Many companies have a major need for integration to enable data sharing between Jira and project management tools like Microsoft PPM or Planisware as well as ERP systems like SAP. The first of these cases is based on detailing the project’s work packages (e.g. Sprints) in Jira. From the organizational perspective, this requires an interface between project managers on the one hand and team leaders, Scrum Masters, development teams and Product Owners on the other.
In the second case, ERP integration mainly consists of entering the amount of actual work performed and charging it accordingly. This is illustrated by the use cases described below. Many others could be envisaged.
For over 25 years, TPG PSLink has been a proven middleware product for the data exchange between different enterprise systems. It also supports a bidirectional integration with Jira. The product’s high configurability ensures that this middleware is implemented very quickly.
Benefits of the Integration of Jira with SAP, Microsoft PPM, Planisware etc.
In this scenario, the portfolio and project management activities are carried out in Microsoft Project Server or Project Online. The projects are planned down to the level of work packages (often called Sprints in Jira). Using TPG PSLink, work packages can be transferred to Jira and automatically structured into Versions, Epics and / or Issues.
The head of development, the Scrum Master and the Product Owner are now able to plan in more detail based on the imported structure. They can use all the Jira tools including workflows, Scrum boards and work logs (for time reporting) for detailed planning and progress monitoring.
As part of project management, the project manager must be regularly updated on the progress of all deliverables. To do this, the project manager needs both the progress in terms of completion and the information about the effort recorded up to date. With the appropriate maintenance, both can be delivered to Jira automatically .
For standard projects, it can be useful to use standardized Issues for task planning. These should not be entered anew each time but can ideally be imported. SharePoint is an excellent way to easily maintain a list of Issues per Project Type. With TPG PSLink, this list can be transferred to Jira for new projects at the push of a button.
“With the Microsoft PPM solution, we now have full control over resource utilization, and planning our development projects works much better. For instance, the integration via TPG PSLink transfers the actual hours from Jira to PPM. Thus, the remaining work in the project, as estimated by the team members themselves, becomes clearly visible.”
Arjan van Wijk, Sr. Project Manager, SKIDATA GmbH
If portfolio and project management is carried out in an ERP system like SAP, the integration scenario will be similar to that described in Use Case 1 above. In other words, the rough planning is carried out in SAP PS or PPM, while Jira is used for detailed planning and the execution of the work packages.
A further important point here is timesheet synchronization. In this process, the work logs are transferred from Jira to SAP CATS or to SAP for cost allocation.
In most cases, the integration will cover several different systems. It often includes the use of:
The integration enables the following data sharing processes:
| Jira Objects | Data Sharing |
|---|---|
| Epics |
|
| Issues |
|
| Work Logs |
|
TPG PSLink® ensures the consistency of data being shared across the systems involved.
Compatibility:
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