Driving user adoption and leading change when moving from Jira to OpenProject

When organizations decide to migrate from Jira to OpenProject, the initial focus often lies on technical aspects such as data transfer or use case mapping. While these elements are essential, I consistently observe that the greatest challenge is not technological. The real success factor is organization’s ability to navigate change initiatives and guiding people on their journey of change.

Co-creating the future way of working

At OpenProject, we approach migrations with the understanding that it’s success depends on thoughtful change management. Rather than imposing a new system, we work with organizations to co-create their future within OpenProject. This starts with:

• Identifying stakeholders and understanding their way of working, their needs, processes and pains.
• Mapping the use cases that shape their daily work.
• Translating existing workflows into OpenProject wherever possible and,
• Exploring the underlying needs together, when no direct equivalent exists.

At OpenProject we approach product development with a very user-centric mindset. Whenever I guide companies in the migration process from Jira to OpenProject, I always try to involve the real users from the very beginning. I go on my users’ island and try to understand their needs. I do mean “needs” and not solutions. It is not user’s but our product teams’ responsibility to define a solution based on users needs. Through rapid prototyping methods, our teams provide tangible solutions and validate them with users. This iterative and collaborative process fosters ownership, builds trust, and naturally creates internal advocates for the new platform. It helps us to define solutions, which really address users’ needs.

Our product development is fully transparent. You can read each single acceptance criteria we define for our user stories. We actively seek feedback from our users. Using an open source product gives you the opportunity to shape the product together with us. Our community matters.

Leading change from closed source to open source

We also recognize the importance of change leadership throughout the transition. Successful change leaders listen with intent, remain curious, and treat feedback as valuable input. Creating psychological safety allows users to openly share concerns and ideas.

To further strengthen adoption, we usually encourage the development of internal champion networks. Identifying early adopters and empowering them to support their peers builds momentum across teams. Involving decision-makers early ensures alignment and sustained sponsorship. Leading change is a team sport, no matter if we talk about a 50 people team or a 150 000 people organization.

In case you would like to deep dive into the topic of leading change from closed source to open source, I recently explored this topic within a talk at FOSDEM.

Starting the transition in practice

A practical way to begin the transition is through a proof of concept (PoC) with selected teams, ideally representing key target groups.

To understand what moving from Jira to OpenProject really means, we often recommend a use case analysis. By mapping key scenarios from Jira to their OpenProject equivalents, organizations gain transparency into potential solutions, gaps, and define mitigation strategies. This structured approach transforms migration planning into a constructive, tangible and solution-oriented process. The feedback from such processes is essential for our roadmap planning and gives organizations a possibility to co-create OpenProject together with us based on their needs.

We guide users on their change journey, among others by providing customizable onboarding and training sessions. Short and focused training sessions are typically sufficient. We support organizations also with tailored enablement formats, combining administrator training on configuration and workflows with team-level sessions for daily usage and role-based training where needed.

As processes and needs become clearer, we guide teams in translating workflows and needs from Jira to OpenProject. Throughout this phase, responsive support channels and helpdesks ensure that questions are addressed quickly and confidence continues to grow.

Conclusion: From proof of concept, through migration to confident adoption

Change can be scary. Ultimately, a successful migration is not defined by completed data transfer, but by the moment teams feel confident and productive in their new workspace. By prioritizing co-creation, targeted enablement, and transparent communication, we help organizations turn a potentially challenging change initiative into an opportunity to further strengthen team collaboration and fully realize the value of OpenProject and open source.

You can co-create the future of tech if you contribute to open source products. Especially if you are decider, you can make the change happen. Start the transition to open source, but prepare it well. You don’t have to and you shouldn’t do it alone. Co-create the future together with us and your colleagues. Digital sovereignty isn’t built with code alone - it’s built with people who believe in it.

And remember… You’re not just migrating software - you’re building democracy and freedom for future generations.