Get started with playbooks
Playbooks in Jira Service Management (JSM) are step-by-step, actionable guides that combine clear instructions with automation. They help teams resolve work items consistently and efficiently by embedding standard operating procedures (SOPs) directly on the work item.
Available on Jira Service Management Premium and Enterprise plans.
What you can do with Playbooks
Standardize workflows: Ensure everyone follows proven steps for specific categories.
Drive efficiency: Automate repetitive tasks to reduce manual effort and speed up resolution.
Maintain alignment: Keep team actions in sync with organizational processes and best practices.
Project admins create and manage playbooks for their teams.
How Playbooks appear on a work item
Playbooks appear in a dedicated section on the work item so responders get guidance at the moment they need it. For a playbook to show up:
Enable the feature: An admin must turn on Playbooks in Project settings > Features.
Create a playbook: Project admins can create and manage playbooks to define guided instructions and automated steps for the team.
Tip: Use Playbook templates for Jira Service Management to get started quickly for common IT Operations, ITSM, and HRSM scenarios.
Match visibility: The playbook’s visibility (work type, request type, or custom JQL) must match the work item details.
If you don’t see Playbooks in Project settings > Features, contact Atlassian support.
Use Playbooks to resolve work items
When a work item matches a playbook’s criteria, the playbook appears in the Playbooks section. Responders can then:
Follow instructional steps: Agents can follow the instructions and links provided to perform specific actions as curated by admins. They can mark the step as done to log the completion. The step can be marked as undone, if required.
Run automation rule steps: Execute admin-configured rules that speed up tasks. Provide inputs if prompted.
Review outputs: See messages and results from automation to validate actions and inform next steps.
Track execution log: View who completed each step and the outputs for accountability.
Get playbook suggestions from Rovo
The Playbook Suggestion feature is not HIPAA compliant and must not be used to process PHI or other HIPAA-regulated data.
This AI feature is in beta. Read more about AI features.
Rovo suggests relevant playbooks for a work item by analysing the work item context (summary, description) and playbook usage signals. Suggestions help you discover the best-fit playbook quickly.
How to get suggestions
Suggest playbooks button
On the work item:
Select Suggest playbooks to open a chat with the Rovo Ops agent
Then Rovo analyses the work item and lists relevant playbooks with reasoning
How Rovo ranks suggestions
Work item context: Keywords in the summary and description.
Execution history: How often a playbook was used on similar work items.
Playbook metadata: Information in the playbook title and steps.
AI-suggested playbooks do not run steps automatically, enforce actions, or guarantee deterministic predictions.
Responsible use of AI features
AI-suggested Playbooks and AI-generated Summaries support decision-making but don’t replace human judgment. Review suggestions and summaries alongside your team’s expertise and organizational policies before acting.
Data usage and transparency
Rovo suggests playbooks using only the details from the work item in context or your prompt, and only analyses playbooks you’re permitted to access.
AI Playbook summarisation uses only the playbook’s step details to generate the summary. It does not analyse specific configurations or automation rule components.
Your organisation’s playbook data is never used to generate suggestions or summaries for other Atlassian customers.
As with any AI-powered feature, review results with operational context. If suggestions seem off, try refining your prompt or reviewing work item details for clarity.
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