What is a Tollgate in the PPM in Profit.co?

The Tollgate feature in Profit.Co’s Project Portfolio Management (PPM) module acts as a structured checkpoint system that ensures each stage of a project is reviewed, validated, and approved before proceeding. It enhances project governance, quality control, and accountability throughout the project lifecycle.

What is a Tollgate in Project Management?

A Tollgate is a control point or milestone within a project where progress is formally reviewed, and a decision is made on whether the project can proceed to the next stage.

In the Profit.co PPM module, each tollgate represents a defined stage in the project lifecycle. Passing through a tollgate typically requires either:

• Approval from designated stakeholders, or
• Completion of a checklist confirming all stage deliverables are met.

Each tollgate acts as a quality gate, ensuring that key deliverables, reviews, and sign-offs are completed before advancing. This helps maintain control, reduce risks, and ensure consistent project delivery standards.

Why this feature?

Tollgates provide structure, transparency, and governance to project execution. They help organizations manage projects efficiently by enforcing a consistent review and approval process.

By implementing Tollgates, teams can:

• Gain stage-wise visibility into project progress.
• Conduct quality and compliance checks before moving to the next phase.
• Maintain controlled progression, ensuring no steps are skipped.
• Make data-driven decisions at each project stage.
• Establish standardized delivery frameworks across portfolios.
• Align project execution with overall business strategy, ensuring every milestone contributes to strategic objectives.

Who Can Use or Monitor Tollgates?

Note: When multiple approvers exist, the first approver’s confirmation is marked as “Approved”, while subsequent approvers see “Auto Approved”, indicating automatic system validation.

How to Set Up a Tollgate in a Project

Follow the steps below to create, configure, and apply a Tollgate sequence within the PPM module.

Step 1: Navigate to the Tollgate Section

To create a new tollgate sequence, navigate to Portfolios and Projects → All Projects from the left navigation panel.

On the All Projects page, switch to the Tollgate tab and click the Create button.

Step 2: Create a Tollgate Sequence

• Enter a Sequence Name for your Tollgate.
• Enable or disable specific stages based on your project’s needs.
• Click Create to save the new sequence.

Note: You can configure custom fields for each tollgate stage using the Master Layout option.

These custom fields capture stage-specific information and appear only when that stage is active in the sequence.

You can also add the approval flow and checklist for each stage of the tollgate completion.

Step 3: Add Tollgate Stages

• To add a new stage, click + Create under the tollgate sequence.
• Enter details such as Stage Name, Description, and any relevant notes.
• Click Save to finalize the stage setup.

Note: You can create a checklist for each stage by clicking the Add Checklist button.

This ensures all mandatory activities are verified before the stage is marked as complete.

Step 4: Use the Tollgate in Project Creation

Once your tollgate sequence is ready, you can apply it when creating new projects.

• Navigate to Portfolios and Projects → All Projects.
• Click the + Create Project button.
• Enter the required project details.
• Under Tollgate Sequence, select the desired tollgate you created.
• Click Add, then Create.

Note: Tollgates help you control project stage transitions directly from project setup.

Step 5: Monitor and Move Between Tollgates

• To view a project’s tollgates, click the project name and switch to the Tollgate tab.
• Complete all checklist items within the current stage.
• Once all requirements are met, click Move to Next Tollgate.

Note: Milestone statuses in PPM can auto-update based on progress, with optional tollgate validation to ensure accurate sequencing and reduce manual effort.

The new Export Tollgates as PDF option in the project’s Tollgates section now includes all completed stages along with the current active stage.

Best Practices for Using Tollgates

• Use Tollgates to maintain consistent review and approval workflows.
• Assign clear approvers for each stage to prevent bottlenecks.
• Configure custom fields for data capture at each stage.
• Regularly review tollgate configurations to align with project governance policies.
• Associate milestones with tollgates for better visibility of project health.

Related Questions

How to create a Project in the PPM module,Click here

How to create a Project Request in the PPM module,Click here

Frequently Asked Questions