In many organizations, Jira serves as the central platform for coordinating work across teams — from HR and Finance to IT, Support, and Product development. While teams rely on Jira to manage tasks and track progress, a significant portion of their work is highly repetitive: onboarding new employees, preparing releases, provisioning equipment, processing financial requests, or executing routine operational workflows.
When these processes repeat frequently, teams often end up recreating very similar issues, subtasks, and structures over and over again. This is time-consuming, error-prone, and ultimately distracts from more meaningful work.
This article explains how to build robust, reusable templates in Jira — using only native features — and how to clone them efficiently to streamline recurring processes across multiple departments. We’ll walk through a real example (employee onboarding) and show how to design a scalable Epic → Task → Sub-task hierarchy, optimize content, tag templates, keep them out of active boards, and reuse them cleanly every time.
A familiar use case: onboarding a new employee
Employee onboarding is a perfect example of a multi‑team, multi‑step process. HR manages documentation and contracts; Learning & Development coordinates introductory training; Health & Safety handles safety requirements; IT Support prepares equipment and accounts; Finance ensures payroll and compliance setup. With so many steps and stakeholders, gaps can easily appear unless the process is structured and repeatable. This example demonstrates how to build a cross‑department onboarding template using only Jira’s built‑in features—and how to clone it efficiently.
Defining the structure
The first step is mapping the complete scope of work. Gather all necessary activities and assign each to the correct department. The easiest approach is to review past onboarding cases or refer to internal checklists or procedures. An example task breakdown may look like this:
HR:
- define contract terms,
- coordinate medical checks,
- prepare and collect documents,
- pass materials to accounting,
- announce the hire,
- and assign a buddy.
Learning & Development trainings:
- company introduction,
- culture and values,
- policy overview,
- general training,
- and access to e‑learning.
Health & Safety:
- initial safety training.
IT Support:
- system accounts creation,
- laptop ordering,
- phone ordering,
- Issue an ID badge.
Finance & Payroll:
- payroll setup,
- pension registration,
- access to benefits,
- travel expense system,
- employee bank details configuration
Creating a template structure in Jira
With the activity list ready, convert items into Jira issues and assign them to the right projects. Using a master Epic as the top-level container is recommended. For onboarding, HR owns the process, so the Epic belongs in the HR project – for example:
*[TEMPLATE] New Employee – Hiring & Onboarding. *
A consistent prefix helps distinguish templates from real work. Then, create Tasks and Sub‑tasks across the appropriate Jira spaces, linking each to the Epic. The structure should match your existing workflows, not the other way around.
Below you can see the entire task structure:
Creating template content
Once the structure is in place, define reusable content within each issue – descriptions, instructions, or default field values. If your organization operates across multiple regions, consider using custom location fields or structuring the description into regional sections. Checklist formats, bullet lists, or tables can all be used depending on internal standards. You may also include attachments, watchers, estimations, components, start/due dates, or predefined assignees if they remain constant.
See the example:
Adding a Template custom field
To easily identify and filter template items, create a custom field such as Template (Checkbox) with a single option: Yes. This allows clean filtering, dashboarding, and prevents templates from appearing in normal work views. The field should be added to relevant screens, but it shouldn't be mandatory. Using only one option avoids unnecessary interaction during standard task creation.
Setting template issue status
To prevent template issues from appearing in backlogs or boards, move them to a DONE status. This ensures they do not show up in sprint planning, kanban boards, or delivery reports. Marking templates as Done does not mean they are completed – it simply keeps them out of the workflow until they are cloned.
Creating a dashboard
Once your templates are tagged, create filters and dashboards for easy access. A filter such as type = Epic AND Template = Yes is often enough. Adding a dashboard gadget, such as Filter Results, lets teams quickly view available templates. For company‑managed projects, administrators should maintain shared filters to ensure consistency.
Template cloning
Once your template structure is complete — with all tasks organized, tagged, and marked as DONE — the final step is turning these templates into real, actionable work items. Jira doesn’t automatically trigger new workflows from templates, so the way to operationalize your structure is through cloning.
You can do this in two ways: by using Jira’s native Clone option, or by relying on a more advanced and flexible approach with Clone Expert for Jira, which is designed specifically for cloning entire hierarchies and editing details before creation.
The following sections break down both methods and explain when each one is most effective.
Cloning templates through native Jira feature
Jira’s native Clone option is simple but limited.
Jira provides a built-in cloning mechanism that duplicates issues and their content. Although simple and universally available, it is often underestimated due to multiple limitations.
This section explains how Jira’s default cloning works, what it can (and cannot) copy, and how to adjust the resulting items so they become ready-to-use work for your teams.
