Data is a valuable asset, very valuable asset, but on its own it’s just data.

If we manage to make data into information we can visualize and understand, that’s when we get the insight we need to make well-informed decisions. Clear and concise information makes all the difference when managing work; add to that timeliness, reliability and completeness, and you get Swanly.

The evolution of Swanly

Clever work management in Jira

Swanly was created as a solution to understanding and digesting information in Jira. It was designed out of our own experience working with Jira, alongside a variety of consultants, project and portfolio managers, product managers, and so on.

And though every manager has their own set of practices and ways of consuming information, most have enjoyed the simple, easy and comprehensive approach Swanly brings to the table.

From release roadmap to project plan hub

First, Swanly came out as a roadmap offering a plethora of features, but as Agile would have it, the project management app is evolving into a comprehensive platform to manage all work in Jira.

Comprehensive platform to manage work in Jira - Swanly
Comprehensive roadmap and project plan 

So without further ado, let us introduce you to Swanly v.3. Designed as a go-to hub that offers clarity, structure and efficiency, Swanly v.3 is quite the step up.

Improved Swanly features - v.2 vs. v.3

Enjoy all-round better performance

First and foremost, Swanly v.3 performance is way superior to Swanly v.2, with faster loading and interactions. The new version is good for agile teams managing anything from small releases or waterfall projects, to projects with long-term activities.

Get higher visibility at a single glance

The Swanly roadmap is a centralized hub to plan, track and deliver work across Jira projects, with simple features to import and re-arrange. Swanly is perfect for portfolio roadmaps, project roadmaps, product roadmaps, campaign roadmaps, and any work activity that requires team effort over any period of time. Swanly v.3 roadmap design has been adjusted to improve visibility by offering more information, in a more compact way, and in one place.  

Roadmap Visibility across work in Jira with Swanly
Higher Visibility in Swanly v3

Track issues and releases in one window

One major Swanly v.3 improvement is the merging of the issue and release timelines into one window, as opposed to alternating between two app pages as was the case for v.2. Now, you can switch between release and issue view within the roadmap itself and with a single click.

One window for release and issue view in Swanly
Release and Issue View in One Window - Swanly

Access deliverable stages with a drop down

While Swanly v.2 showcases stages as primary objects on the timeline, Swanly v.3 showcases releases and issues as primary instead. In v.3, we've introduced release/issue start and end dates as a new concept on the timeline, which is useful when tracking larger length deliverables, and further develops our top-down approach. Instead of stages appearing automatically, they can now be visualized as a drop down when clicking on any release or issue. Or, if you prefer, stages can be viewed all together on the roadmap thanks to an 'expand all stages' button.

Release and issue stages drop down - Swanly
Stages Dropdown in Swanly Roadmap

Get better toolbar functionality

The toolbar got a major makeover in Swanly v.3, helping improve roadmap navigation. First of, you're now able to filter by project, status and template, as opposed to v.2 where you could only filter by project. Second, you can now group by project, template and status, as the latter was unavailable in v.2. Third, we've added the toolbar option to expand all stages, so you don't have to individually click on every release/issue in order to drill down.

Filter, group and expand with Swanly toolbar
Enhanced toolbar functionality in Swanly

Zoom-view the right information at the right scale

Zooming in and out of the timeline is key to users; as well as the ability to use the timeline to see the right information, at the right scale. Which is why we worked on zooming and animations as a key part of our Swanly v.3 UI. The Swanly v.3 toolbar features a neat zoom view that can be spread out yearly (up to 4 years), quarterly, weekly, or daily. Add that to the ability to zoom in and out, and the fact that no matter where you are on the timeline, you can get back to today’s work with a simple click.

Zoom view spread out in new Swanly
Zoom view in new Swanly v.3

Get better insights with new report panels

Well distributed data allows users to quickly scan, analyze, compare, filter, and manage information in order to get the right insights and act upon them. The new report panel in v.3 features an improved reporting UI. Major changes have been made to the aggregated information tabs, including the new progress report and the addition of release start and end dates.

Also, the report panel now slides from the right, which ensures ongoing access to the roadmap. The panel can however be expanded for more detail.

Swanly's new report panel features
Better insights with better report panel - Swanly

Standardize with better templates

Who doesn’t love automating repetitive work! Swanly templates help identify the type of work deliverable at hand, and feature customized groups of stages. Swanly v.2 did feature templates, but they weren't as compact and tight as the ones featured in v.3.  

Standardize process with customizable stages templates
Standardize with stages templates - Swanly

Dark mode

When it comes to user interface, dark mode is probably one of the most popular features. The most well known advantage of dark mode is that it saves energy, i.e. battery life. Another utility we often hear about is the fact that it helps avoid the strain on your eyes, especially at night when bright light can get exhausting. Another advantage to using dark mode is that it looks amazing, simply; graphs and dashboards look so much better in dark mode, let's be honest!

Swanly features exciting dark mode
Dark mode feature in Swanly

Here it is folks, the improvements we've made to Swanly!

With Atlassian’s decision to discontinue server products, Swanly v.3 is a real example of cloud extendability potential. We’ll be discussing use cases extensively in the next few articles so keep an eye out; you’ll see how you can manage any work in Jira with this project management app!

If you want to try Swanly, you can actually install it for free here if you're up to 10 users, or you can try the 30-day demo!

Swanly v2 vs. v3 infographic

Infographic showing feature changes between Swanly v2 and v3
Swanly v2 vs. v3 Infographic with feature changes