Complete Guide to Burndown Charts in JIRA

With the increasing popularity of scrum projects, there are various tools that are available to make the job smoother. One such tool is Burndown charts in JIRA. There are so many things to track, to streamline, and with the help of the right tool, this job can be done in an efficient way. Today in this article, we are going to explain that one tool- Burndown charts with JIRA. Not only we are going to throw light on what it is, but we are also going to explain, how to view it, how to create and how to understand it fully so that the scrum masters have all the knowledge they need to use this tool in their project. 

What are Burndown Charts with JIRA and How are they Useful?

If you are looking for the project trackers which can represent how much work or tasks are remaining in a sprint, that can be viewed in the burndown chart for the project. This chart is very helpful for the stakeholders to understand if the team is able to handle the tasks for the given sprint or if there are some immediate actions required from the team. Using this chart, the graphical representation can be done of the team’s performance and this can be used as a metric for the future sprints and helps in having an efficient plan for the further coming sprints. There are many benefits of this chart:

• These charts help in having the communication in a clear way and help the team to understand their goals in an efficient way.
• This chart helps in breaking down the work in an efficient manner that helps the team to complete the tasks in the given time.
• As this is the collection of data, this helps the team to plan how they should proceed in a sprint and how they can plan their coming sprints more efficiently.

How to Read Burndown Charts

Now that we have a fair understanding of what a burndown chart is, we will learn how to read the chart. This is the graphical representation and it is very easy to understand and interpret.

• The x-axis in the chart will represent the number of days in the sprint.
• The y-axis in the chart will define the number of efforts that are being put in by the team during that sprint.
• The ideal line in the chart is the progress that the team should be making in the given sprint.
• The real line in the burndown chart will represent the actual progress of the team in the given sprint.

How to Create Burndown Charts with JIRA

One of the most important tasks in the burndown chart is to make sure that you know how to create one for the team. This is important work and should be done in the right way. Today we are going to provide stepwise instructions on how to create one burndown chart for your team:

Step 1: Define the Estimation Statistic for the Team

In JIRA, there are various pointers like stories, hours, and other statistics that are used to measure work. So, it becomes very crucial for you to define the right estimation statistic for your team that can be used in this chart. The step for creating one are:

1. While navigating to the Board or Backlog, search for more and then find > Board settings.
2. Then you need to click the “Estimation Tab” where you can choose the right metric for your team to measure the work as explained above.

Step 2: Start with the Estimation of the Issues

This is a very much-needed step in creating the burndown charts with JIRA. This involves technical knowledge but this is very crucial as this helps in making sure that you are estimating the right time for the tasks to be completed so that the velocity of the team is steady and improving. There are certain steps that you can follow to achieve the same.

1. When you are working on a scrum project, choose the issue from either one of the following- Backlog or board.
2. You will find the estimated field on the same.
3. When you click the estimate button, there you will have an option to add the estimate for that particular issue or task.

Step 3: Track the Progress of your Team

Now that you have the right estimation and chart for the team, it becomes very pivotal for the scrum master to keep track of the progress of the team. There are two types of burndown charts and we have mentioned below how you can track the progress in both of those charts.

Types of Burndown Charts 

Sprint Burndown Charts: Using Sprint Burndown chart, you will be able to see how much work is remaining in the given sprint. In this chart, the work done per chart is shown against the projected work rate and this helps the team track the progress and take necessary measures to achieve the goal on time. Using this chart, you can use the below steps to measure the progress:

1. In the given project, you can navigate to the Backlog of the Active Sprint that is going on.
2. Then you find the Reports button and click on ‘Burndown Chart’. Using this, you can have the report and see how the work is going on in the team.

Epic Burndown Charts: The Epic burndown chart is a quick way to see how your team is doing against the work in the epic. Using this chart, the scrum masters are able to see if the work that is added or removed has affected the team’s overall progress. In this, the masters get the idea of how many sprints are needed to complete the work in the spic and this is estimated based on the last sprints and the work done in those sprints. The steps to view the progress of the team are given below:

1. Go to the scrum project and select Backlog or Active Sprint.
2. Navigate to the Reports and click on Epic Burndown. As per the project filter that you have used on the board, there will be a drop-down of the spics that you can select and see the project progress for your team there.

How Burndown Charts Help Calculate the Results?

As we now know that the burndown chart will help us measure the day-to-day work that is remaining in the sprint and using this, we can determine the total effort against the work that is needed to be delivered in each of the given iterations. The velocity on the burndown chart is represented by the slope of the chart and it shows the average productivity that is achieved each day. It is calculated based on the estimation statistics chosen by the scrum master. Using this, the team is aware of the progress, whether they are on time, behind, or early. By referring to this data, they can adjust the pace of their work and achieve the said goals for their project.

Conclusion

There are many times that the projects get very complex and you will get frustrated due to the lack of planning and coordination in the team as the scrum master or the product manager. But there are several tools that are there in the market that can make the task easier for you. Burndown charts are the perfect solutions to these problems and using this, you can achieve the perfect planning for your team. Keeping up with the deadline becomes harder as the project becomes more complex. So, with the sprint burndown chart JIRA you will be able to keep up with the pace and will be able to take your project to completion. There are various ways that you can use this chart for your team and achieve efficiency in the team.

Hope, this article helped you to learn how to view and create a burndown chart, its various types available to use in your team and much more. If you are looking to gain more knowledge regarding the burndown charts, then our JIRA Training can be very fruitful for you. Our expert trainers will help you master both the theoretical as well as the practical aspect of JIRA and scrum projects. So do not wait anymore and kick-start your journey, become a JIRA expert and reap the endless opportunities available out there.