Step 1 - Start the cloning process
To clone your onboarding template (or any other template Epic), open the Epic and select: Actions → Clone
Jira will open a cloning window that summarizes what will be duplicated and the available customization options.
This is the moment where you decide how the resulting Epic will look and what content should be carried over.
Step 2 — Adjust the Summary (title)
By default, Jira prepends the new issue summary with: CLONE - [original summary]
Since this is distracting and not helpful, it’s best to replace it with something meaningful.
For an onboarding scenario, replace CLONE - [TEMPLATE] with the new hire’s name.
For example:
[Jon Smith] New Employee – Hiring & Onboarding
Step 3 — Choose the right Assignee and Reporter
Assignee:
You can leave it empty or assign the supervisor responsible for onboarding monitoring.
Remember: the Epic mostly serves as a container. Actual work is owned by the teams managing the individual tasks.
Reporter:
It's recommended to leave the Reporter unchanged, because Jira uses this field for transparency and accountability — it shows who initiated the cloning and is responsible for preparing the onboarding package.
Step 4 — Decide what content should be cloned
The Clone dialog provides several checkboxes that determine how much of the template structure to copy.
Here’s a recommended configuration:
Option Select? Explanation
✅ Attachments - Yes - If your templates include documents, procedures, or reference materials, these should definitely be copied over.
✅ Sub-tasks / Child issues - Yes - Essential if your template is a hierarchy. This ensures that Tasks and Sub-tasks under the Epic are cloned together.
✅ Issue Links - Yes - Maintains any external references, parent/child relationships, or connections that provide context.
❌ Clone sprint value - No - Sprint assignments relate to historical work. New issues should appear in the backlog, not in closed or active sprints.
Selecting these options ensures that the entire structure — from Epic to subtasks — is reproduced faithfully.
Step 5 — Run the clone
After confirming your choices, Jira creates a complete copy of the Epic:
- In the same project as the template
- With all child issues cloned
- With attachments preserved
- With issue links intact
- With the same Reporter
- With CLONE – prefixes and [TEMPLATE] still present in the Summary fields
- With all descriptions, fields, and checklists copied exactly as they were in the template
Step 6 — Clean up and adjust the cloned structure
Although Jira’s native clone does a good job, the resulting items usually require manual adjustments before they are ready for execution.
Here’s what should be updated:
✔ Remove the “CLONE –” prefix
This affects the Epic and every Task/Sub-task.
It must be cleaned one by one, because the native clone lacks bulk editing at this stage.
✔ Replace “[TEMPLATE]” with contextual details
For example:
[TEMPLATE] Prepare employment documents → [Jon Smith] Prepare employment documents
This gives clarity and ownership to all involved teams.
✔ Update dates
Depending on your process, you may need to set:
- Start dates
- Due dates
- Deadline-based constraints
- First-day-of-work information
✔ Assign responsibilities
Some template tasks may already have default assignees, but many will require manual reassignment based on the specific onboarding case.
✔ Remove unnecessary tasks
For example:
If a new hire does not need a company phone, simply delete the related task.
✔ Check descriptions for context
Some steps might include region-specific or role-specific conditions. Update them accordingly.
✔ Remove template-related issue links
By default, Jira links cloned issues to the template issue (e.g., "clones" or "is cloned by").
It’s good practice to remove these links to keep your templates clean and isolated.
Step 7 — Evaluate whether native cloning is enough
- Native cloning is effective when:
- Templates are simple
- Only a few fields need updating
- Minimal cleanup is acceptable
- Teams don’t mind manually adjusting many summaries and field values
However, if you frequently clone complex structures involving multiple projects, numerous tasks, or detailed field adjustments, manual cleanup becomes time-consuming and prone to inconsistencies.
This is where tools like Clone Expert for Jira offer significantly more power and flexibility — which we explore in the next section.
Cloning with Clone Expert for Jira
While Jira’s native cloning feature is useful for simple, single-issue duplication, it becomes cumbersome when working with extensive template structures—especially those spanning several projects, containing many Tasks and Sub-tasks, or requiring updates to fields before the clone is generated.
This is where Clone Expert for Jira becomes significantly more powerful.
Clone Expert is designed specifically to clone entire hierarchies, giving you full control over the content before new issues are created. Instead of cleaning up dozens of cloned items afterward, you can tailor all details upfront using a clear, editable preview table.
Below is a step-by-step walkthrough of how the tool works and why it’s particularly effective for cross-department templates such as onboarding, release coordination, or multi-team operational workflows.
Step 1 — Access the Clone Template feature
Navigate to the Epic that represents your template.
Instead of the standard Clone button, select:
Actions → Clone Template
The Clone Expert app adds this option and opens a dedicated workspace designed for working with template hierarchies.
