Plan projects in Freehand with the Jira integration

Projects are complex, cross-functional efforts. Product managers need to keep everyone aligned, get the best information, and make the best decisions. Freehand brings together all the information and context teams need in one place.

Jira cards in Freehand combine Freehand’s inclusive, flexible canvas with Jira’s structured project tracking tool, seamlessly taking projects from ideation to completion. Import Jira issues to Freehand, create Jira issues directly in your canvas, and change cards and sticky notes into issues. 

Changes you make to the Jira ticket details (issue ID, summary, type, priority, or status) update in the Jira card in Freehand, and changes made in the Jira card in Freehand update the issue in Jira. No need to leave your Freehand canvas. 

Import Jira issues to Freehand

To import a Jira issue to Freehand using the Jiraintegration:

1. Sign in to InVision and open your freehand.
2. In the toolbar, select Explore > Jira. The Jira integration opens.
   
   Tip

   Select the pin icon next to the Jira integration to pin it to the toolbar.
3. Select one of the following options:
   • Connect Jira Cloud: If it's your first time using this integration, connect to your Atlassian account.
     
     Sharing a Jira account is not supported
     InVision does not support multiple people sharing the same Jira account. 
   • Configure Jira Data Center: If it's your first time using thisintegration, an admin for your organization needs to configure Jira Data Center.
4. In the modal, choose a Jira site and project and select Continue.
   
   Note: You can switch to a different site and project later.
5. Choose the issues you want to add to your freehand and select Import issues from Jira. A new Jira card that includes the Jira issue ID, summary, assignee, type, priority, story points, and status appears for each issue in the Freehand canvas.
6. Select the issue IDnumber to open the issue in Jira.

Create Jira issues from Freehand

When sprint planning or handing off projects to another team, it's important to connect the work to your existing epics, and track the project in Jira. Create new Jira issues from Freehand so everyone sees what they need, where they need to see it.

1. In the toolbar, select Explore > Jira. The Jira integration opens.
2. Select Create Jira issue and complete the fields.

The new Jira issue appears on the canvas. Select the issue ID number to open the issue in Jira.

In Jira, the issue you created includes a link to the Freehand document.

Create Jira issues from cards and sticky notes in Freehand

After a brainstorming or feedback session, your freehand is probably full of sticky notes and cards. Get these items into Jira as stories and tasks by changing the sticky note or card into a Jira issue.

1. Select a sticky note or a card in your freehand to open the contextual menu. You can select several sticky notes and cards to create different Jira tickets.
   
   Note: The sticky note(s) and card(s) need to have text, which becomes the Jira issue summary.
2. In the contextual menu, select the sticky note icon  or the card icon .
3. Select Convert to Jira. The Jira integration opens.
4. Complete the fields. The text from the card or sticky note auto fills in the Summary field.
5. Select Create Jira issue.

A new issue is created in your Jira project and the sticky note or card changes into a Jira card. The Jira card in Freehand includes the Jira issue ID, summary, assignee, type, priority, story points, and status. Select the issue ID number to open the ticket in Jira.

Search for Jira issues

Use the Search field at the top of the Jira integration to search for the issues you want to add to Freehand. Type your search query and select Enter to view a list of the Jira issues.

Once you type your search query, select JQL below the Search field to search for issues in your project using Jira Query Language (JQL). To switch back to a basic search, select Basic.

Use Jira cards with other smart objects

Once you've added some Jira cards to your freehand, you can use them with other smart objects to make the most of Freehand intelligent canvas.

Drag people stickers onto Jira cards to assign them, and use stickers to add story points to your Jira issues. The assignee and story points values are synced back to Jira, so you can do all your planning right in your Freehand canvas.

Switch to a different site and project

The Jira site and project you choose remain as the default choices in the Jira integration.

If you need to switch to a different site and project, select Change next to the current project name. Choose a new site and project and select Continue.

Configure Jira Data Center to use Jira in Freehand

If you’re using Jira Data Center, an admin or owner on your InVision account needs to configure Jira. To learn how to configure Jira Data Center to use the Jiraintegration, read Configure Jira Data Center to use Jira in Freehand.