Jira New Project: A Step-by-Step Setup Guide for Agile Teams

Starting a Jira new project can feel simple until Jira asks you to choose a template, issue types, workflows, permissions, and board settings. A rushed setup often creates clutter, confusing statuses, and reports your team cannot trust. The trouble grows when every project uses different rules for similar work. Developers lose time updating tickets, product managers struggle to prioritize, and stakeholders cannot see what is truly moving. But here's the truth: you do not need a complicated configuration. You need a clear project purpose, a sensible workflow, useful fields, and a short testing cycle. This guide walks you through each step, so your Agile team can create a clean Jira workspace and start delivering work with less friction.

How to Create and Configure a Jira Project

A Jira new project is a dedicated workspace for organizing issues, workflows, permissions, boards, and reports around a specific team or business goal. You can create one from a template, then adjust its settings to match how your team plans, builds, reviews, and releases work.

Before you click Create project, answer one question: what work should this project help your team manage? A product team may need a Scrum project for planned sprints. A support group may need a Kanban project for continuously arriving requests.

1. Define the project purpose

Write a one-sentence purpose before setting up Jira. For example, “This project tracks mobile checkout improvements from discovery through release.” That sentence helps you decide which issues belong in the project.

Avoid creating separate projects for every small initiative. If one team handles several related improvements, a single project with components, labels, or versions may be easier to manage.

2. Choose a team-managed or company-managed project

Jira commonly offers two configuration styles. Team-managed projects let individual teams control many settings with less administrative effort. Company-managed projects use shared schemes and centralized administration.

For example, a five-person startup may move quickly with team-managed projects. A regulated organization with several engineering groups may prefer company-managed settings.

3. Select the right project template

Choose a template that resembles your team’s actual delivery method. A Scrum template usually includes a backlog, sprint planning, and sprint reports. A Kanban template emphasizes a continuous flow of work across a board.

Use a software template for engineering work, a business template for operational tasks, or a service template for requests and support. The template gives you a starting point, but you should still review every default setting.

4. Name the project clearly

Use a name that explains the team, product area, or business function. “Mobile Checkout” is clearer than “Project Phoenix 2.” A short project key, such as MOB, makes issue links easier to recognize.

Keep naming consistent across your Jira environment. For example, product teams might use keys such as WEB, IOS, and API. Avoid keys that could be confused with internal abbreviations.

5. Add the right people and roles

Assign project roles before creating a large backlog. Typical roles include administrators, contributors, product owners, and viewers. Give each person the access needed for their responsibilities.

A product owner may need to prioritize and update issues. A developer may need to transition work and add technical details. An executive viewer may only need access to dashboards and progress reports.

6. Review issue types and fields

Start with a small set of issue types. A practical Agile setup may include:

• Epic for a large body of related work
• Story for a user-focused requirement
• Task for a defined piece of work
• Bug for a defect or unexpected behavior
• Sub-task for a smaller activity inside an issue

Remove issue types your team will not use. Too many choices create hesitation and inconsistent reporting. You can add more later when a real need appears.

7. Design a workflow that reflects reality

A useful workflow should show meaningful progress without forcing unnecessary transitions. A simple software workflow might include To Do, In Progress, In Review, Ready for Test, and Done.

Ask your team where work commonly waits. If code review is a regular bottleneck, give it a visible status. If testing happens inside development, a separate testing status may create misleading detail.

8. Configure the board

Map workflow statuses to board columns. Keep the board readable at a glance. Five or six columns often provide enough detail for a small Agile team.

Set a work-in-progress limit for active columns when your team needs help controlling overload. For example, a limit of three cards in In Review encourages the team to finish reviews before starting more work.

9. Create versions, components, and labels

Use versions to connect issues with planned releases. Use components for stable product areas, such as Payments, Search, or Notifications. Use labels for flexible, temporary groupings.

