The Ultimate Atlassian Admin to-do list (2020 Edition)
Admins, you are the lifeblood of Atlassian. Thank you! We marvel at the blend of brainpower and passion you invest not just in your company and role but also in your own personal growth. We want to help make your 2018 a year where your passion and expertise collide to propel your career to great new heights. To start, we've put together a to-do list of resources that will set you up for success:
Join the Community
The first item on your to-do list is low effort, high reward. By clicking this link to the online Atlassian Community you will have instant access to a network of Atlassian employees and customers alike.
Once logged in, you can customize a newsfeed unique to you so that you can keep your finger on the pulse of Atlassian products and topics you care most about. Other things you can expect to do in our online community:
- Find help. Whether you're asking a question, chiming in on a discussion or just browsing trending topics, you'll be sure to get the information you need and likely much more.
- Get inspired. There are seemingly infinite numbers of uses or applications of Atlassian products. By joining the Atlassian Community, you will have access to case studies, testimonials, and best practices that will help you get more out of the tools you than you might have thought possible.
- Connect. The Atlassian Community's foundation is made up of people from every industry, career, and skillset. By joining, you'll have the opportunity to network and collaborate with like-minded users facing similar challenges to yours.
Earn your welcome badge by introducing yourself on this thread
Attend an Atlassian Community event
Now that you've joined the online Community, kick your Atlassian spirit up a notch and attend an event (we called them ACEs). These events have traditionally been held offline, but in lieu of Coronavirus, have recently been hosted via Zoom.
At Atlassian Community Events, users from all over the world get together (in-person or virtually) to share common issues, solutions, experiences and initiate meaningful discussions. These events are ongoing, free for attendees, and led by Atlassian users just like you. ACE events are held in over 135 cities worldwide. Who knows, there might be one happening right in your (figurative) backyard! If not, we challenge you to be the change you seek and start your own ACE. Below are just some of the benefits you can expect to gain by attending or hosting an ACE event:
- Learning best practices for Atlassian products. Whether it's Jira, Confluence, Hipchat or one of our many dev tools, you’ll get an absurd amount of knowledge and inspiration at your local user group. The best practices, tips, and tricks either come directly from Atlassian or from industry experts and are guaranteed game-changers.
- Hanging with local (Atlassian) celebrities––and then becoming one. They’re not called “Jira Heroes” for nothing! AUG members and leaders are the Atlassian rockstars within their organizations and they love to share solutions to common business problems. At user groups, you’ll get tactical suggestions that you can take back to your teams to help them be more successful for any product you’re interested in learning more about. The real magic happens when the student becomes the teacher.
- Meeting and learning from likeminded Atlassian users. Community Events are a great way to learn what works (or doesn’t) for teams just like yours. Joining your local Community is the best way to immerse yourself in all things Atlassian and make new friends while you’re at it.
- Hearing it first. ACE members are always in-the-know with the latest on new products and features. Atlassian considers the user group community to be part of the Atlassian family, and being part of the family means getting the inside scoop. If you’re an early adopter, or like being on the cutting edge, you’ll love the intel that you gather in your user group.
- PIZZA-ing and beer, if that's your thing! You bring the discussion, we'll supply the goods. Grab a slice of pizza, sip a drink of your choice, and enjoy! Note: Even if event is held virtually, you still have license to eat pizza and enjoy a beverage ;).
Join an upcoming Community Event!
Enroll in University
Atlassian University offers something for everyone, from brand-new users to expert Jira admins. (And without the pressure to live in student dormitories or eat cafeteria food). University content is designed to get you the most relevant training based on your product or your role. We currently offer training for Jira, Confluence, Jira Service Desk, and Portfolio for Jira. These are the different types of training you can take:
- On-Demand Classes: This is a great option for those who prefer to learn at their own pace. You simply choose a course and start learning in minutes. They include the same content and hands-on labs as our instructor-led classes, and you can access the recordings and demos for up to 30 days from your date of purchase. Learn more
- Live Team Training (Virtual): A virtual team session is ideal to get your entire team ramped up together (each session can host up to 12 attendees). With only people from your company in the class, the issues and questions are more relevant to your team's needs. Learn more
- Live Team Training (Onsite): If you prefer training at your site, you can arrange that too. Learn more
- Public (Virtual) Training: These are taught by Atlassian Authorized Instructors live and online. Each class is interactive and offers hands-on exercises, and you'll be joined others from all over the world.
We've recently launched the Training Credits program, a prepaid account for training that gives you and your team flexibility to choose any mixture of courses, deliveries, and schedules as needed. The big perks are simple procurement, centralized management, and bulk discounts. Learn more.
Enroll in Atlassian University
Get Certified
Atlassian offers a formal certification program for admins of Jira, Jira Software, and Confluence. In order to become an Atlassian Certified Admin, you have must pass a challenging exam and must continue to earn badges in specific areas of the product to maintain your certification. Becoming an ACP helps you to:
- Differentiate your resume if you’re looking for a new career
- Help your company by optimizing Atlassian products, setting your team up to do their best work
It's no secret that Atlassian Certified Admins have a huge advantage when hunting for the roles of their dreams. And it's no wonder: earning your Atlassian Certification shows a long-term commitment to your professional development and sets you up for success throughout your career.
Read more about why we think every Atlassian Admin should get certified
Attend Summit
Summit is a user conference where hundreds of teams of all sizes and industries come together to find inspiration and up-level the way they work. Similar to Community Events, Summit is traditionally held in-person, but has also been held virtually!
At Summit, attendees gain insights from the industry best, have access to in-depth product training and exam prep workshops, learn about latest product updates and of course rub elbows with fellow admins. Here's what else you can expect to do at Summit:
- Grow in your role. Give your product skills a major boost with 15+ hands-on training classes—from beginner to expert—followed by two full days of keynotes, breakout sessions, and product demos. Summit is also an awesome opportunity to connect with other Atlassian users and learn how they use the same products you do.
- Get a sneak peak. Attend over 75 different sessions and hear from over 90 different speakers about the latest and greatest innovations from Atlassian. Be the first to find out what’s new, what’s improved, and what’s coming soon for the tools your team can’t live without.
- Rub elbows. Summit is an amazing opportunity to connect and share ideas with like-minded individuals. Meet teams from all across the globe at the world’s largest gathering of Atlassian experts, enthusiasts, customers, and partners.
- Get inspired. Learn how other teams are using Atlassian products to unleash their teams' full potential and see how you can, too. After four jam-packed days, you’ll walk away from Summit buzzing with knowledge and inspiration to implement new ideas and tactics at your own company.
- Play, as a team. If you’ve been to Summit before, then you know it’s not all work and no play! Participate in ShipIt Live, where you’ll vote for your favorite hackathon projects and join in a final toast, and let loose with your team at Summit Bash, our biggest party of the year.
Get the download of Summit 2020, including access to all of our remote presentations
Have you already completed every step of the The Ultimate Atlassian Admin to-do list? Do you have thoughts or questions about anything on this list? We'd love to hear more from you and to send you some swag. Comment on this thread here with a quick blurb about yourself and we'll be in touch :)!
Was this helpful?
Thanks!
Bridget
About this author
Content Manager
Atlassian
Truckee, CA
4 accepted answers
23 comments