Estados y Flujos de Trabajo en Jira

Efficient project management in Jira requires an understanding of how workflows and issue statuses work. Just as a delivery package goes through different stages from check-in to its final destination, tasks in Jira follow a similar path that reflects their progress within the project. This system allows teams to clearly visualize the progress of each item and maintain optimal organization throughout the development cycle.

How do Jira statuses work?

The states in Jira represent the different stages an issue goes through during its lifecycle. To visualize the states you are using in your current project, you must access the project configuration and look for the "workflows" option. By clicking on "diagram", you will be able to see the three main states found in Jira:

• To Do: Represents tasks that have already been identified, planned and prioritized within the product backlog or sprint backlog, but have not yet started to be developed.
• In Progress: Indicates that the task is already under development, either in terms of coding, design, testing or documentation. These tasks are part of the sprint backlog and are displayed on the Scrum dashboard.
• Done: Means that the task has been completed and reviewed, meeting all the acceptance criteria defined in the user story or task.

It is important to understand that these basic statuses can be customized according to the specific needs of each team or project, which makes Jira an extremely flexible tool for agile management.

What are categories and how do they relate to statuses?

In addition to statuses, issues in Jira have an attribute called "category". Categories group statuses into broader stages within the lifecycle of a task. It is critical not to confuse categories with states, as they serve different functions.

The main categories are:

1. To Do: Identifiable by the gray color. It groups all the statuses that indicate that a task is not yet being worked on. For example, it may include statuses such as "Refining" and "To Do".

2. In Progress: Recognizable by the blue color. It includes all the statuses related to tasks that are being actively worked on in a sprint. It may contain statuses such as "In Progress" and "In QA".

3. Done: Represented by the green color. It groups states that indicate that all the necessary actions have been performed to consider a task as completed. It may include statuses such as "Solved" and "Completed".

The exact interpretation of each status depends on the team working on the project. For example, a user story with the status "Resolved" may have different meanings for different companies.

What role do transitions play in the workflow?

Transitions in Jira represent the movements that an issue can make from one state to another within a workflow. Visually, they are identified as the arrows that connect the states to each other in the workflow diagram.

In every Jira project, you will always find a transition called "Create" that indicates that when an issue is created, it is automatically assigned the "To Do" state. From there, transitions can be configured in different ways:

• Open transitions: Allow an issue to move from any state to any other without restrictions.
• Restricted transitions: Limit the movement of issues to specific states, following a predetermined flow.

For example, in a more restrictive flow, a task in the "To do" state could only move to the "Refining" state, and from there it could only move to "In progress". In some cases, such as with the "In QA" state, there may be the possibility of returning to a previous state (such as "In Progress") if errors are found that need to be corrected.

Where can we interact with the statuses in Jira?

There are several places in Jira where we can view and modify task statuses:

1. In the backlog: In the list on the right side you can see the current status of each issue and modify it directly.

2. In the workflow: It provides a view similar to the one seen in the project configuration, showing the possible transitions between states.

3. In the sprint dashboard: Displays the tasks organized in columns representing the categories (To Do, In Progress, Done). When moving a task between columns, its status is automatically updated according to the corresponding category.

Importantly, the entire workflow is fully customizable, allowing you to adapt it to the specific needs of each team or project. This flexibility is especially useful in Scrum, where each team may have a slightly different approach to managing their work.

Why are workflows important in the Scrum methodology?

Workflows in Jira are critical to effective Scrum implementation because:

• They provide visibility: They allow the entire team to clearly see what stage each task is at.
• Facilitate collaboration: They help coordinate work among team members.
• Improve transparency: They provide a visual representation of the progress of the sprint.
• Support inspection and adaptation: They allow identifying bottlenecks and opportunities for improvement in the process.

The correct configuration of states, categories and transitions in Jira can make a big difference in the efficiency with which a Scrum team manages its daily work and meets sprint objectives.

Workflows in Jira are powerful tools that, when configured properly, can transform the way teams manage their projects. Understanding how states, categories and transitions work is essential to getting the most out of this platform. What other custom states do you use in your projects? Share your experience in the comments and tell us how you've tailored Jira to your team's specific needs.