How to integrate Jira Service Management (JSM) with other platforms?

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How to integrate Jira Service Management (JSM) with other platforms?

Teams using Jira Service Management (JSM) hold critical customer data, but sharing it is hard. They also need to escalate information to other teams working on different platforms.

If only you could make sure the data present in JSM is there for everyone in your organization who needs it. You can do that with a Jira Service Management integration.

With third-party integration solutions, you can integrate JSM with other tools like Jira, Azure DevOps, ServiceNow, etc, exchanging data in the background without anyone having to lift a finger.

In this article, you’ll learn how to set up Exalate, an app to connect your JSM instance with other platforms securely and reliably. 

But before that let’s look at a few use cases where a Jira Service Management integration truly stands out!

Common Use Cases for Integrating Jira Service Management

Customer support and IT teams

If your customer support teams work in JSM and your IT team works in Jira, GitHub, or Azure DevOps, chances are you already exchange a lot of information manually. By integrating your JSM instance with these software development tools, you can automate your customer service workflows.

The support teams will always remain up-to-date with the current ticket statuses without resorting to manual ways. The development teams no longer have to rely on emails and spreadsheets to get the correct information about customer issues. With an integration in place, you can ensure you never miss critical deadlines, resolve issues faster, adhere to SLAs, and maintain customer satisfaction.

ITSM integration

Sometimes, teams are scattered across various ITSM tools like Jira Service Management, ServiceNow, etc. By integrating these multiple ITSM tools you can streamline service delivery and management, even across complex workflows. Imagine, tickets being routed automatically to multiple destinations based on their content. You can also control which fields to share during every escalation scenario. Productivity at its best!

MSP integration

Managed service providers (MSPs) often have to connect to their customers or suppliers while working on platforms different from theirs. Maybe, the customers have outsourced support to JSM while they themselves use Jira. Connecting these diverse systems together via integrations can help MSPs gain a competitive advantage.

We had an MSP partner who offered Exalate integration as a part of their service package for customers. This improved the onboarding process and allowed their customers to integrate with the MSP services efficiently.

You need a robust, flexible tool capable of handling basic to advanced JSM integration use cases, as discussed. There are native ways to handle such integrations but they are limited in functionality and features.

I recommended Exalate to set up integrations between JSM and other platforms. Its scripting interface opens you up to a lot of possibilities.

Use Exalate to connect your teams working in Jira Service Management

Exalate is a script-based integration solution that connects multiple systems like Jira (Cloud and on-prem), Azure DevOps, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Zendesk, etc. With the Script mode, you can set up complex/ deep Jira Service Management integrations and tailor the sync for your needs.

For example, if one of your teams is using Jira Service Management, and another is using Jira Software, you can sync various fields like organization, remote ticket ID, user mentions in comments, statuses, and much more. Keep working in your own Jira workflow without altering anything!

Connect to Partners Easily and Safely with Exalate

Exalate also shines in cross-company integrations. If you need to share data with a supplier or contractor, you can do so seamlessly.

It gives each partner complete control over what they share, and they can change that or switch off sharing at any time, so there’s no need to worry about leaking data.

So, onto using Exalate. It’s much easier than you’d think.

Step 1: Install Exalate on Jira Service Management & the other instance

You need to install Exalate on both the integrating sides since it has a distributed architecture.

If you’re using Jira Service Management you can install Exalate by searching for it in the Atlassian Marketplace. Alternatively, you can install it directly from Jira App Manager.

Exalate can be installed on docker for additional security needs.

If you have an on-premise Jira installation, you can install it by choosing ‘Manage Apps’ from the admin dropdown, while logged in as an administrator.

To install Exalate on the other platform visit the integrations page, choose your system, and proceed further.

Step 2: Connect your instances

From any one of the system’s Exalate panels, click the ‘Initiate Connection’ button. A connection will ensure a secure data exchange channel is established between the two platforms.

One side initiates the connection and the other side accepts the connection invitation. It doesn’t matter which side you start with.

Enter the URL of the other instance. There are several ways to configure it, including basic configuration, and a simple visual mode (BETA). This time, we’ll do it the advanced way.

Click ‘Script’ and continue.

You’ll then see an invitation code, copy it. Head over to the other instance and click ‘Accept invitation’ in the ‘Connections’ screen. Paste the code you’ve just copied.

That’s all you need to set up a connection.

Step 3: Configure your integration rules

Once you have connected your instances you need to configure the sync rules.

The “Rules” tab shows how fields in each instance are mapped to each other. When issues are copied, this controls the specifics. You can change or remove anything you don’t want to be mapped here.

In Script mode, you can make things easier by asking Exalate’s AI Assist for help. You can type in a natural language query and AI Assist will produce the appropriate script in response.

Be sure to keep an eye on it, as AI can make mistakes. The robots aren’t quite ready to take over, but they do work quickly and get most things right.

Step 4: Set up Triggers to control synchronization

Triggers are conditions that control when issues are synchronized. They are easy to add. Just click ‘Create trigger’ on the triggers screen.

You set conditions using Jira Query Language (JQL). In this screenshot we’ve chosen to sync all tasks with the code:

issuetype=Task

Step 5: Activate the synchronization

Now you’re ready to go. If you create a Task and click ‘Exalate’, it should sync with the other side. Go back and configure the sync rules for all your requirements. Set advanced data mappings and logic. Sync any data available via REST APIs.

Exalate checks for tasks every few minutes, so grab a coffee if it doesn’t work right away.

Congratulations, your team’s data is now being shared according to the rules you set, and the integration is doing all the heavy lifting for you.

Start with your Jira Service Management integration

Integrating Jira Service Management with other platforms doesn’t have to be complicated. With Exalate, you can automate data sharing between software platforms both within and outside your company. It’s easy to do and can save your teams huge amounts of time, as well as let them make better decisions with the broader spectrum of information available to them.

As well as Jira Service Management, you can integrate many other platforms, including Azure DevOps, Github, ServiceNow, and Salesforce.

So hopefully if you’re convinced that Exalate is the right tool for you, feel free to try it out, or get in touch with us and see how we can help bring your teams together.