38 Jira interview questions (plus sample answers)

Updated 1 June 2023

An interview can offer you an opportunity to make a positive first impression and outline your most significant skills to potential employers. When interviewing for a software development job, hiring managers are likely to assess your proficiency in Jira. Understanding questions potential employers may ask can help you prepare convincing responses and excel in your interview. In this article, we list 30 Jira interview questions hiring managers are likely to ask and provide sample responses to eight more questions to help you formulate your answers.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are affiliated with Indeed.

10 general Jira interview questions

Hiring managers often use general Jira interview questions to identify candidates' passions, career goals, personality traits, values and work ethic. These questions can help employers understand you beyond your professional life. Below are a few examples:

What do you do when you're not working on a software development project?
Please tell me about yourself and your family.
How can you help our organisation achieve its goals?
How did you know that we're looking for a Jira specialist?
What's your most significant strength as a Jira expert?
Please explain how our firm can help you achieve your career goals.
Why did you pursue a career in software development?
What's your expected salary range?
Please describe your ideal work environment.
Are there any skills you plan to learn while working with us?

10 questions on experience and background

These questions can help employers determine your academic qualifications, employment history and theoretical or practical understanding of Jira. Examples include:

Have you ever worked as a software developer?
How did your last job enhance your proficiency in Jira?
Do you have any formal training in Jira?
Please describe your previous employer in a few words.
What's a workflow and how do you monitor it?
Have you ever disagreed with your colleagues or supervisors? How did you handle the situation?
Please discuss how Jira helped you complete your last software development project.
Which programmes did you enjoy most at university?
What's your thought on workplace competition, especially for software developers?
How can your previous employers and colleagues describe you?

10 in-depth questions for Jira specialists

As the interview progresses, the hiring manager is likely to ask in-depth questions to gauge your proficiency in specific Jira tasks and common workplace challenges. These questions can also help employers evaluate your potential contribution to their organisation. The following are 10 examples:

Can you access the Jira cloud site through a mobile device?
What are the linking and labelling issues in Jira?
Please describe the use of the 'Move Issue' wizard in Jira.
What can you access when you check an issue change history?
How do you back up Jira's cloud data?
What can't you change when editing an active Jira workflow?
Please outline the role of Jira validators.
What are the two main classifications of events in Jira?
How can you create user stories in Jira when working on an Agile project?
Please highlight a few differences between Jira and Bugzilla and outline scenarios where you can prefer the former.

8 interview questions with sample answers for Jira specialists

You can review sample answers to common interview questions to understand why hiring managers ask them. Doing so can also help you create convincing responses. Review the following questions and sample responses to guide you as you prepare:

1. What is Jira?

This question can help interviewers assess your basic understanding of the Jira software. It's likely to be amongst the first questions before the hiring manager proceeds to in-depth, task-specific questions. In your answer, define Jira and discuss its uses.

Example: 'Jira is a platform-independent software application that enables teams to automate workflows, track issues and manage projects. Software developers and testers often use it for project configuration, planning, time-tracking and completion. They can also use it to create and manage teams.'

2. What are the benefits of using Jira?

A hiring manager might ask this question to gauge your confidence in Jira and determine your familiarity with the tool's technical aspects. The question can also help interviewers determine if candidates have sufficient experience using this software. In your answer, discuss a few advantages of using Jira. You can base your response on your experience with the tool.

Example: 'When I first installed Jira, I found it intuitive and easy to use. While using the program doesn't require special training, its developers offer a comprehensive documentation to help new users learn how it works. Another advantage of Jira is it easily integrates with other Atlassian tools, such as Bamboo, Confluence and Bitbucket, and third-party add-ons. This feature enables users to access all the tools they require for planning and managing their projects centrally.'

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3. How can you use Jira for test case management?

Employers can use this question to evaluate candidates' understanding of Jira's use cases and ability to apply the tool to practical scenarios. Discuss how software developers can use Jira for test case management. You can also outline how you used the software for test case management in your previous job.

Example: 'Initially, Atlassian didn't design Jira to support test case management. If you want the software to work well with the server for test case management, you can use Atlassian Marketplace's add-on options. Alternatively, you can alter the Jira components to make the tool compatible with the test case management system.'

4. Please highlight a few essential add-ons for Jira

When using Jira, you're likely to integrate a few add-ons to make the software more efficient. For example, you can add the QAlity Test Management tool for Jira to manage and track project-related bugs. An employer might want to know if you understand the plugins you can use to enhance Jira's performance. In your response, outline popular add-on apps for Jira.

Example: 'Jira offers several nifty add-on apps that users can purchase in the Atlassian marketplace. Examples include ScriptRunner for Jira, Timesheets by Tempo, JSU Automation Suite for Jira Workflows, Git Integration for Jira and Jira Workflow Toolbox. The platform also allows users to integrate third-party collaboration apps to enhance its functionality.'

5. Can you disable email notifications for bulk operations?

When handling bulk operations, users are likely to get tens or hundreds of disruptive emails per day. Jira allows administrators to disable email notifications for such operations to avoid excess messages. This question can help an interviewer assess if you've used Jira before and determine if you know how to disable notifications. Explain how to turn off email notifications and insist that this control is only available to administrators.

Example: 'Yes, it's possible to disable email notifications for bulk operations. To do so, open the bulk operation wizard and deselect the 'Send Notifications' checkbox. This control is only available to project or system administrators.'

6. Please discuss how the Jira service desk works

When using Jira, you're likely to encounter a few software issues. Jira has a dedicated service desk to help users resolve any arising challenges. A hiring manager might want to know if you can use this customer service functionality. In your answer, review Jira's customer query's life cycle.

Example: 'Jira has a dedicated customer service desk to resolve clients' issues. Customers can submit support requests through Jira's portal or by emailing the software's service desk. Next, Jira's service agents investigate the issue, discuss it with the client and recommend or deploy a solution. Finally, they complete the request and close the support ticket.'

7. How do you edit multiple issues in Jira?

An employer may ask this question to gauge your proficiency in Jira's bulk operation tool. Several software development jobs involve working in teams. You may also occasionally want to share issues with your team. In your answer, explain the process of editing multiple issues and highlight different ways of sharing issues on the software. You can also outline the available functions in a bulk operation.

Example: 'I can edit multiple issues in Jira simultaneously through a bulk operation. To do so, I require administrative permission to make bulk changes. Examples of changes I can make through a bulk operation include moving multiple issues, transitioning multiple issues through a workflow, deleting multiple issues and stop-watching multiple issues. I can share an issue with colleagues in Jira by emailing them a link to the issue.'

8. Highlight the various reports you can generate in Jira

Software developers often write progress reports to track projects. A hiring manager might ask this question to determine if you can use Jira to create these reports. In your answer, list examples of reports you can generate through the software.

Example: 'Jira allows users to generate four major categories of reports – Agile reports for Scrum teams, issue analysis, forecast and management reports and Agile reports for Kanban teams. Examples of these reports include the issue report, pie chart workload report, average age report, time tracking report, time science issues report, control chart and cumulative flow diagram.'