These features serve different purposes. A version answers “when should this ship?” A component answers “which area owns it?” A label answers “what temporary theme does it share?”

10. Test the project before launch

Create sample issues and move them through the full workflow. Check whether the board displays the right items, reports update correctly, and notifications reach the right people.

Then ask two teammates to complete common actions without help. Their questions will reveal confusing names, missing permissions, or unnecessary fields before real work enters the project.

Plan the Jira Structure Before Adding Work

The cleanest Jira projects begin with a simple hierarchy. Larger outcomes sit above smaller deliverables, while individual tasks remain easy to complete and review.

Use epics for meaningful outcomes

An epic should represent a substantial outcome, such as “Improve mobile checkout conversion.” It can contain stories for payment options, address validation, error messages, and confirmation screens.

If an epic is so broad that nobody can explain when it will finish, divide it into smaller outcomes. If it contains only one small task, it probably does not need to be an epic.

Write stories around user value

A useful story explains who needs something, what they need, and why it matters. For example: “As a returning customer, I want my shipping address remembered so that checkout takes less time.”

Add acceptance criteria that describe observable results. “The address appears after sign-in” is easier to verify than “Make checkout better.”

Keep tasks and sub-tasks actionable

“Update payment validation” may be a task. “Add validation for expired card dates” is a more actionable sub-task. Each item should have a clear owner and a practical completion point.

Break work down when an issue will remain active across several days or involve several people. Small pieces make progress easier to see, but excessive splitting creates maintenance work.

Build an Agile Workflow Your Team Will Use

Jira should mirror your working habits closely enough to support them. When the workflow describes an ideal process nobody follows, reports become unreliable.

Define what each status means

Write a short explanation for every status. For example, In Review means implementation is complete and another team member must review the change.

This shared definition prevents one person from treating “Done” as coding complete while another treats it as released to customers.

Set clear entry and exit rules

Each status needs a condition for entering and leaving it. A story may enter Ready for Test only when acceptance criteria are met and review comments are resolved.

These rules do not need to become bureaucratic. A short checklist in the issue description can be enough for a small team.

Use automation carefully

Automation can reduce repetitive updates. For example, Jira can move an issue to In Review when a pull request opens or notify an assignee when work remains inactive.

Start with one or two rules. Every automation should have an obvious benefit and an owner who can investigate problems.

Configure Permissions, Notifications, and Visibility

Access settings determine who can view, create, edit, transition, and manage work. Configure them before inviting a broad audience.

Match permissions to responsibilities

Use project roles instead of granting individual access wherever possible. Role-based access makes changes easier when someone joins, leaves, or changes teams.

For example, contributors may create and update issues, while administrators manage workflows and project settings. Stakeholders may receive viewing access without changing delivery information.

Reduce notification overload

Jira notifications are useful when they signal an action. They become distracting when every small update triggers an email or alert.

Review default notifications and remove events your team does not need. Keep alerts for assignment, mentions, approvals, and important status changes.

Protect sensitive work

Some projects include private customer details, security findings, or commercial plans. Use issue security settings when only specific people should see particular issues.

Test access with accounts representing different roles. A permission scheme can look correct while still exposing information through search, dashboards, or shared reports.

Use ONES.com as a Practical Project Workspace Option

ONES.com is a project management platform that can help Agile teams organize planning, delivery, collaboration, and reporting in one workspace. It may suit teams that want a structured alternative for managing product work.

Consider it when your team needs consistent project practices across several groups. The right choice depends on your workflows, existing integrations, reporting needs, and administration model.

Capabilities to evaluate

• Agile planning for backlogs, sprints, and prioritized work
• Task and issue tracking with ownership and due dates
• Custom workflows that reflect review, testing, and release stages
• Roadmaps for connecting longer-term goals with active work
• Team collaboration through comments, mentions, and activity history
• Dashboards for tracking progress, workload, and delivery trends
• Permission controls for team, project, and stakeholder access
• Automation for recurring updates and notifications

For example, a product team could use roadmap planning for quarterly goals, task tracking for sprint work, and dashboards for release visibility. Review the platform with a small pilot before moving a large portfolio.