Immediately, you will see a structured preview of all issues under the Epic—Tasks, Sub-tasks, and deeper levels if your process includes them. This visual representation ensures nothing gets overlooked.
Step 2 — Explore the preview table
The preview table is the core feature of Clone Expert. It lists:
- Every issue in the hierarchy
- Their issue types and projects
- All editable fields (Summary, Description, custom fields, dates, assignees, etc.)
- Bulk control options per column
- Checkboxes allowing you to include/exclude individual items
This gives you a complete overview before anything is cloned.
Unlike Jira’s native method, you don’t need to adjust the issues afterward. Everything can be customized upfront.
Step 3 — Update Summaries using bulk editing
One of the biggest time-savers is the bulk Find & Replace action.
In the Summary column header, choose:
Bulk → Find and Replace
Here you can quickly replace template placeholders—such as:
This automatically updates every Summary in the hierarchy:
Epic → Tasks → Subtasks.
The result? Clean, context-aware issue titles without the tedious cleanup required after native cloning.
Step 4 — Adjust key fields before cloning
Depending on your onboarding (or other workflow) process, you may need to update several fields. Clone Expert allows you to modify them directly in the preview table.
Examples of fields commonly updated:
Hiring Date or Start Date
Use Bulk → Overwrite Date Value to apply a single date to all items or adjust specific ones individually.
Manager / Supervisor
If your template contains a field tracking the responsible manager:
Enter the manager’s name (for text fields), or
Select a Jira user (for user picker fields).
You can apply this to all relevant issues at once.
Region, Role, Department
If your process differs by location, you can set the correct value in one operation.
Description
You may refine descriptions directly on specific items—especially if some steps require extra context for a given onboarding case.
All changes remain visible in real time, so you always know what will be created.
Step 5 — Include or exclude items from the cloned structure
Not every onboarding (or recurring process) requires the same steps. For example:
- Some employees don’t need a mobile phone
- Some regions do not require medical checks
- Some teams might not be involved depending on the role or department
Clone Expert lets you deselect individual Tasks or Subtasks by checking the checkbox beside each row.
If a step is irrelevant, uncheck it. It will not be included in the final cloned structure.
Conversely, if something is missing, you can add new items from within the preview before running the clone. This ensures maximum flexibility.
Step 6 — Review cloning components
Before confirming the clone, verify that all required elements are selected: Subtasks, Attachments, Issue links, Watchers, Field values.
Clone Expert ensures all these components can be included just like with native cloning—but with significantly more control.
Step 7 — Run the clone
Once everything looks correct, select the Clone button.
Clone Expert will then generate a fully customized hierarchy according to your preview:
- Issues created in the appropriate projects
- All field modifications applied
- No leftover prefixes (like “CLONE –”)
- Clean Summaries already containing the new context
- Updated custom fields, dates, assignees, managers, regions
- Only the selected tasks included
- Attachments and links copied where applicable
Your new structure is ready to go immediately - no cleanup required.
Step 8 — Review the results
When the cloning is complete, you will receive:
- A new Epic with the correct title
- A fully cloned hierarchy of Tasks and Sub-tasks
- Issues placed in the right spaces and workflows
- Accurate field values matching your preview edits
- Clean summaries without prefixes
- A structure ready for sprint planning or backlog refinement
This makes the onboarding (or any other recurring workflow) operational instantly.
Why Clone Expert is especially valuable
Compared to native cloning, Clone Expert provides several key advantages:
- Edit everything BEFORE issues are created - No cleanup afterward—saving significant time.
- Bulk modifications across entire hierarchies - Huge time savings when working with 20, 50, or 100+ items.
- Ability to selectively clone parts of the template - Perfect for flexible processes.
- Avoids accidental sprint assignments or outdated metadata - Everything is reviewed before creation.
- Produces clean, ready-to-use structures immediately
Teams can begin work right away.
For organizations that rely heavily on templates across multiple teams, this reduces operational overhead and improves quality and consistency.
Summary
Creating and maintaining templates in Jira – using native features or enhanced tools – dramatically improves how teams manage repetitive work. Templates enhance consistency, reduce errors, and free up time for value‑adding tasks. Native Jira is sufficient for straightforward workflows, while advanced tools like Clone Expert streamline complex structures. The bottom line: templates exist to maintain quality and efficiency, not for automation's sake.
For more information and resources, see:
📘 Clonen Expert - overview and description
📖 Clonen Expert User documentation
🧩 Clone Expert for Jira on the Atlassian Marketplace
Stay Connected
If you found this guide helpful and would like to explore more content about Jira, workflow design, automation, and best practices for scaling team processes, feel free to follow me on my channels:
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See you there!
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