Creating Parents for Epics

Question

I am trying to create a parent for an epic as I am trying to get the following structure in place:

Parent

Epic 
Story

Task

Subtask

However, it seems that making Epic the second element in the hierarchy is not possible unless you are on premium? We are on a standard plan.

Michael Yaroshefsky - Visor for Jira · Answer

Hi @Irene Viljoen as @Walter Buggenhout says this isn't possible without upgrading to Jira Premium or using plugins/apps.

You can try using our app (Visor) for free to visualize your live Jira data (we have a very robust two-way integration with Jira).

Within Visor you can add additional levels of hierarchy (as many as you like) above epic and below subtask.

Visor respects your existing nesting, so all you would need to do is connect Visor to Jira, import your selected projects, and create the additional levels of hierarchy in Visor (e.g. initiative, project, strategic goal, project manager etc.)

This would not sync back into Jira, but it would give you a free way to create the kind of structure you want, within very nice looking visualizations that you can share with anyone.

Find Visor in the Atlassian Marketplace here:

https://marketplace.atlassian.com/apps/1226209/visor-spreadsheet-gantt-chart-for-jira-with-excel-export?tab=overview&hosting=cloud

Example of a project portfolio visualization (table view) in Visor:

Walter Buggenhout · Answer

Hi @Irene Viljoen,

That is correct. Extending the hierarchy above epics is only possible in the premium plan or - using issue linking - with custom hierarchy / structure marketplace apps.

In addition to that, on an extra note, it is not possible to create 3 levels below Epics with a parent - child hierarchy (not even with Jira Premium). The levels below Epic are fixed and Story and Task are both locked in at the same level, below Epics.

Hope this helps!