diff --git a/jenkins/create_jobs.groovy b/jenkins/create_jobs.groovy
index d71f3dcc69..f5773b0c49 100644
--- a/jenkins/create_jobs.groovy
+++ b/jenkins/create_jobs.groovy
@@ -386,6 +386,13 @@ poijobs.each { poijob ->
             steps {
                 shellEx(delegate, shellcmds, poijob)
 
+                // this is a workaround until the Gradle build can do this compilation before invoking any
+                // Ant script or when building via Ant is removed completely
+                ant {
+                    targets(['init'] + (poijob.properties ?: []))
+                    antInstallation(antRT)
+                }
+
                 gradle {
                     switches('-PenableSonar')
                     switches('-Dsonar.login=${POI_SONAR_TOKEN}')
@@ -414,6 +421,13 @@ poijobs.each { poijob ->
                 }
                 // For Jobs that should still have the default set of publishers we can configure different steps here
                 if(poijob.gradle) {
+                    // this is a workaround until the Gradle build can do this compilation before invoking any
+                    // Ant script or when building via Ant is removed completely
+                    ant {
+                        targets(['init'] + (poijob.properties ?: []))
+                        antInstallation(antRT)
+                    }
+
                     gradle {
                         tasks('check')
                         useWrapper(true)