Iteration Cycles

Iteration Cycles provide you with a default structure for start and end dates, simplifying your planning process and reducing the need for manual input. Create new cycles or modify existing ones to suit your team’s needs. Use them to prioritize and schedule tasks independently from their projects. You can prioritize tasks by sprints, time period (weekly, monthly, quarterly), or project phase. 

When enabled, the system automatically creates a default iteration cycle (two weeks), which you can use or modify. You can also create new cycles and assign specific ones to different teams, tailoring them to match their workflow. If no start or end dates are provided for an issue, the system uses the current iteration cycle’s dates as a fallback.

Prerequisites

• Enable Sync plans with Jira Issues.

• To enable Iteration Cycles you must have Manage Team permission in any Team. To edit the default cycle (or edit what is default) you must have Global Manage Team permission.

Enable Iteration Cycles

1. Select Settings.

2. Select Planning Time.

3. In Sync Individual and Team Plans with Jira Issues, select Configure.

4. To enable Iteration Cycles, expand the Sync Individual plans with Jira issues drop-down, and select the checkbox Use Iteration Cycles as fallback for start/end date.
   

The system automatically creates a default 2-week cycle. 

Create and Use Iteration Cycles

1. Select Settings.

2. In Capacity Planner, select Iteration Cycles. 

3. In the window, a default cycle created by the System (2 weeks) should display. You can edit this cycle by selecting the pencil icon under Actions. Otherwise, you can create a new cycle.

4. Select +Create.
   

   

5. The Create Iteration Cycle window opens. The following fields display:

• Name: Enter a name for the iteration cycle.

• Display Key: Display iteration cycles in the UI where space will be too limited for using the name.

• Description: Enter a description for the iteration cycle.

• Reference Date: Control when each iteration in the cycle starts. The iterations are then computed from that day in both directions (back into the past and into the future). For example, if I have two-week sprints that start on Tuesdays, I can select a specific date, Tuesday, as my Reference date. This date also lets you decide if the two-week sprints start on even or odd week numbers, for example.

• Iteration length: Length of the cycle.

• Set as default: If you set the new cycle as a default, it will apply to all teams without a specific iteration cycle

6. When you are done, select Save. Your new iteration cycle appears in the window.

7. To use the new cycle, navigate to the Teams page and select your preferred team.

8. In General Information, select the iteration from the Iteration Cycle drop-down. If you want to use another cycle, select it here. You can also manage the iterations by using the plus + icon.

Select Use default if you want the team to always follow the system's default setting. If the default iteration cycle is changed, then all teams that have this option will now automatically use the new default. If the current default iteration (“Sprints (Default)” in the example) is selected, then the team continues to use that iteration when a new one is chosen to be the default one.

9. When you assign issues to a team without specifying dates, the system uses the iteration cycle to place the plan in the calendar.