Profit.co runs stage-gate reviews through Tollgates: a project can't advance past a stage until its checklist is 100% complete, its associated milestones show 100% progress, and the configured approvers sign off.
Table of Contents
- What Is a Tollgate in Profit.co?
- What's the Right Way to Approach a Stage-Gate Review?
- Why Does Running Stage-Gate Reviews This Way Matter?
- How Do I Run a Tollgate Review?
- What Happens When You Use Tollgates?
- What Are the Best Practices for Stage-Gate Reviews?
- Related Articles
- What Are Some Frequently Asked Questions About Stage-Gate Reviews?
What Is a Tollgate in Profit.co?
A Tollgate is a control point in a project's lifecycle where progress is formally reviewed before the project can advance to the next stage. Each tollgate stage carries its own checklist and, once submitted, routes through a configured approval sequence. Super Users can customize stage names, descriptions, and colors, and enable or disable specific stages, so the exact stage list is configurable rather than fixed.
Advancing past a stage requires two things independently: every checklist item marked complete, and every milestone associated with that stage at 100% progress. Neither one substitutes for the other.
What's the Right Way to Approach a Stage-Gate Review?
Stop a project at defined checkpoints and force a deliberate decision on whether it's ready to proceed, based on both how well it's executing and whether the actual deliverables are done, instead of letting it drift automatically into the next phase.
Why Does Running Stage-Gate Reviews This Way Matter?
Without milestone validation, a team could mark every checklist box while the underlying work is still incomplete. Profit.co blocks stage approval until associated milestones independently show 100% progress, so a checklist can't substitute for real deliverable completion.
Approval also escalates through the configured sequence automatically, for example Manager, then Department Head, then PPM Admin, so a gate review doesn't stall waiting on someone to forward an email.
How Do I Run a Tollgate Review?
Step 1: Open the Tollgate Tab
- Click on the project name, then switch to the Tollgate tab on the project overview page.
- Locate the current stage.
Step 2: Associate Milestones
- Click + Associate Milestone on the current stage.
- Select the relevant milestone and click Associate (the milestone must already exist).
- Confirm it now appears in the stage view.
Step 3: Complete the Checklist
- Click + Add Checklist to add any project-specific requirement beyond the default template, enter the description, and assign an owner.
- Mark every checklist item complete; Submit for Approval stays disabled until all items are done.
Step 4: Submit for Approval
- Once checklist and milestones are both complete, click Submit for Approval.
- If the first level is self-designated, choose your first-level approver in the pop-up and submit.
Step 5: Track the Decision
- Approvers review under Approvals → Tollgate → Received, and either approve or reject.
- Each configured level reviews in sequence, for example Manager → Department Head → PPM Admin.
- Once every level approves, the stage is marked approved and the project proceeds; a rejection at any level sends it back for revision.
What Happens When You Use Tollgates?
| Scenario | What Happens |
|---|---|
| You try to submit a stage with checklist items still incomplete. | Profit.co keeps the Submit for Approval button disabled until every checklist item is marked complete. |
| You try to submit a stage whose associated milestones aren't at 100% progress. | Profit.co blocks the stage from being approved until every associated milestone reaches 100% progress. |
| You submit a stage for approval. | Profit.co routes the request through the configured approval sequence and notifies the assigned approvers. |
| An approver rejects the stage. | Profit.co sends the project back for revision, and the resubmission goes through the full approval sequence again from the first level. |
| Every approver in the sequence approves the stage. | Profit.co marks the stage approved and the project proceeds to the next tollgate stage. |
| An approver makes a decision on a submitted stage. | Profit.co timestamps the submission and the decision, and makes that history visible on the Tollgate page. |
What Are the Best Practices for Stage-Gate Reviews?
- Associate milestones to a stage before submitting, since Profit.co won't approve a stage until its milestones independently show 100% progress.
- Complete every checklist item rather than leaving ambiguous ones for later, since the Submit for Approval button stays disabled until all items are marked done.
- Use Rule-Based routing for higher-risk or larger projects, since it escalates approvers automatically by project size, department, or type instead of relying on manual assignment.
- Address rejection feedback fully before resubmitting, since a rejected stage restarts the entire approval sequence from the first level.
- Check the Tollgate page directly for current status rather than waiting on a notification, since approval progress is visible there in real time.
Related Articles
What Are Some Frequently Asked Questions About Stage-Gate Reviews?
The project is sent back for revision, and once resubmitted it goes through the full configured approval sequence again from the first level.
No. Profit.co blocks stage approval until every milestone associated with that stage shows 100% progress.
No. Super Users can customize stage names, descriptions, and colors, and enable or disable specific stages to match the organization's methodology.
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