End User - Dropdown Lists

Dropdown Lists are one of the most fundamental configuration building blocks in Cora PPM. They are centrally managed, reusable pools of selectable options that administrators define once and then assign to Smart Form fields across many different parts of the system. Instead of typing free text into a field, users pick from a controlled, consistent set of choices — making data entry faster and ensuring that reporting and filtering work reliably across the platform.

Why they are important:

1. Consistency and data quality. Because every user in the system picks from the same defined list, field values are always standardised. This prevents misspellings, synonyms, and variations that would otherwise break grouping, filtering, and reporting.

2. System-wide reusability. A single Dropdown List can be attached to multiple smart form fields. The same "Project Priority" list, for example, can be used on Smart Forms, Project Registers, Risks, and Actions simultaneously. Any update to the list is reflected everywhere it is used.

3. Broad coverage across modules. Dropdown Lists can be assigned to an "Area," making them available within specific modules: Projects, Smart Forms (Custom Details), Risks, Actions, Project Registers, Benefits, KPIs, Tasks, Documents, Cost Book, Kanban Board, Users, Rate Matrix, CRM Contacts, and Companies. An "All" area makes a list universally available.

4. Rich item-level configuration. Individual items within a list can be coloured (for visual distinction in grids and forms), decorated with small icons/images, conditionally hidden using formulas, and ordered either manually (by drag-and-drop) or automatically (alphabetical sort). This makes the UI significantly more informative without writing custom code.

5. Cascading (hierarchical) Dropdowns. The system supports building parent-child cascading relationships between two or more Dropdown Lists, so that the selection in one list filters the available options in the next — e.g. selecting a "Category" first narrows the choices in a "Sub-Category" dropdown.

6. Multi-Column Dropdown Lists. A Dropdown List can be extended with up to four additional named columns per item, allowing each option to carry rich metadata that can be displayed in a grid or referenced in formulas.

7. Auditability. Every creation, update, deletion — both of the list itself and of individual items — is logged in the system's configuration history, giving administrators a full trail of who changed what and when.

8. Integration via API. The REST API exposes full CRUD for Dropdown Lists and their items, cascading lists, and linked-list definitions, enabling external systems and import tools to manage lists programmatically.