What tips do you have for new admins learning Jira Cloud — what features should they tackle first an

[Jesse Hilton]

I’m new to being a Jira Cloud administrator (someone who manages the Jira system for my team/company). What advice can you give me to learn Jira efficiently?

[Christos Markoulatos]

Hi @Jesse Hilton congrats on your new role

It can feel like a lot at first, but if you tackle them and understand them, you’ll learn efficiently and avoid headaches later.

Start with the Foundations

• Understand Projects: Learn the difference between team-managed and company-managed projects. This impacts how workflows, permissions, and schemes work.
• Permissions & Roles: Get familiar with global permissions, project roles, and groups early. Good permission hygiene saves you from security issues later.
• Issue Types & Workflows: Learn how to customize workflows and issue types without overcomplicating things. Start simple and scale later.

Configuration Basics

• Screens & Fields: Understand how screens, screen schemes, and custom fields work. Keep fields under control, don’t create to unnecessary duplicates!
• Notification Schemes: Configure email notifications so users aren’t spammed.
• Automation Rules: Jira Cloud automation is powerful and easy to learn. Start with simple rules like auto-assigning issues or sending reminders.

Keep Your Instance Healthy

• Clean Up Regularly: Archive unused projects, workflows, and custom fields.
• Standardize Where Possible: Use shared schemes for consistency across projects.

Learn by Doing

• Create a sandbox or free Jira Cloud site to experiment safely.
• Check out Atlassian’s Admin Hub and Learning Paths for structured training:
  • Jira Software Cloud Admin Guide
  • Explore Jira Administration Course
  • Admin Resource Hub

Don’t try to learn everything at once.

Hope this helps u on your journey 🚀

[Jason U]

Congrats! @Jesse Hilton 

That’s a great question — and welcome to the world of Jira Administration! 🎉

Here are a few structured steps to help you learn Jira Cloud efficiently and confidently:

1. Start with Atlassian Learning Paths (Course Series)

It’s the best official starting point.
Check out:

• Jira Learning Paths

These will give you a strong foundation and confidence when navigating settings.

2. Learn by Experimenting in a Sandbox or Personal Domain

Create a test project where you can safely play with:

• Workflows

• Custom fields

• Screens & schemes

• Automation rules

Break things on purpose — that’s the fastest way to learn.
You can always delete or reset the project later.

3. Get Familiar with Key Admin Areas

As an admin, these are your “must-know” sections:

• Project settings → permissions, notifications, issue types

• Jira settings → Issues → schemes, workflows, screens

• Automation → project vs. global rules

• User management → groups, product access

Understanding how these interact will save you hours later.

4. Join the Atlassian Community

You’re already here — that’s a great start!
Read admin discussions, follow Rising Star or Community Leader posts, and don’t hesitate to ask questions.
Real scenarios from other admins will teach you more than any guide.

5. Learn to Use JQL & Dashboards Early

Even simple queries like

assignee = currentUser() AND statusCategory != Done

You’ll understand data flow better and help your team build meaningful reports.

6. Gradually Explore Automation

Automation is your best friend as an admin — start small:

• Auto-assign new issues

• Auto-update “Actual End Date” when status = Done
  Then expand to more complex multi-project rules.

7. Follow the Right Channels

• Atlassian YouTube (Admin Essentials, Jira Shorts)

• Atlassian Blog — product updates

• Community tags: jira-cloud-admin, automation, workflows

[Jason U]

Additionally = Atlassian Documentation will help you in details.