Jira Image of the Day: Drawing Workflows Outside of Jira

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Concept Relates To

Application Type	Jira (Jira Work Management and Jira Software), Jira Service Management, Jira Core
Deployment Type	Jira Cloud, Jira Server, Jira Data Center

What is shown?

A workflow diagram drawn outside of Jira.

Visit: Admin > Work items > Workflows

What can we learn?

Sometimes it’s easier to draw out single transition workflows on paper first. Present these to your stakeholders to verify they accurately represent their processes before building them in Jira. Here’s how I draw workflows outside of Jira.

Start by drawing rectangles to represent each step (status) in the workflow. Draw the statuses in their logical order from left to right or top to bottom.

Tip: Use the same status colors in your version of Jira.

Next, draw one forward arrow from each status to the next. These will become single transitions in Jira.

Also add a short but descriptive label for each arrow. Use an action word or phrase that describes what happens next in the workflow. Use these labels as transition names in Jira.

Next, draw a backwards arrow for every status. Use a different line type to signify these transitions are different than the previous forward transitions.

Tip: I like to name these transitions “Back to” and the status name, so it’s perfectly clear where the transition leads. Sometimes users progress issues in error, so I always like to provide backward transitions so they can correct their own mistakes.

Finally, draw additional arrows to represent alternate transitions. For example: Add the ability for selected users to skip from the initial “To Do” status to the final “Done” status.

Tip: Use a workflow condition to determine which users can see alternate transitions.

See Related

• Jira Image of the Day: Workflow Diagram Perfectionism

• Jira Image of the Day: Workflow Drawing Standards

• Jira Image of the Day: Workflow Diagram Details

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