This page defines the guidelines and guardrails for creating and maintaining Jira Dashboards. Please read this before creating or modifying a dashboard.
General Principles
- Dashboards are for reporting and visibility - not for managing work. Use boards and backlogs for day-to-day work management.
- Keep dashboards focused - one dashboard per team or purpose. Avoid duplicating dashboards.
- All dashboards must have a clear owner responsible for keeping them up to date.
- Avoid creating personal dashboards for information that should be shared with the team.
Reference to Roadmaps
Dashboards should complement roadmaps, not replace them. |
- Use the Roadmap view in Jira for high-level planning and timeline visibility.
- If you reference roadmap status on a dashboard, ensure the linked Epic or Version is up to date.
- Do not duplicate roadmap information into text gadgets manually - it will become stale.
- Roadmap gadgets should filter on a specific project - avoid cross-project roadmap gadgets unless agreed with your team lead.
Done Status
Completed issues clutter dashboards and slow down gadget performance. Follow these rules to keep dashboards clean. |
- Exclude Done issues from all active sprint and backlog gadgets unless specifically required.
- Use the following JQL to exclude done items:
project = YOUR_PROJECT AND statusCategory != Done ORDER BY updated DESC
|
- For retrospective or reporting dashboards where Done status is needed, apply a date filter to limit the volume:
project = YOUR_PROJECT AND status = Done AND updated >= -30d ORDER BY updated DESC
|
- Gadgets showing large volumes of Done issues will impact dashboard load times for all users.
Custom Charts & Filter-based Gadgets
All chart and list gadgets must be based on a saved filter. Do not use ad-hoc JQL directly in gadgets. |
Creating Filters for Dashboards
- Go to Issues > Search for Issues
- Build your JQL query
- Click Save As and give the filter a clear, descriptive name (e.g. SPARKLE - Open Bugs Q2 2026)
- Set filter sharing to your team or project so others can use the dashboard
Filter Naming Convention
Gadget Guidelines
- Two Dimensional Filter Statistics - use for breakdown by assignee, priority or status. Always base on a saved filter.
- Filter Results - limit to 20 rows maximum to avoid performance issues.
- Pie Chart - use for status or priority distribution only. Avoid using on filters returning more than 500 issues.
- Created vs Resolved - useful for trend analysis. Set period to weekly for sprint dashboards, monthly for programme dashboards.
Dashboard per Quarter
Each team should maintain a quarterly dashboard to track progress and delivery against quarterly goals. |
Quarterly Dashboard Structure
Each quarterly dashboard should contain the following gadgets:
Gadget | Purpose | Filter example |
|---|
Filter Results | Open issues this quarter | project = X AND fixVersion = "Q2 2026" AND statusCategory != Done |
Pie Chart | Status distribution | project = X AND fixVersion = "Q2 2026" |
Two Dimensional Filter Statistics | Issues by assignee | project = X AND fixVersion = "Q2 2026" AND statusCategory != Done |
Created vs Resolved | Throughput trend | project = X AND fixVersion = "Q2 2026" |
Filtering per Quarter
Use Fix Version or a label to scope quarterly dashboards. Recommended approach:
Option 1 - Fix Version (preferred):
project = YOUR_PROJECT AND fixVersion = "Q2 2026" ORDER BY priority DESC
|
Option 2 - Label based:
project = YOUR_PROJECT AND labels = "Q2-2026" ORDER BY priority DESC
|
- Agree with your team which approach to use and apply it consistently.
- At the start of each quarter, clone the previous dashboard and update the filter references - do not edit the previous quarter's dashboard.
Dashboard Ownership & Housekeeping
Rule | Detail |
|---|
Every dashboard must have an owner | Set in dashboard permissions |
Review dashboards quarterly | Archive or delete dashboards no longer in use |
Do not share dashboards as public | Share with specific groups or projects only |
Broken gadgets must be fixed within 1 sprint | A gadget showing an error affects all viewers |
Need Help?
If you need help setting up a dashboard or filter, raise a request via the IT Service Desk.
Last updated: May 2026 - Maintained by iSPARKLE-SPARKLE team