Workload or Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps) for an IT department?
Choose Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps) if all your work lives in Jira and you want to plan delivery and agile team capacity from issues. Choose Workload if you want IT department capacity beyond Jira: run work, non-Jira projects, leave, skills, cross-project conflicts, and executive reporting — 14-day trial, from €59/month.
Features by plan
Jira Tempo, Azure DevOps, and Toggl integrations from the Professional plan
The Starter plan includes the full trial and CSV import; native integrations start on Professional.
Compare plans →Workload vs Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps)
Jira Plans (formerly Advanced Roadmaps) is Jira's multi-team planning feature: roadmaps and capacity derived from issues. Workload is the System of Record (SoR) for IT capacity planning — plan, allocate, timesheet, govern, report.
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Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps) and Workload at a glance
| Criterion | Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps) | Workload |
|---|---|---|
| Data source | Jira issues and teams | Allocations, skills, leave, projects (Jira or not) |
| Scope | Multi-team delivery planning | Net capacity and IT portfolio |
| Non-Jira work (run, projects) | Outside its natural scope | Taken into account |
| Portfolio arbitration | Plan scenarios | What-if, conflicts, committee |
| Integration | Native Jira (Premium/Enterprise plans) | Jira Tempo, Azure DevOps, Toggl, Clockify (Professional) |
Workload is for you if…
- Part of your IT work is not in Jira (run, non-Jira projects, support)
- You want net capacity per skill, leave included, across the IT department
- Cross-project conflicts and portfolio arbitration with what-if
- Jira Tempo / Azure DevOps for planned vs actual and committee packs
Jira Plans (Advanced Roadmaps) is a better fit if…
- All work is in Jira and organized in agile teams
- You plan deliveries and dependencies from issues
- Capacity in story points or hours per team is enough
- You want to stay in the Atlassian ecosystem
Frequently asked questions
Is Jira Plans enough for IT department capacity planning?
For planning agile team deliveries in Jira, yes. For IT capacity including run work, leave, skills, and non-Jira projects, Workload complements it.
Does Workload replace Jira Plans?
No, they complement each other. Jira Plans plans delivery from issues; Workload steers net capacity and allocations.
Is Workload tied to Jira?
No, Workload runs standalone with CSV. The Jira Tempo integration is available from the Professional plan.
Does Workload offer a free trial?
Yes — 14-day free trial with no credit card at simpleworkload.com/register. CSV import on Starter (~30 minutes for first setup).
Do you need Jira to use Workload?
No. Workload runs standalone with CSV/Excel import (Starter). Jira Tempo and Azure DevOps integrations are on the Professional plan.
What IT team size is Workload built for?
CIO and IT PMO teams from 20 to 500 people. Below 15 staff Excel may suffice; from 30–50 onward a dedicated tool typically pays off quickly.
Can you migrate from Excel or an existing PPM?
Yes. Workload offers CSV/Excel, Sciforma, and MS Project migration kits with guided wizards. Most IT departments migrate teams and projects in hours.
Does Workload replace full enterprise PPM?
Not at multi-BU PPM parity. Workload is the tactical IT capacity layer (teams, allocations, conflicts, timesheet) — often alongside Sciforma/Planview or replacing Excel.
Which timesheet integrations are available?
Jira Tempo, Azure DevOps, Toggl, and Clockify (Professional plan). Workload compares planned vs actual for CIO reporting and PvA variance.
How does Workload handle intelligent allocation?
Transparent 0–100 scoring (skills ~60%, availability ~40%) with conflict detection — no opaque ML on your data. Generative AI may enrich explanatory text only.