Session Basics

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Last updated: Sept 15, 2023 by Derya Özdemir
8 min read

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What is a session?

In Agile Poker for Jira Cloud, a session refers to a collaborative estimation activity where a group of individuals comes together to estimate the effort or complexity of various tasks or backlog items in an Agile project. This is a technique commonly used in Agile methodologies like Scrum.

During a session, team members typically use a set of predefined estimation values (such as Fibonacci numbers or T-shirt sizes) to assign estimates to the tasks being discussed. These estimates help in determining the effort required for each item, allowing the team to prioritize and plan their work effectively.

Agile Poker facilitates such estimation sessions by providing a collaborative platform within Jira Cloud. It offers different session types (Interactive, Asynchronous, Relative, Bucket Sizing) each with its own unique characteristics and advantages.

It takes three steps to create any session. As an example, you can check out the steps to creating an Interactive session below:

Step 1: Create the session

Step 2: Add the participants

Step 3: Select the issues

What are estimation values?

In the Agile methodology, estimation values are used by teams to assess the effort required to complete specific tasks or stories. The most common approach is to utilize story points, which represent the relative complexity or effort involved. These story points are typically assigned using a Fibonacci-like number format: 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 20, 40, 100. The significant leaps from one number to the next make it less likely that team members will contribute several slightly different estimates for the same task or story.

In Agile Poker for Jira, you have several options for estimation values, including:

  1. Standard Fibonacci – follows the traditional Fibonacci sequence for story point estimation.

  2. Modified Fibonacci – is a modified version of the Fibonacci sequence that includes higher values.

  3. T-Shirt Size – uses sizes like XXS, XS, S, M, L, and XL, providing a high-level estimation scale.

  4. SML – stands for Small, Medium, and Large, which allows for quick and simplified estimation based on relative effort.

  5. Time Estimates – enables teams to estimate in terms of time, such as hours or days, providing a more concrete understanding of the effort required.

  6. Custom – allows teams to define their own set of estimation values that align with their specific needs and preferences. When you select any option and start adding new values, you automatically create a new Custom value.

What are the session types?

Each estimation session can be created as either Public or Private.

  • Public – This option provides unrestricted session access. Every Jira Software user can access a public session and update its configuration and participants list, including the roles (moderator, participant, and observer). However, Jira restrictions still apply, meaning that users without access to the specific project, board, or issue will not be able to see restricted data. Nonetheless, they can still join and modify a public estimation session in Agile Poker.

  • Private – This option restricts session access. Only users who are invited to the session, including the moderator, participant, estimator, or observer, can join it. The access privileges vary based on the user's role.

Once the session is finished (estimation is completed and the "Finish session" action is executed), it is no longer possible to join the session or update its configuration.

What are the user roles?

The roles of moderator, estimator, and observer are not mutually exclusive – they are interconnected. A session has either a single moderator or everyone is a moderator, while every participant can switch between being an observer and an estimator at any moment. Both estimators and observers can be moderators. Here are some further details:

  • Moderator – controls the session flow, selects the Jira issue(s) to be estimated, enables or disables voting, and finishes the session. A moderator has full session access and the ability to update session participants by adding or removing users, update session configuration, change the moderator, finish the session, or remove it entirely.

  • Participants (Estimator/Observer) – Estimators and observers are a part of the estimation session but do not have control over its flow. Estimators have limited session access and can only participate in the estimation process under the control of the moderator. Meanwhile, observers observe the estimation process but can't provide estimates. The session progresses without input from observers.

Please keep in mind that you can set "Everyone" as the moderator, resulting in every session participant obtaining moderator permissions.

  • Jira Administrator – have the authority to remove any active or finished session. They can’t join a private session if they are not included on the session's participants list.

Once a session is created, it is currently not possible to change its type. We have plans to introduce the ability to change the session type in the future. You can stay updated on this feature by following the progress of [APJ-1617] "As an AP user, I want to switch a running session from Public to Private for updates".

Let’s build on this by exploring the key responsibilities of each user role:

Moderator

The Moderator’s role is essential to guiding the estimation process. Here are your key responsibilities:

  1. Configuring the Session

  2. Starting the Estimation Process: Initiate the session and guide participants through the estimation. For the Async session, keep track of participant progress and ensure that estimations are submitted within the designated timeframe.

