New in Timepiece: Track Any Field Duration Over Time

Timepiece – Time in Status for Jira now has two new report types: Any Field Duration Per Time-Period and Time-Period Duration per Any Field.

These new reports take the existing Any Field Duration report and add a time dimension to it. Now, instead of one total duration per field value, you can get that duration split into Years, Quarters, Months, Weeks, or Days.

What Do These Two Reports Show?

The same data is presented in both reports: the duration of a field value divided over time. The distinction is whether the field value or the time period appears first.

Any Field Duration Per Time-Period

Each field value is listed first in Any Field Duration Per Time-Period, with time periods grouped beneath it. Sprint 2 would be divided into July and August if you were tracking a Sprint field, and Sprint 3 would be divided into the same months. When you want to track a single field value over time, such as whether a particular Sprint’s turnaround time is improving or declining, this is the better configuration.

Time-Period Duration per Any Field

The order is reversed by Time-Period Duration per Any Field. Field values are nested under each time period, which is listed first. July would be divided into Vendor 1, Vendor 2, and Service Vendors using the same Vendor field, and August would be divided into the same vendors. When comparing all values side by side within a single period, such as examining how work was distributed among vendors in a single month, this configuration is more suitable.

What Time Periods Can You Choose?

The interval can be set to Year, Quarter, Month, Week, or Day. Use the method that best suits your team's data review process. Sprint reviews are best conducted once a week. For a trend line you're presenting to stakeholders, monthly or quarterly is more suitable.

Which Fields Work With These Reports?

Exactly the same fields found in the Any Field Duration report. You select one or more History Fields and Timepiece tracks how long issues held each value. Supported types include single and multi-select fields, single and multi-user pickers, text and long text fields, Epic Link, Affected/Fix Version, Sprint, Project, Issue Type, Status, and Assignee, among others. Date, datetime, and number fields aren't supported.

Why Use Sum or Average With These Reports?

Because the trend across issues is generally more important than the duration of a single issue. You can get the total duration associated with each field value in each period by running either report with Sum. This is helpful when answering questions like "how many hours went to this vendor last month." When you run it with Average, you get the average duration per field value per period, which is helpful for determining whether a stage is becoming faster or slower over time, regardless of the number of issues that have passed through it.

FAQ

Q: What differentiates the two types of reports?

A: Any Field Duration Per Time-Period groups by field value first, then time period. Time-Period Duration per Any Field groups by time period first, then field value.

Q: Do I have to choose a time frame?

A: Certainly. You must select one of the following for both reports: Year, Quarter, Month, Week, or Day.

Q: Are Consolidated Columns compatible with these reports?
A: Yes, both support Consolidated Columns and the Columns panel.

Q: Are these reports compatible with Jira dashboard gadgets?

A: Yes, just like other types of Timepiece reports.

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