How to run an interactive planning session in Jira with Team Planner?

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Are you tired of traditional planning sessions that leave teams disengaged and decisions unresolved? The solution that could change it for good is interactive planning sessions. Imagine a dynamic room where team members discuss eagerly, and share ideas and expertise. An environment that encourages active participation, open dialogue, and a shared sense of ownership. A space that gives team members a higher chance of creating top-notch plans that don’t overlook any important information.

In this article, we'll show you how to run such an interactive planning session step by step in Team Planner - Resource Planning and Capacity Planning. With this app, your team can collaboratively work on the plan in real time: make decisions on the spot, adapt to changing circumstances, and shape the plan together. 

Running an interactive planning session with Team Planner - Step 1: Setting the Stage for Collaboration - Adding Users to the Plan

Firstly, you need to come up with the details of your session: choose when and where your team will meet and which plan you will be working on. Also, make sure that everyone who’s supposed to participate has access to the app.

When the day comes, the session begins and participants gather, navigate them to the plan you'll be working on together. Invite everyone to join simultaneously, and create a collaborative space where everyone can contribute. 

Once you’re inside the particular plan, it’s time to add the relevant team members to it. The process slightly differs depending on whether your plan is empty or not. 

1. If the plan is empty:

 you'll see a message along with the "Add user" button. Click it, and a modal will appear on your screen.

In the modal, you have two options to add users. Firstly, you can start typing the name of the user you want to add in the search field. Team Planner provides a search functionality that allows you to quickly find and select the desired team members.

Alternatively, you can click on the input field to open up the user list. From there, you can select multiple users at once, making it convenient to add your entire team simultaneously.

1. If the plan already has users added:

 you will find another "Add user" button located below the list of added users. Clicking this button will open the same modal, enabling you to search for and add additional users. 

Please notice that you need the “Browse users and groups” global permission to perform these actions.

Step 2: Populating the Plan - Task Assignment 

With all relevant team members added to the plan, it's time to start the discussion and assign tasks to users. As the facilitator, guide the participants to hover over a cell under a specific date in the plan's table. When they click within the cell, a modal will open where they can:

• Select the users involved in the task from those added to the plan. By default, the user corresponding to the clicked cell will be selected.
• Add the issue key or a brief summary for context.
• The start and end dates are automatically set based on the day the user clicked on.
• Once all necessary details are entered, clicking the "Add Issue" button will include the task in the plan.

Alternatively, you can drag issues from the list displayed on the left side of your plan. By default, the list contains issues that belong to the main project of the plan.

Just drop the issue in the desired position on the timeline, and it will be assigned to a particular user.

Step 3: Rescheduling and Reassigning Tasks 

Throughout the interactive planning session, it's essential to manage and update plan details as needed. Tasks might need to be reassigned or rescheduled based on discussions and evolving priorities. It can easily be done with the intuitive drag-and-drop functionality in Team Planner which allows users to grab tasks, move them to different users or dates, and update their durations accordingly. To use the drag & drop feature: 

• Locate the task you want to edit and hover over it.
• Grab the task by clicking and holding the left mouse button. While holding the button, move the task to the desired user and day.
• The place where the task will end up will be highlighted.
• To change the duration of a task, hover over it, grab one of the icons that appear, and move the mouse while holding the left mouse button. Release the button when you reach the desired day to update the task's duration.

Step 4: Editing Plan Details 

Team members can also edit the plan's name, duration, and other relevant information. Remind participants that changes to the plan, such as adjusting the duration or adding tasks from different projects, may impact the overall timeline. 

To edit plan details: 

• Open the plan's page and locate the "Edit details" button.
• Click on the button to open a modal for editing the plan's details.
• Modify the plan's name as desired.
• Adjust the plan's duration by selecting a predefined duration or manually selecting start and end dates. Be aware that changing the duration may affect existing tasks, potentially leading to their removal or adjustment.

Note that the main project selected during plan creation cannot be changed. However, you can add issues from other projects to the plan.

By following these steps within an interactive planning session in Team Planner, your team can create a plan that aligns with their goals and objectives. Additionally, it’s an opportunity to build stronger relationships within the team as they create the plan together.  Last but not least, during such a session it becomes much more likely to create a plan that will be realistic and significantly minimize the risk of dependencies oversights. 

Team Planner features that make it easy to run an interactive planning session

Team Planner is a tool that was specifically designed to allow teams for real-time, simultaneous collaboration and planning, hence it was equipped with functionalities such as:

• Drag & Drop and task stretching: during interactive planning sessions, this feature enables easy modification and adjustment of the plan when the discussion evolves. It allows smooth and convenient plan changes as the team collectively shapes the plan.
• Simultaneous editing option: the key feature for collaborative planning. Each user can make edits in real time and they will be instantly visible to others. As a result, the planning process is faster and more efficient.
• Tasks and users placed on a timeline: visualizing the plan on a timeline provides a clear overview, making collaborative planning easier. It allows the team to understand the big picture, identify dependencies, and coordinate their efforts more effectively.
• Display of crucial task information: the plan directly displays important details about each task, such as the summary, priority, story points, and status. This centralized presentation makes it easier for the team to quickly get a grasp of the plan’s status and take all information into account during the planning process. 

Summary

An interactive planning session with Team Planner allows teams to collaboratively come up with a realistic plan and minimize the risk of overlooking dependencies and potential pitfalls. During an interactive planning session, team members can assign tasks to users, on a plan visualized on a timeline. If a need arises, any changes to the plan can be made during the discussion easily and in real time. Engaging everyone in this process can not only improve your planning process but also strengthen the bond within your team and boost their overall engagement.