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Get ready for your PI Planning session

A successful PI Planning session starts before the event itself.

Updated this week

Follow this sequence!

  1. Setup/Update your org structure (Teams, ARTs)

  2. Connect your ALM-Tool / Map Teams and ARTs

  3. Configure your PI Planning Session

Not only for the first PI Planning Session, this is the sequence to follow whenever you setup a new PI Planning Session.

For RTEs, preparation is what creates clarity, reduces friction, and helps teams collaborate effectively once planning begins. piplanning.io supports that preparation by helping you get your organization structure in place, connect your ALM tool, create the session, and invite the right teams.

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Why preparation matters

When the setup is incomplete, PI Planning becomes harder than it needs to be.

Teams may lack context, tools may not be connected, and the session can start with unnecessary confusion.

Good preparation helps you:

  • create a smoother planning experience

  • reduce setup friction during the event

  • improve collaboration across teams and ARTs

  • make it easier to move from planning into execution

For you and your teams that means less time firefighting and more time facilitating the event effectively.

Step 1: Set up your organization

Start by defining the structure your teams will plan in.

This includes the core setup that makes boards, teams, and responsibilities ready for PI Planning.

A clear organization setup helps you:

  • create the right planning structure

  • reduce ambiguity for teams

  • prepare the workspace for collaboration

Step 2: Connect your ALM tool

Next, connect your ALM tool, such as Jira.

This is important because it keeps planning connected to delivery and reduces manual work after PI Planning.

Connecting your ALM tool helps you:

  • keep planning and execution in sync

  • avoid duplicate work

  • support a smoother transition into delivery

Step 3: Create your PI Planning session

Once the foundation is ready, create the PI Planning session itself.

This gives teams a shared environment for planning and helps you prepare the event structure in advance.

Creating the session helps you:

  • define the space where planning will happen

  • prepare timing and structure before the event

  • give teams a clear planning context

Step 4: Invite your teams (team members)

The final step is to invite the teams who will participate.

This ensures the right people are in the workspace early enough to prepare, collaborate, and contribute before the session starts.

Inviting teams early helps you:

  • improve readiness before the event

  • support real-time collaboration

  • reduce last-minute setup issues

Why these steps matter together

These steps work best as one preparation flow:

  • Organization setup creates the structure

  • ALM connection and especially team and ART mapping makes sure that piplanning.io knows how to sync the work items

  • PI session setup prepares the event and the PI

  • Invite teams (team members) make sure that people can join and collaborate on the boards

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