  3. Guiding the Session: Start and manage the voting process, submit the final votes, and save estimates. For private sessions, only the moderator can manage participants and session configurations*.

  4. (ASYNC Only) Reviewing Estimates: Review the estimations submitted by participants, taking into account any comments, questions, or concerns. If needed, start an Interactive session.

  5. Final Estimation: Guide the discussion toward a consensus and make the final selection.

  6. Finishing the Session: Conclude the session when all issues have been estimated.

As an Estimator, your active involvement is crucial for achieving accurate estimations. Here are your rules:

  1. Joining the Session: Actively participate in the estimation process at the designated time. For the Async session, submit your estimations within the designated timeframe set by the moderator.

  2. Leave Comments: Share your insights or ask questions by commenting while estimating.

  3. Providing Estimation Values: Submit your estimation values for the selected issues or drag and drop the issues according to their “weight” based on your expertise.

  4. Engaging in Discussions: Share your insights and reasoning during the discussion phase.

  5. Revising Personal Estimates: Consider the discussion and revise your estimate if necessary.

  6. Following the Moderator's Guidance: Adhere to the instructions provided by the moderator throughout the session.

In Interactive sessions, observers participate in the session without providing estimation values. Here are some rules to keep in mind:

  1. Engaged Observation: Attentively follow the discussions, estimations, and decision-making process of the team. Those new to the team or the estimation process can use the session as a learning opportunity.

  2. Note-taking: Optionally take notes during the session to capture important points, key insights, or any notable aspects of the discussion for later review.

* If no moderator is selected (default state), all participants have access to these actions. In a public session, the moderator's role doesn't have exclusive power to manage participants; every participant has full access to participants and moderator management settings. While in private sessions, participants are managed by moderators only. 

What is the suggested estimate?

Once all votes have been submitted, a suggested estimate is displayed. There are three options available:

  1. Consensus – The suggested estimate will be based on the value that receives the highest number of votes or the most agreement among the participants.

  2. Average – The suggested estimate will be the arithmetic mean of all the submitted votes. This includes fractional values.

  3. Average Integer – The suggested estimate will be the rounded integer value of the arithmetic mean of the submitted votes. This means that fractional values will be rounded to the nearest whole number.

How can I access a session?

All sessions in Agile Poker for Jira Cloud are linked to project boards, allowing for multiple sessions of each type to run concurrently on the board. Clicking the See all sessions button on Agile Poker's home screen, or the See all active sessions link for a particular session type, will take you to the All sessions page.

A numeric badge highlights the number of active sessions. Here you have the option to join an existing one or create a new session. Using the filter feature, you can easily find the sessions by:

  • Estimation Type (Interactive, Asynchronous, Relative, Bucket Sizing)

  • Status (Active, Finished)

  • Access (Public, Private); private sessions have a lock icon next to the estimation type and the session creation date.

How can I filter the issues that’ll appear in a session?

After selecting your session, settings up its configurations, and managing your participants, you need to filter and select issues. The "Select issues" step allows you to curate the precise set of issues for your estimation session:

  1. Estimation Field

    • In the "Estimation Field" box, select a Jira field that will be used to store the session estimates. The default field depends on the board configuration. In company-managed projects, it might be "Story points," while in team-managed projects, it could be "Story point estimate".

  2. Issue Selection

    • All the issues that meet the criteria defined by the Estimation Field and Jira Query Language (JQL) filters will be shown below.

    • You can either select all issues from the backlog, or you can select specific issues by using JQL or picking them by hand.

  3. Filtering Using JQL

    • Filter the issues by using JQL, which allows you to define complex queries to find specific issues based on various criteria. Fore more information on JQL, check out the Jira documentation.

    • Here are a few examples of JQL queries:

      • project = "Your Project Name" – Show issues from a specific project.

      • issuetype = Bug AND status = Open – Show open bugs.

      • sprint in openSprints() – Show issues in the currently active sprint.

  4. Issue Types

    • By default, all issue types except for Epics and Subtasks are enabled for estimation.

    • If you want to estimate Epics or Subtasks, enable them by toggling the corresponding option in the "Issue Types" dropdown.

    • Agile Poker supports Flagged issues, displaying them in Interactive and Async session backlogs and in Session scope selector pages of all session types.

  5. Table View

    • Customize the fields displayed in the issue table view by clicking the table icon. Here you can select the fields you want to see in the table, such as Epic, Version, Assignee, and Priority.