Out of Office Assistant for Jira by re:solution
Out of Office Assistant for Jira by re:solution
Numerous races compete in the Atlassian galaxy. The gregarious DevOpticons. The Agilists and their ceremonies. The Waterfallians and the Service Management Troopers.
All of them have different software creeds and product specializations, making peace unimaginable.
There is only one thing every galactic traveler has in common: hibernation. No matter how experienced, ambitious, or addicted to star dandruff – everyone has to hibernate lest they want to succumb to hyper speed.
But alas! Not all travelers can hibernate simultaneously. Jira tasks for ship maintenance, route control and weapon upgrades are received from headquarters. They must be taken off the hibernator’s shoulders and assigned to a deputy. Being a coverer, as deputies are known in hypertravel jargon, is the highest honor for any traveler.
And thus, a powerful marketplace app is silently expanding its tentacles, installed in instances all over the Atlassian galaxy. One that allows to maximize hibernation time without impeding efficient transportation. One that allows coverers to stand out as the dreaded banners of their race. Out of Office Assistant for Jira Cloud is its name. resolution its maker
Every race must answer 5 questions when setting up Out of Office. Here are the answers of the software team for internal applications at a car manufacturer.
How are rules activated? What’s possible: Out of Office rules can be triggered from within Jira, from Slack, or from hundreds of other apps via Zapier – including Outlook and Google Calendar
How does the car manufacturer do it: Each user’s Google Calendar is connected to Out of Office with Zapier. This tends to happen on mobile devices for shorter requests for time off to hibernate. New Out of Office events in Google Calendar show up in Jira with the delegation parameters set up for each user in Zapier. Once active, coverers start receiving reassigned work.
How are coverers appointed? What’s possible: Out of Office allows to create multiple coverers for the same leave. Other galactic travelers operate with JQLs that reassign work based on which component it belongs to, or which planet does the customer come from. How does the car manufacturer do it: A simpler structure. Each software traveler has always the same coverer and is always the coverer for the same comrade. Ideally, nobody covers for more than one person.
How is time off scheduled? What’s possible: In Out of Office, travelers can schedule their hibernation for themselves. But they can also rely on Jira admins and project admins to create rules for them.
How does the car manufacturer do it: Each traveler can decide when they want to hibernate as long as the mission is not at risk.
However, it’s mandatory to coordinate with coverers. Ru[1]les are then created by each user for themselves.
In the case of longer absences like maternity leaves or sabbaticals, coverers can be appointed on a project basis.
How is ownership defined? What’s possible: How coverers work on issues that have been reassigned to them can vary a lot. Reassigning them to the most suitable specialist based on the case, working on urgent issues only, or owning every issue – these are all viable approaches.
How does the car manufacturer do it: Coverers proudly own delegated tasks. However, it’s common for workload to exceed capacity (particularly when engaging in landing maneuvers). In that case, tasks may go through the prioritization process again to ensure that the most important work is delivered, and the right trade-offs are discussed.
Are any issues not reassigned? What’s possible: Out of Office can reassign new issues in every project – but that’s just the default. Which projects, issue types, and users are involved is entirely flexible.
How does the car manufacturer do it: When a traveler hibernates for a short time (for example due to sick leaves or a long weekend), larger tasks that are already in process are not delegated to coverers. Some members of the crew have a unique skillset that can’t be replaced. It’s the case of a hologram producer and some of the most experienced magnetic shield engineers. Their issues are not reassigned. Instead, delays are accounted and planned for. Alternative missions that rely on other skillsets are then executed.