The Cockpit is Profit.co's executive dashboard for PPM. It lets you build a customized view of your portfolio using drag-and-drop widgets, and control exactly who gets to see each dashboard you create.
Table of Contents
What is the Cockpit?
The Cockpit is Profit.co's centralized command center for PPM, letting project managers and portfolio owners monitor performance metrics across multiple projects from a single dashboard. It brings together project progress, resource utilization, financial health, and risk data so leaders can make informed decisions without switching between modules.
You customize a Cockpit by organizing it into folders and subfolders, then adding widgets to each subfolder. Widgets in the Customize Subfolder window are organized under these categories:
- Project Insights
- Task Insights
- Resource Management
- Execution Tracking
- Custom Insights
Widgets also carry labels that help you identify their purpose:
| Label | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Best Practices | Represents essential metrics based on proven success methods. |
| Recommended | Tailored suggestions based on user behavior and team goals. |
| New | Highlights the latest additions to the platform. |
Note
Cockpits also exist at the project and portfolio level, not only the organization-wide Cockpit reached from Portfolios and Projects → Cockpit. Each level surfaces the same kind of widgets, scoped to that project or portfolio.
Why Does the Cockpit Matter?
Without a shared Cockpit, leaders typically had to open each project or portfolio individually, or wait for someone to compile a status report, to see budget, risk, and progress together. The Cockpit consolidates project progress, resource utilization, financial health, and risk into one dashboard, so a portfolio owner sees the full picture without switching between modules.
Because widgets pull live data and dashboards can be scoped by visibility setting, a PMO team can build one operational Cockpit for itself and a separate, simpler Cockpit for executives from the same set of widgets, rather than maintaining two disconnected reporting processes.
How Does the Cockpit Work?
Step 1: Open the Cockpit
- Navigate to Portfolios and Projects → Cockpit from the left navigation panel.
Step 2: Start Customizing
- Click the Customize button.
Step 3: Create a Folder and Subfolder
- Click the + icon beside the folder list to create a new folder.
- An untitled subfolder automatically appears beneath the new folder.
Step 4: Add Widgets to the Subfolder
- In the Customize Subfolder window, browse widgets under Project Insights, Task Insights, Resource Management, Execution Tracking, and Custom Insights.
- Click Add Custom Widget to build a personalized chart or metric, or select an existing widget to add it.
Step 5: Remove Widgets You Don't Need
- Use the Remove button next to any widget to hide it from your dashboard.
Step 6: Set Who Can View the Dashboard
- Choose a visibility setting for the dashboard: Public, Private, or Access List.
What Happens When You Use the Cockpit?
The table below covers the confirmed effects of adding, removing, and sharing Cockpit widgets and dashboards. It does not repeat the build steps above.
| Scenario | What Happens |
|---|---|
| You add a widget to your Cockpit dashboard. | Profit.co displays the metric or chart on your dashboard and keeps it updated automatically as underlying project data changes; adding a widget does not alter any project data itself. |
| You click Remove on a widget in your Cockpit dashboard. | Profit.co hides that widget from your dashboard view; the underlying project data it displayed remains unaffected. |
| You set a dashboard's visibility to Public. | Profit.co makes that dashboard accessible to every user in the organization. |
| You set a dashboard's visibility to Private. | Profit.co restricts that dashboard to the owner or creator only. |
| You set a dashboard's visibility to Access List. | Profit.co shares that dashboard only with the specific users or groups you assign as the owner. |
What Summary Cards Does the Cockpit Show?
Summary Cards appear at the top of your Cockpit dashboard and give quick, at-a-glance insight into key portfolio metrics. The confirmed available cards are:
- Projects Aligned to strategic objectives (count)
- Actual spend
- Forecast cost
- IRR (Internal Rate of Return)
- NPV (Net Present Value)
- Payback Period
- Plan
- Return Ratio
- Total Budget of Aligned Projects
What Are the Best Practices for the Cockpit?
- Because widgets are grouped under Project Insights, Task Insights, Resource Management, Execution Tracking, and Custom Insights, pick from the category matching your audience's question first rather than browsing the full widget list, to build a focused dashboard faster.
- Since Remove only hides a widget rather than deleting any underlying data, experiment freely with different widget combinations. Nothing is lost if you decide to bring a widget back later.
- Because visibility is set per dashboard rather than per widget, decide who the dashboard is for before building it. A Public dashboard meant for executives and a Private operational dashboard for your own tracking need to be built as separate subfolders.
- Since widgets are labeled Best Practices, Recommended, or New, filter by label when you're unsure which widgets to start with instead of adding every available widget to one dashboard.
- Because Custom Insights lets you build a personalized chart or metric, reach for Add Custom Widget when none of the pre-built widgets in the other four categories match what a stakeholder actually asks for.
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What Are Some Frequently Asked Questions About the Cockpit?
Yes. You can filter widgets by label, Best Practices, Recommended, or New, to quickly find the most relevant tools for your dashboard.
Yes. You can create multiple folders and subfolders within the Cockpit, each with its own widget selection and visibility setting, so different stakeholders see a dashboard built for them.
A folder is the top-level container you create with the + icon. Profit.co automatically creates an untitled subfolder beneath it, and that subfolder is where the Customize Subfolder window lets you actually add and arrange widgets.
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