What this template is for
A kickoff brief is the artefact that turns a sponsor’s authorisation (the charter) into a working team’s plan. Teams that skip it relitigate goals and roles for the entire first month. This template makes the brief a single Jira issue with the inputs locked before the kickoff meeting and the outputs (ways-of-working agreement, first cadences) captured after.
It is built for PMs and tech leads who want week-one alignment to stick.
When to use it
Use this template at the start of every project or external engagement that needs a team agreement. For solo work or single-ticket fixes, skip it.
How to set it up in Jira
Create a project-governance project. Add the custom fields above to the Create Issue screen. Mark Goal, Kickoff Date, and Project Lead as required via Custom Fields screen rules.
Sub-task breakdown
- Confirm goal, scope, timeline is the pre-kickoff alignment with the lead.
- Identify team members and confirm allocations prevents under-resourced kickoffs.
- Build the kickoff deck is the prep work.
- Run the kickoff meeting is the event itself.
- Publish the ways-of-working agreement turns conversation into a durable artefact.
- Schedule the first standup and retro locks in the cadence.
Use STM Issue Templates to auto-create the sub-task list on every new kickoff brief.
Fields to add to your Jira create screen
These are the fields a project admin should make sure exist on the Create Issue screen for this issue type (Project settings → Screens). Without these on the screen, reporters can't provide the information triage needs - and STM can't reference them either.
| Field | Example value | Required |
|---|---|---|
Summary | Kickoff brief - Q3 onboarding revamp | Yes |
Project / Engagement Name (custom) | Q3 onboarding revamp | Yes |
Kickoff Date (custom) | 2026-06-02 | Yes |
Project Lead (custom) | PM owner | Yes |
Team Members (custom) | Engineering, design, PM, content | No |
Goal (custom) | One-sentence statement of the win | No |
Deliverables (custom) | Bulleted list of artefacts | No |
Target Timeline (custom) | Kickoff to launch dates | No |
Key Dependencies (custom) | Teams, systems, vendors | No |
Ways of Working (custom) | Standup cadence, decision rights, comms channels | No |
Component/s | kickoffs | No |
Labels | kickoff, 2026-q3 | No |
Attachments | Kickoff deck, meeting notes, RACI | No |
Note on custom fields. STM currently supports up to 5 custom fields per template. You can add as many custom fields as you like to your Jira Create Issue screen - the 5-field limit only applies if you want STM to set or update those custom fields itself.
Sub-tasks STM creates automatically
Build an STM sub-task template containing the items below, then wire it to an On Create Issue Executor scoped to this issue type. Whenever a new issue of this type is created in the project, STM creates the full sub-task set in one step - with assignee, due date, and components inherited from the parent unless you override them.
- Confirm goal, scope, and timeline with the lead
- Identify team members and confirm allocations
- Build the kickoff deck
- Run the kickoff meeting
- Publish ways-of-working agreement
- Schedule the first standup and retro
Common questions
What is a Jira kickoff brief template?
It is a Jira task that captures the working agreement of a new project team in its first week. It records goal, deliverables, timeline, dependencies, team members, and ways of working, with sub-tasks for confirming allocations, running the kickoff meeting, and publishing the agreement. Smaller and lighter than a project charter.
How do you run a project kickoff in Jira?
Create one Jira issue using this template a week before the kickoff date. Populate the goal, deliverables, and timeline before the meeting so the kickoff is about alignment, not drafting. Use sub-tasks to make sure the ways-of-working agreement gets published within 48 hours of the meeting. Link the brief to the execution Epic.
Should every project have both a charter and a kickoff brief?
No. Larger projects with formal governance need both - the charter authorises the project, the brief aligns the working team. Smaller initiatives only need the brief. Use the charter when sponsorship, budget, or steering oversight is required; use the brief alone when a single team is empowered to deliver.
What custom fields belong on a Jira kickoff brief?
Project name, kickoff date, project lead, team members, goal, deliverables, target timeline, key dependencies, and ways of working. Configure these via Custom Fields with required-on-create for goal and kickoff date so the brief cannot exist without the most important inputs.
Automate the sub-tasks with STM
STM Issue Templates saves the sub-task list above as a reusable template and creates them on every new issue of this type - via an Executor on issue creation, on status transition, or triggered manually from the issue's "Create bulk sub-tasks" menu. STM does not change the parent issue's create screen (that's a Jira project-settings job) but it removes the manual work of creating the sub-tasks every time.
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