Scrum 
• Taking the First Step in Retrospectives with Confluence Whiteboards 

Best,
Taka