Introducing Advanced Roadmap’s new dependency report

[#1]

To see this feature in action check out our recent dependencies demo here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQu5VsUqyZA

Keeping on top of your dependencies is a key part of ensuring project success. With the new Advanced Roadmaps dependencies report available in Jira Software Premium, you can now map out all the dependencies across your program of work. This can help you get ahead of blockers, avoid unnecessary delays in your projects, and give you a better understanding of when you’ll be able to deliver. It’s particularly valuable when there are one or many critical chains of dependencies - where there’s multiple related issues that need to completed in sequence.

The ability to roll-up different levels of hierarchy provides visibility into dependencies as they relate to higher-levels of work. For example, you can view epics that are directly related or indirectly related by the stories between them. This can reveal potential risks or obstacles on higher-level work that is often buried in the lower-level details.

Similarly roll-up can be helpful for identifying dependencies and conflicts both within a team and between teams. For this, we offer the ability to group by team. This view is ideal for aligning multiple teams' work, identifying risky work early, and avoiding blockers that result in delays or nasty surprises.

We also enable you to filter this report in a way that reveals the entire chain associated with a specific issue. Combined with grouping, this can be used to clearly navigate the sequence of work and track the handover of dependencies between teams where communication and collaboration is most essential.

The new dependencies report is currently available today for Jira Software Cloud Premium customers. You can read more in the documentation here: https://confluence.atlassian.com/advancedroadmapscloud/dependencies-report-998651742.html

For self-hosted Advanced Roadmaps users, this feature isn’t generally available yet, however you can enable the early access version of it if you’re on a recent app version. There are some improvements not available yet on the Server version but we’ll be working on bringing them over. For guidance on how to enable the early access feature see these docs: https://confluence.atlassian.com/jiraportfolioserver/early-access-features-940116238.html

[Dave Liao]

This is a long time coming, but will help teams who rely on Advanced Roadmaps exclusively to get insights into their project work!

[Stuart Capel - London]

This looks really great! I saw it had appeared in the AR tabs but hadn't had a chance to properly check it out yet

[Danny]

I really needed this report in my life. Hoping for more reports in the future! :) 

[Alex Janes]

This is beautiful. Modern project management tools gaining legacy, yet advanced, project management methods. This is a gantt chart on steroids!

[Christine Corona]

Good Morning, I'm using Chrome to view this report and I was wondering if anyone else is missing a scroll bar to view issues further down? I see the ability to grab the page to move the view around but this is not the easiest way of viewing (at least not for me). If the scroll bar is missing for all users, is there an enhancement to add that for easier viewing? 

Thank you.

[Anu Datta]

I see a scroll bar missing as well

[Rhys Christian]

Hey @Christine Corona and @Anu Datta

Thanks for sharing feedback for a scroll bar. The current implementation doesn't include a scroll-bar so what you're seeing is expected. Dragging the interface is the intended interaction for moving it about, but I recognise a scroll bar would be a lot more effective to navigate with many dependencies.

Right now the default scrolling action (i.e with a mouse wheel or touchpad) enables you to zoom-in or zoom-out. However we'll consider your feedback to improve this for easier viewing.

Cheers,

[Rhys Christian]

Hey @Danny - Thanks for sharing feedback.

We're interested in your thoughts around 'more reports'.

We're keen to provide more valuable insights to planners. We have some in mind but we'd really value understanding your reporting needs. Can you please share some detail on the kinds of reports / information you'd want to reveal through Advanced Roadmaps? 

Kind regards,

[Curt Holley]

This is a great addition to Advanced Roadmaps, but I do agree that a scroll bar and perhaps some way of arranging the layout of the report would be good to have. Especially when you a large number of dependencies displayed, as it can mean a lot of scrolling is required and when people 1st navigate to it, if they don't know to click the "fit" button and then zoom in, they can think it is an empty report.

Also, is it on the roadmap for Advanced Roadmaps to be able to see the "virtual string" of dependencies on the Roadmap view? or at least evoke it via the "Dependencies management" pre-set view?

[Mark Kasindorf]

Is there a way to edit the format of this report?  For example, to use a different type of dependency other than "Blocked"?  Also if there is a way to add more fields on the cards, as you can with a regular Sprint board?

[Curt Holley]

@Mark Kasindorf  it will show whichever link types are configured for use with Advanced Roadmaps. This is set for all plans in the admin section "Advanced Roadmaps dependencies". If Blocked is the only link type working, then it sounds like no-one has configured this yet.

See here for details: https://confluence.atlassian.com/advancedroadmapscloud/configuring-issue-dependencies-998650980.html

[Sahoo Manas (SEIT)]

@Rhys Christian  This feature is a game-changer. I have started using this in my recent project plan and it makes it so easy to understand the dependency in the dependency report.  I had 2 feedbacks on this feature for improvements

1) Support drag an drop for dependency(which is supported in general roadmap) Usability takes a leap when that is supported as it is a bit of hassle at this point to create a big plan and create a lot of dependency by typing in --- this is in the backlog already I think

2) The embedding the roadmap into confluence has been very helpful feature. The team has asked if they can somehow export the dependency report into a image and if they can also embed a live view of dependency report into confluence. These are 2 different requests in my team and I think both will be valuable. 

Do you know if there is any such feedback from any other companies ?

[Cerys Hyde]

I'd like to +1 the comments about scroll bars being needed.

I'd also like to ask whether there is currently (and I've missed it!), or planned to come soon, any way to focus in on dependencies within a filter? So for example, I don't want to see everything under my project, cause some of these are not relevant or important right now. I'd like to see dependencies within a certain initiative, or dependencies within a set of stories that meet a given filter criteria. That would make this view a lot more powerful for me, cause right now the signal to noise ratio makes it hard to gain value from.

[David Hiatt - Network]

@Cerys Hyde considering your post is more than a year ago, you have probably discovered this or better options, but here is some JQL to return a filtered list of issues with blocked dependency in place in issue links: "issueLinkType in ("is blocked by") and status !=Done"

[Luz Long]

Will Advanced roadmap dependency report be enhanced so when you are viewing the dependencies it has more filters to target incoming and outgoing dependencies or to target specific team? I find the whole dragging of the dependency flow not useful and if you ask me the whole dependency report is lacking, especially taking into consideration that this is the only dependency report available other than building filters to create your own view of dependencies.