January 24, 2024 Revolutionize how innovation happens with Topcoder’s New Jira Integration

A recent study by Microsoft reports that there’s a big discrepancy between the productivity levels employees and managers are reporting at work. While a majority (87%) of employees are reporting that they are productive at work, 85% of managers say that they find it challenging to have confidence that employees are being productive. Among the reasons is the lack of oversight and visibility into what their teams are doing, which is only amplified by the remote and hybrid work environments we now live in.

Studies have shown that many employees are struggling to prove they are working effectively by increasing their number of meetings, working longer days, and spending more time online. A telling example is that online meetings have gone up by as much as 153% on Microsoft Teams since the beginning of the pandemic, resulting in double bookings and screen fatigue. As a result, employees across various industries are battling feelings of burnout and disengagement at work, symptoms that we now know are linked to widely covered changes in the labor market lately, such as quiet quitting.

The same Microsoft study shows that only 12% of managers fully trust that employees are getting things done efficiently, and they worry about the productivity of their teams, even though there are indications that productivity and efficiency remain high despite a distributed workforce. A phenomenon aptly named productivity paranoia, where leaders fear that lost productivity is due to employees not working, even though hours worked, the number of meetings, and other activity metrics have increased.

Does your organization suffer from productivity paranoia?

While productivity remains high and in some instances has gone up in the United States according to The US Bureau of Labor Statistics, managers are not feeling the same way. One possible solution to the conundrum is to pivot from focusing on productivity alone, and instead focus on the prioritization of tasks. Cultivating a culture of trust where feedback is shared frequently and openly can help with that. It can also be crucial to understand your team’s background, skills, and career aspirations to know when to delegate an assignment and when to outsource it.

To help their teams avoid burnout and boost morale a recent article by Deloitte reveals that more organizations than ever are relying on external talent and fractional employees (even executive leaders) to get work done in areas where their team isn’t as skilled or doesn’t have time. This is especially true in IT and technology industries, where emerging technologies and AI and machine learning innovations are making it difficult to keep up even for the most tech-savvy among us.  

Let your team focus on work they care about.

At Topcoder we’ve been invested in the future of work for over 22 years, and the challenge model is our tried and tested model for getting quality work done. If you are a frequent reader of our blog you are probably familiar with how the challenge model works. If not, it can best be described as a way of mining the minds of the best problem solvers around the world to come up with a tangible solution to your problem. Simply put, the challenge model presents your assignment as a challenge and lets skilled professionals in our community compete to come up with the best solution to fit your needs.

So how does this help your team? We have come up with a way to allow work managers to easily clear out distracting tasks, so that their team can focus on the task they care about. Our latest offering includes integration with Atlassian’s Jira work management software. Jira is a common and widely used productivity tool organizations use to plan, collaborate, and deliver work. Our Jira app allows you to launch  work directly from Jira to the Topcoder expert community. Through comprehensive AI assistance, It defines and evaluates your work, plus recommends the ideal price range to attract the best Topcoder talent. Once launched your work is immediately sent to our community of 2 Million talented experts, and you receive several high-quality solutions within days. Your team stays focused and happy working on their favorite projects.

Three ways to benefit from Topcoder’s Jira Integration

With the new Topcoder Jira integration, project managers can stay organized with visibility into their externally sourced work, set budget caps and invite additional team managers to set up external work. Similarly, work managers can identify exceptional Topcoder talent they may want to add to their personalized talent pool for future assignments.

Benefits include:

• Easy management in a tool you already know and use 
• Immediate and unobstructed access to Topcoder’s talent pool of over 2 Million members
• Simplified time and cost recommendations for your work before you commit

We’re excited to help our customers alleviate productivity concerns, and believe it’s a step in the right direction by effectively boosting your internal team through incorporating external talent.  

Join Topcoder’s Beta Program

Right now we are looking for our next cohort of Beta Testers. As a Beta Tester, you will be the first one to try out Topcder’s Jira Integration.

Is It Right For Me? If you or your team have been using Jira effectively for agile project management for over a year, you are the perfect candidate for our Beta Program.

What You Will Get Out Of It: Early access to a groundbreaking platform, an opportunity to shape the development of the platform, exclusive training and support during the beta phase, and more.

Our Ask: Your honest feedback, insights, and suggestions. We are particularly interested in understanding how our platform can better serve teams like yours in fostering innovation and collaboration. Customer case study and/or customer testimonials at the end of the project.

How to Join: To ensure a seamless and personalized experience, please email us directly at sales@topcoder.com and a customer success manager will guide you through the next steps.