Patent ID: 7996774

Claim:
A method for providing access to project planning information in a virtual collaboration environment, comprising: receiving a credential information associated with a user of the virtual collaboration environment via a request from a web application, wherein the request comprises a command associated with the virtual collaboration environment wrapped in a web service envelope including the credential information; wherein the virtual collaboration environment comprises a given project; wherein the given project comprises a stored object associated with project status information stored by a content management system; determining, based at least in part on the credential information, a level of a user; returning a web service response to provide the user within the virtual collaboration environment access to a hierarchical dashboard, wherein: a project level dashboard enables a project level user to: 1. comment on the status of the given project; and 2. view other comments associated with the given project; an executive level dashboard enables a program manager level user to: 1. comment on the status of the given project; 2. comment on the status of a second project, wherein the given project and the second project are both associated with a specific program associated with the program manager; 3. view other comments associated with the given project or the second project; and 4. view details of the project level dashboard associated with the given project or a second project level dashboard associated with the second project; and an administrator level dashboard enables an administrator level user to: 1. comment on any project in the virtual collaboration environment; 2. view other comments associated with any project in the virtual collaboration environment; 3. select and deselect the given project to be tracked for the specific program; and 4. customize and view details of the executive level dashboard and project level dashboard; and wherein every comment is stored with version control by the content management system.