Internal Service Desk Without JSM: Build a Service Catalog in Jira

No Jira Service Management? Build an internal service catalog in Jira with one multilevel select field instead of many cascading selects.

Celina Kuziemko Nov 8, 2023

Not every organization uses Jira Service Management, yet many teams in Jira still need a service catalog: for onboarding a new employee, granting access, or purchasing equipment. Building one is easy in Jira Service Management, but in Jira alone the native cascading select field has only two levels. Here’s how to build a full catalog in a single field instead.

Service Catalog in Jira Without JSM

Anne, an HR team leader, manages a space that serves as a service desk (SD) for internal employees. Each of them has access to this project. Anne has prepared a catalog of the team’s services, with cascades and several subgroups. She handed it over to Adam, the Jira admin, who configured the work type (issue type) accordingly.

At first, Adam wanted to create several custom fields of the cascading select type with appropriate descriptions. Still, he found that this requires the creation of multiple fields that aren’t logically related to each other. On top of that, all of them must be added to the form, making it unreadable to the user. Many fields, a multitude of explanatory descriptions blur the picture. A simple request for access to a tool becomes a barrier for the employee. They lose patience and time, and in the end, the company loses money.

So now what? Now, let’s get to the proper solution.

The Flow: 5 Steps

Adam creates a multi-level select type field, which is available through our app Custom Fields Suite.
He adds it to the screens associated with work types in the service desk space.
In the app configuration, he defines a list of options at the first level.
Then, he enters the available options for each level. At times, he enters the options manually, while other times he utilizes the bulking option to import options and save time.
Since this is a multicultural company, the users use different languages. Adam also enters translations for these options in the field.

Voila! Problem solved.

Multi level field in Jira

Why It’s Worth It

Service catalog in a single field - easy management of fields. Admins don’t have to create new artificial fields, and they can implement the best Jira administration practices.
A clear, easy-to-use form for employees - a transparent and intuitive form for everyone involved.
No extra environment needed - this solution is easy to set up right into your Jira instance.