Need help: Reliable automation to move the next issue to “In Progress”

[melissa_erhard]

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to build a reliable Jira automation rule that automatically sets the next issue (sub-task or linked issue) to “In Progress” when the current one transitions to “Done.”

I’ve already tried several different approaches:

• Using the Sequence field to determine the order

• Using issue links like “has to be done before / after”

• Splitting it into two separate rules (one to flag, one to trigger the next issue)

• Combining everything into a single rule

Sometimes it works — but only on the second or third attempt, never on the first.
Other times, the parent issue reacts instead of the next sub-task, or nothing happens at all.

Could anyone share a working and reliable automation setup for this case?
The goal is simple:

When I move one issue to Done, the next one (based on sequence or “has to be done after” link) should automatically transition to In Progress.

Thanks a lot for any help or examples! 

— Melissa

[Tomislav Tobijas]

Hi @melissa_erhard ,

Could you maybe share screenshots of your current automation (each component) and also a few audit logs? This would help troubleshoot this further.

As for the rule, maybe try something like this:

1. Trigger: "Issue transitioned" (set to fire when an issue moves to "Done")
2. Branching: Use related issues action to target related issues > for sub-tasks, branch on "Sub-tasks" or "Children". For linked issues, branch on the specific link type.

As for sequencing, you've mentioned "Sequence" field - is that a number field? Also, does it store values on child/linked issues or on the triggered issue? How exactly does that work? 

Also, related to sequencing, you might have to use Lookup issues action to find the exact and next item. However, it kinda depends on whether you're looking to transition one item or multiple items 👀

Again, if you could share some additional info about the use case, that would be great.
⚠️ Just a note that this is a public forum, so I'd suggest sharing info from some mockup and not production items. 

Cheers,
Tobi