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CharleOS is designed for efficient navigation with multiple ways to access features. This guide covers the main navigation patterns and keyboard shortcuts to help you work faster.

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Main interface layout

The CharleOS interface has three main components that work together:

Sidebar

Your main navigation menu with all features organized by section

Header

Quick access to search, Alan AI, notifications, and your profile

Main Content

The primary workspace showing dashboards, tables, forms, and data
The collapsible sidebar on the left is your main navigation hub. It’s organized into permission-based sections:

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Personal (All users)

  • Dashboard - Your personalized dashboard
  • My Schedule - Your personal schedule view
  • My Time Tracking - Log and view your time entries

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Work (Permission-based)

  • Clients - Client profiles and retainers
  • Quotes - Quote creation and approval
  • Tasks - Task management and delivery
  • Blocks - Recurring work blocks
  • Help Desk - Support tickets
  • Schedule - Team scheduling
  • Projects - Fixed-scope project management
  • RAG - Reporting and analytics

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Management (Managers)

  • Time Tracking - Team time entry oversight
  • Annual Leave - Leave request management

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Reports (Managers)

  • Executive - High-level metrics
  • Financial - Revenue and profitability
  • Operations - Delivery and efficiency
  • Capacity Planning - Resource forecasting
  • And more specialized reports…
The sidebar can be collapsed to icon-only mode by clicking the collapse button at the bottom. This gives you more screen space while keeping navigation accessible.

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Header bar

The header at the top provides quick access to global features:

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Command Menu (⌘K)

Click the search button or press ⌘K (Mac) / Ctrl+K (Windows) to open the command menu - your fastest way to find anything.

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Alan AI Assistant

Click the sparkles icon to open Alan, your AI assistant for:
  • Scheduling help and recommendations
  • Data queries in natural language
  • Documentation questions

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Active Tasks (Delivery Team)

Quick access button to view and start/stop time tracking on your active tasks.

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Notifications

Bell icon shows unread notifications. Click to view:
  • Task assignments
  • Quote requests
  • Schedule changes
  • System updates

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Theme Toggle

Switch between light, dark, and system theme preferences.

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User Menu

Click your avatar to access:
  • Settings - Profile and notification preferences
  • Notifications - Full notification history
  • Annual Leave - Request and view leave
  • Log out - Sign out of CharleOS

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Command menu (⌘K)

The command menu is the fastest way to navigate and search CharleOS.

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How to use it

  1. Open: Press ⌘K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows), or click the search button
  2. Type: Start typing to search across all entities
  3. Select: Use arrow keys or mouse to select a result
  4. Go: Press Enter to navigate to that item
The command menu searches across:
  • Clients - Find any client by name
  • Tasks - Search tasks by title or ID
  • Quotes - Find quotes by title or client
  • Projects - Locate projects
  • Users - Find team members
  • Help Desk Tickets - Search support tickets
  • And more…

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Ask Alan from command menu

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Type your question in the command menu and select “Ask Alan” to get AI-powered help.
The command menu remembers your recent searches for quick access to frequently viewed items.

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Keyboard shortcuts

Master these shortcuts to navigate CharleOS like a pro:
ShortcutAction
⌘K / Ctrl+KOpen command menu
⌘/ / Ctrl/Focus search
EscClose dialogs/modals
?Show keyboard shortcuts help (if available)
More keyboard shortcuts are being added. Press ? in the future to see a full list.

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Dashboard navigation (Managers)

If you’re a manager, your dashboard includes a tabbed interface to switch between different views:

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Dashboard tabs

  • Agency Dashboard - Agency-wide metrics and team scheduling
  • Department Dashboards - Separate tabs for Design, Development, New Business, Operations
  • Individual Dashboard - Your personal dashboard (if you have a work type)
Click between tabs to switch contexts without leaving the dashboard page.

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Role-based navigation

Your navigation is customized based on your role and work type:

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Delivery Team

See: Personal navigation and Work features

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Project Managers

See: Personal + Work + some Management features

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Customer Success Managers

See: Personal + Work features, client-focused views

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Managers

See: Personal + Work + Management + Reports
If you can’t see a feature mentioned in the documentation, you may not have the required permissions. Contact your manager if you need access.

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Tips for efficient navigation

Use Command Menu First

Before clicking through menus, try ⌘K to search - it’s almost always faster

Bookmark Common Pages

Use browser bookmarks for pages you visit daily (your dashboard, time tracking, etc.)

Collapse the Sidebar

Collapse the sidebar when viewing tables or forms to maximize screen space

Ask Alan for Help

If you can’t find something, ask Alan “Where do I find X?” and he’ll guide you

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Next steps

Meet Alan

Learn what you can ask your AI assistant

Time Tracking

Start logging time against your tasks

Schedule

Explore the scheduling system

Tasks

Learn how to manage and deliver tasks