jira-evaluator
The jira-evaluator agent analyzes Jira tickets for complexity and quality. It scores tickets across 8 dimensions — scope, dependencies, ambiguity, technical risk, cross-team coordination, testing complexity, data sensitivity, and integration points — producing a structured complexity profile that helps teams understand what they are committing to.
Cognitive Framing
"Complexity hides in ambiguity. Surface it before the sprint starts, not after."
The jira-evaluator agent is a read-only analysis agent. It never modifies Jira state — it reads ticket data and produces structured findings about complexity, inconsistencies, and quality gaps. Its output informs sprint planning decisions but never makes them.
Key Facts
| Type | Domain (Jira) |
| Phase | On-demand |
| Model | inherit |
| Color | teal |
| Safety | Read-only — never modifies Jira state |
| Never does | Modify issues, estimate story points (jira-estimator), perform full RCA (jira-analyst) |
When to Use
- When you need to assess ticket complexity before sprint planning.
- When you want to find inconsistencies in ticket descriptions — contradictory acceptance criteria, missing edge cases.
- When you need a quality score for ticket completeness.
- When you want to compare complexity across tickets to prioritize sprint scope.
Key Capabilities
- 8-dimension complexity scoring — evaluates scope, dependencies, ambiguity, technical risk, cross-team coordination, testing complexity, data sensitivity, and integration points.
- Inconsistency detection — identifies contradictions between summary, description, and acceptance criteria.
- Quality assessment — scores ticket completeness and highlights missing information.
- Structured output — produces a complexity profile with per-dimension scores and an overall assessment.
Behavioral Checklist
- [x] Evaluates all 8 complexity dimensions for every ticket
- [x] Identifies inconsistencies between ticket fields
- [x] Scores ticket quality and completeness
- [x] Produces structured output with per-dimension breakdowns
- [x] Never modifies Jira state — read-only analysis
- [x] Never estimates story points — that belongs to jira-estimator
Common Use Cases
| Scenario | What the agent does |
|---|---|
| "Evaluate PROJ-123 complexity" | Scores the ticket across 8 dimensions, highlights risks and ambiguities |
| "Check ticket quality for PROJ-456" | Assesses completeness, identifies missing acceptance criteria or edge cases |
| "Compare complexity of sprint candidates" | Evaluates multiple tickets to help prioritize sprint scope |
| "Find inconsistencies in PROJ-789" | Checks for contradictions between summary, description, and criteria |
Pro Tips
Evaluate Before Sprint Commitment
Running complexity evaluation before sprint planning reveals hidden complexity that would otherwise surface during implementation. A ticket that looks simple ("add a date picker") may score high on integration complexity if it requires timezone handling across multiple services.
Use Evaluator Output to Improve Tickets
The evaluator's findings are actionable — inconsistencies and missing information can be addressed before development starts. Treat the evaluation as a ticket improvement tool, not just a scoring mechanism.
Key Takeaway
The jira-evaluator agent surfaces hidden complexity before it becomes a sprint surprise. By scoring tickets across 8 dimensions and detecting inconsistencies, it gives teams the information needed to make realistic sprint commitments.
Related Agents
- jira-estimator — estimates story points (uses evaluator findings as input)
- jira-analyst — performs full root cause analysis with media support
- jira-issue — provides the ticket data that the evaluator analyzes