How to maintain standards in your organization? – the potential of checklists

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When there’s a project to do, you usually think of it as one, single task. However, in most cases, completing it will actually require at least several steps. Overlooking something can have a negative impact on the standard of the job, and nobody wants their business to be associated with poor quality of service or inconsistent standards, that’s for sure. So, how can you prevent that? In our opinion, one of the best ways is to use a checklist like Multiple Checklists for Jira. 

Adding a Checklist to your Jira issue 

Checklists are automatically added to all your Jira issues. When you create a task, there will be a Multiple Checklists icon – all you need to do is click on it and a checklist will appear. You can rename it to whatever you like – just write something down in the Add a new item field and hit enter (or accept it by clicking on the tick button). Checklists support text formatting, so whenever you want to highlight something, you can use ctrl+b (or ⌘+b on mac). For italic, use ctrl+i (or ⌘+i on mac).   

Block Jira issue transition if the checklist is not done

To make sure nothing was missed, you can use a validator and set a condition that will make it impossible to finish a certain task unless particular criteria have been met. 

To enable this option, go to project settings -> workflows. Then, edit the workflow by clicking on an icon under Actions on the right.

Then, click on the arrow next to the green icon Done. You will see different options on the left. Choose validators from the list. 

You will be taken to another page. There, you will see your current validators (if you already have some) and you will also be able to add new ones. In order to do that, click Add validator. Then, different validators to choose from will appear. Select the one you’re interested in and click Add under the list:

Automating your checklist 

Whenever there’s a new task within a certain project, a ready checklist that has been automated can be added to this task. Thanks to this option, you don’t have to create it again from scratch. You can set a Checklist to be always added to a specific task, Jira issue type, or Jira issues that meet certain conditions.

If you would like to see how to automate a checklist step by step, here’s our guide that thoroughly explains how to do that: 

https://community.atlassian.com/t5/Marketplace-Apps-Integrations/How-to-automatically-add-checklists-to-your-Jira-issues-step-by/ba-p/1016882 

Checklist as a set of guidelines

A checklist added to a task can serve as a set of guidelines. If you automate it, there will be no need to rewrite it every single time. It can be used e.g. by a graphic designer who prepares company presentations. An additional bonus is that a checklist with things to tick off will free the graphic designer’s mind, leaving more space for the creative part of the job. 

Using checklists by a Scrum team to track the Definition of Done

Checklists can be used by a scrum team to precisely define the Definition of Done (DoD) and ensure its execution. They can be added to issues/projects whenever applicable. As the DoD usually varies between the Scrum teams, writing it down in the form of a checklist makes it easier to maintain high standards and transparency. 

Other examples of checklists usage 

Checklists can be of help in various situations. So, who else could take advantage of having one? 

• Client support Whenever you are contacted by a customer, you want to make sure that they will be serviced with proper standards. Having a checklist can help you maintain these standards. 

• HR department. A checklist can be used for a new employee onboarding.You can also link to websites, e.g. to a google document containing information about working in the company. As statistics show, a properly carried-out onboarding improves new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%

 

• Sales department. Client relations are key when it comes to sales. So, it’s extremely important to be well-prepared for your client meeting and not forget anything in the process.

 

• Finance department. Whenever a report needs to be prepared, it’s good to have a checklist to make sure it contains everything it should.

• Quality assurance department. You can use a checklist to make sure that the products meet specific requirements.

• A lawyer’s checklist. Whenever a case is closed there are things that need to be taken care of. Using a checklist prevents you from forgetting e.g. about some important documents or making sure that you actually got fully paid for the job you did. 

Summary 

No matter what kind of job you do, it’s very likely that you will benefit from using a checklist. With many things going on, it’s easy to simply forget something and provide a lower quality service as a result. That’s why we recommend using Multiple Checklists for Jira. As presented in the article, they can be used in many different business contexts, serving the same, very important function every time –  ensuring that your work always maintains the same, high standards, regardless of the circumstances.