Measure Whether the Project Setup Works

A project is ready when your team can find work, understand status, and make decisions without constant administrative help. Measure that experience after the first sprint.

Watch for practical signals

Look at cycle time, blocked work, unfinished sprint items, and the age of issues in progress. These measures reveal where the workflow helps or creates friction.

For example, if many issues remain in In Review for several days, the problem may be review capacity rather than developer productivity.

Ask the team focused questions

After two or three weeks, ask:

• Can you find the work that matters to you?
• Do the statuses describe what is really happening?
• Are required fields helpful or annoying?
• Do notifications prompt useful action?
• Which part of the project slows you down?

Use the answers to make small improvements. A monthly cleanup is often more effective than a major redesign every few months.

Common Challenges

The project has too many statuses

Problem: The board contains separate columns for every handoff, creating a crowded and slow workflow.

Solution: Combine statuses that do not change decisions. Keep a separate status only when it reveals ownership, risk, or a meaningful stage.

People create inconsistent issues

Problem: Stories lack acceptance criteria, bugs omit reproduction details, and tasks have unclear owners.

Solution: Add lightweight templates and examples. Show one strong story and one strong bug so people can copy the expected level of detail.

The backlog is difficult to prioritize

Problem: The backlog contains old requests, duplicate ideas, and work without a clear outcome.

Solution: Schedule regular backlog refinement. Archive stale work, merge duplicates, and rank the remaining items against current goals.

Reports do not match reality

Problem: Issues remain open after completion, or teams move work directly to the final status.

Solution: Clarify workflow rules and make status updates part of normal team habits. Review a small set of issues during each planning or review meeting.

Notifications overwhelm the team

Problem: People ignore important alerts because Jira sends too many low-value messages.

Solution: Keep notifications for assignments, mentions, approvals, and major transitions. Remove alerts that do not require a response.

FAQs

How long does it take to create a Jira project?

A basic project can take only a few minutes. A useful team-ready setup usually takes longer because you must define roles, workflows, issue types, board columns, and permissions. For a small team, plan about one to two hours for initial configuration and testing. Larger organizations may need several review sessions before launch.

Should I choose Scrum or Kanban for a new Jira project?

Choose Scrum when your team plans work in fixed sprints and reviews progress against sprint goals. Choose Kanban when work arrives continuously and priorities can change throughout the week. A product team delivering planned features may prefer Scrum. A maintenance or support team handling incoming requests may work better with Kanban.

How many issue types should a new project have?

Start with the fewest issue types that describe your work accurately. Many Agile teams need epics, stories, tasks, bugs, and sub-tasks. Add a type only when it supports a different workflow, report, or responsibility. If people regularly ask which type to choose, your structure may be too complicated.

Can I change the workflow after creating the project?

Yes, you can adjust workflows as your team learns. Make changes carefully because existing issues may need status mapping. Test the revised workflow with a small set of issues first. Explain what changed, why it changed, and how the team should use each status.

What should I test before inviting the whole team?

Create sample issues for common work, then move them through every status. Test assignment, permissions, board filters, notifications, reports, and sprint actions. Ask someone who did not configure the project to complete typical tasks. Their experience often exposes confusing settings that administrators overlook.

Conclusion

A successful Jira project gives your Agile team a shared way to plan, deliver, review, and improve work. Start with a clear purpose, choose a suitable project type, keep issue structures simple, and design statuses around real behavior.

But here's the truth: configuration alone will not fix unclear priorities or inconsistent habits. Test the setup with real examples, listen to your team, and refine one problem at a time. That approach prevents the clutter and reporting confusion that make project tracking frustrating.

When your team can quickly understand what needs attention, who owns it, and what happens next, your Jira workspace is doing its job.