Projects in Productive now support a more flexible navigation system. The most important improvement is customizable tabs, allowing project layouts to better match team roles and workflows.
Only users with sufficient permissions (Project Manager and those with Add, edit, and delete projects) can modify tabs for the whole team. Staff users can use tabs but cannot rearrange or remove public tabs.
📌 Important: Even if Project Managers pin Budgets or Invoices tabs, staff users without access will not see them. Visibility of sensitive elements is still dictated by your permission set, just like in other parts of Productive.
Switching Between New and Old Navigation Layouts
During rollout, you can toggle between the new and old navigation layouts directly from a project. Use this option if:
You’re more comfortable with the previous layout.
Your team hasn’t fully transitioned yet.
You need to check how views appear in both versions.
Visual Improvements
The redesigned project layout brings a few visual changes to make navigation clearer and reduce distractions:
1) Customizable Tabs
Tabs are now fully customizable:
Only Project Managers or users with Add, edit, and delete projects permission can:
Add, pin, unpin, rearrange, rename, duplicate, or delete tabs.
Change tab visibility (public or private).
Staff users and Coordinators can:
Create private tabs visible only to themselves.
Use shared tabs without modifying them.
Quick Example
A Project Manager sets up a project with Tasks, Docs, and Budgets tabs.
They pin Tasks and Docs for everyone, but unpin Budgets to keep navigation simple.
A Staff member adds a private tab showing only their assigned tasks; this tab is visible only to them.
2) Other Visual Improvements
Favorite stars and folder icons now use the project’s color (set via Project sidebar > Edit project).
Search appears as a small magnifier icon, expanding on click.
3) Folder Picker (Tasks Only)
To help you navigate folders more efficiently, the folder picker is now available only in task-based tabs. It’s color-coded to match the project and stays out of the way in views where it isn’t needed.
Only appears in task-based tabs
Positioned on the right, styled in the project color
Not available in Docs, Budgets, Time, or other tabs
Roles and Permissions
Not everyone sees or controls the same set of tabs in a project. What’s visible and customizable depends on your role and permission level.
Users with Add, edit, and delete projects Permission
These include Admins, Managers, Restricted Managers (for projects they’re added to), Profitability Managers, and Restricted Profitability Managers (for projects they’re added to). They can:
Add new tabs to the project.
Rearrange the order of pinned tabs.
Pin or unpin tabs (pin = keep in the main navigation bar; unpin = move to All tabs dropdown).
Rename, duplicate, or delete tabs.
Change tab visibility (public or private).
📌 The Project Manager’s name appears in the upper left next to the client and project name. To change the Project Manager, open the sidebar and select Edit project.
Note on Roles vs Permission Sets
The Project Manager is a role that can be assumed by any user with a Manager, Profitability Manager, or Admin permission set.
Roles define responsibilities in a project, while permission sets determine what users can actually see and do within the system.
Staff Users and Coordinators (No Add, edit, and delete projects Permission)
These users can:
Create unlimited private tabs (visible only to them).
Use tabs shared by others but can’t modify or remove them.
See their private tabs added to the end of their navigation bar.
They cannot:
Rearrange pinned tabs.
Delete or change the visibility of tabs created by others.
Pin or unpin public tabs.
📌 Staff and Coordinators’ permissions include project access rights (e.g., “View tasks,” “Add/edit tasks”) but no project-level edit rights.
Managing Tabs
1) Adding a Tab
To add a new tab:
Click All tabs at the end of your current navigation bar.
Select + New tab.
Choose from available tab types.
Notes:
System tabs (Time, Feed, Reports) can only be added once (pinned or unpinned).
Tabs like Tasks, Docs, Deals, Budgets, Invoices or Forms can be added multiple times.
New tabs are pinned to the navigation bar if there’s space; otherwise, they appear in the All tabs dropdown.
2) Pinning, Unpinning, and Editing Tabs
Only Project managers or users with Add, edit, and delete projects permission can modify, pin/unpin, or delete public tabs.
Pinning: Keeps a tab in the main navigation bar.
Unpinning: Moves a tab to the All tabs dropdown. The tab can still be accessed in the dropdown, but it won't be featured with the pinned tabs.
All tabs dropdown groups tabs by:
Private tabs you create will be marked by a padlock icon.
Pinned: Kept in your navigation bar.
Unpinned: Not pinned to the bar.
Editing Options (available depending on permission and tab type):
Open the three-dot menu to the right of the tab name to rename, adjust filters/fields, mark as favorite, change visibility, duplicate, delete, add to favorites, get iCal link.
Edit options appear both in the tab menu and the right-hand side when editing the tab contents.
Creating a New Project
When creating a new project (or using a project template), you can choose which tabs to include by selecting their icons such as Tasks, Docs, Deals, Budgets, Invoices, Forms, Expenses, Purchase Orders, Scenarios, Time, Reports, and Feed.
Click an icon to select it, and the chosen tabs will be automatically added to your new project.
After creating the project, you can still adjust these tabs — pin, unpin, delete, or add new ones as needed. Selecting them upfront simply gives you a solid starting point.
