User Tasks
How BPMN User Tasks Become Jira Work Items
User Tasks
User tasks are at the core of human-driven workflows in Flower.
Every BPMN user task, manual task, or plain task is automatically converted into a Jira work item, so you manage tasks in Jira as usual.
How Flower Creates Jira Work Items
When a process instance reaches a user task, Flower creates a Jira work item for that activity.
The work item follows Jira’s standard workflow, so teams can track, assign, and complete tasks as usual.
- The process only continues once the Jira work item is resolved.
- While the process is running, Flower does not change the status of a task’s work item. Users complete tasks manually.
- Flower changes statuses only at the end of a process. It resolves the work item of the process instance when the process has ended, and it closes all open task work items when a terminate end event ends the process, see BPMN End Events.
- The status of each Jira work item is shown in the BPMN model as a live process visualization.
This gives you full transparency and traceability directly in Jira.
Defining Jira Space & Work Type
For each BPMN activity, Flower must know where to create the Jira work item.
Flower determines the Jira space and the work type separately. It looks at the following levels, from the most specific to the most general, and the first level that defines a value wins:
- Activity: Set directly on the activity in the BPMN model.
- Swimlane: Set on the lane. It applies to all activities in this lane that do not define their own value.
- Global defaults: Defined in the Flower Settings (Jira Space and Work Type Task), see Setup Flower.
Jira requires both a space and a work type to create a work item. Because Flower resolves them independently, a lane can define the space for all of its activities, while single activities only override the work type, and the other way around.
Example: Space and Work Type
The global defaults are the space OPS and the work type Task. The lane Finance defines the space FIN.
| Activity | Own setting | Resulting Jira work item |
|---|---|---|
| Approve invoice (lane Finance) | Work type Approval | Space FIN, work type Approval |
| Archive invoice (lane Finance) | none | Space FIN, work type Task |
| Create report (lane Operations) | none | Space OPS, work type Task |
These levels apply to the Jira work items of activities. The Jira work item of the process instance itself is configured separately, see Setup Flower.
Set Jira Space and Work Type
Set the Jira space and work type on the activity or on the swimlane in the properties of your model:
Mapping BPMN Activities to Jira Work Items
Each BPMN activity translates into a Jira work item with predefined fields:
| BPMN Activity | Jira Work Item Field |
|---|---|
| Activity Name | Work item summary |
| Activity Documentation | Work item description (includes BPMN details) |
| Space | Jira space (activity setting, otherwise swimlane setting, otherwise global default) |
| Work Type | Jira work type (activity setting, otherwise swimlane setting, otherwise global default) |
| Swimlane | Work item assignee: work items in the same swimlane get the same assignee, see Swimlane Assignments |
| Links | Links to Confluence pages, additional documentation, or references |
Work Item Summary and Description
When a BPMN activity creates a Jira work item, its summary and description define the task details.
You can customize both in the model to provide more meaningful information.
If no description is set, Flower generates an info box with key process details.
With placeholders, you can insert data from the process instance into the description at runtime.
Placeholders use double curly braces, for example {{flower.nodeName}}. They are different from the conditions at gateways, which use ${ }, see BPMN Gateways & Decision Handling.
Available Placeholders
Flower Namespace ({{flower.*}})
These placeholders give you access to commonly used process data.
| Placeholder | Description |
|---|---|
{{flower.processInstance}} | The key of the related process instance |
{{flower.model}} | The key of the related process model |
{{flower.nodeId}} | The ID of the related model node (activity) |
{{flower.nodeName}} | The name of the related model node (activity) |
{{flower.nodeType}} | The type of the related model node (activity) |
{{flower.version}} | The version of the related model used |
{{flower.strictMode}} | Indicates whether the model is executed in strict mode |
{{flower.docLink}} | Plain link as defined in the model (@flower:link) |
{{flower.smartLink}} | Smart link representation of the model link |
{{flower.confluence}} | Confluence-style smart link |
{{flower.laneName}} | The name of the lane of the current node |
{{flower.info}} | Renders a default info panel with key process details |
Direct Access (Advanced)
You can also access the data of the process instance and the node with deep paths.
Process instance (instance)
| Placeholder | Description |
|---|---|
{{instance.key}} | Key of the process instance work item |
{{instance.fields.summary}} | Summary of the process instance work item |
{{instance.fields.priority.name}} | Priority name |
{{instance.fields.issuetype.name}} | Work type of the process instance work item |
Node (node)
| Placeholder | Description |
|---|---|
{{node.@id}} | Node ID |
{{node.@name}} | Node name |
{{node.@type}} | Node type |
{{node.lane.name}} | Lane name (if available) |
Example: Description Template
DocLink: {{flower.docLink}}
SmartLink: {{flower.smartLink}}
Lane: {{flower.laneName}}
{{flower.info}}
======
Instance: {{instance.key}}
Summary: {{instance.fields.summary}}
Priority: {{instance.fields.priority.name}}
Type: {{instance.fields.issuetype.name}}
Node Lane: {{node.lane.name}}With placeholders, you keep descriptions consistent, save manual effort, and give every Jira work item the process context it needs.
Track Process Progress in Jira
Each Jira work item shows a real-time BPMN diagram with the current process state, so teams see where they are in the process.
To track the work, you can:
- Use Jira boards to manage process-related work items.
- Set up custom reports to monitor completion rates, see Monitor & Optimize.
- Use JQL filters for work items of a swimlane or a process instance, see Search Flower Data with JQL.
Summary
- Every BPMN user task creates a Jira work item.
- The process continues when the work item is resolved.
- The status of work items is shown in the BPMN model.
- Space and work type are defined per activity or swimlane, or inherited from the global defaults.
With this, Flower keeps human-centric processes structured, transparent, and traceable.
What’s Next?
- Swimlane Assignments: Assign work items automatically by swimlane.
- BPMN End Events: Learn how processes and their work items end.
- Setup Flower: Configure the global defaults.