Phase Gate Criteria Tool
Interactive Quality Control and Decision Support System
When to Use Phase Gate Controls
Phase gate methodology provides systematic quality control at critical project decision points. Use phase gates when you need:
✅ Critical Gate Control Scenarios:
- • High-risk projects requiring quality checkpoints
- • Large investments needing stage-wise validation
- • Regulatory environments demanding compliance verification
- • Complex projects with multiple stakeholder approval needs
- • Resource-constrained environments requiring careful planning
- • Previous project failures due to insufficient quality control
🎯 Key Benefits:
- • Systematic risk mitigation at each phase
- • Clear go/no-go decision criteria
- • Stakeholder alignment and approval tracking
- • Quality assurance checkpoints
- • Resource optimization through stage gates
- • Audit trail for governance compliance
Interactive Phase Gate Assessment
Use this tool to evaluate your project's readiness to proceed through each phase gate. Adjust criteria scores to see real-time impact on gate decisions.
1
Project Initiation
86%
2
Requirements Approval
84%
3
Development Complete
80%
4
Testing Complete
86%
5
Project Closure
88%
Gate 1: Project Initiation
Business case approval and project charter validation
Overall Score
86%
✅ APPROVED
90%
85%
80%
85%
88%
Standard Phase Gate Framework
| Phase | Exit Criteria | Approval Required | Key Deliverables |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initiation | Business case approved, charter signed, team assigned | Executive Sponsor, PMO | Project Charter, Initial Risk Register |
| Planning | Requirements complete, design approved, plan baselined | Stakeholders, Architecture Board | Requirements Document, Project Plan |
| Execution | Development complete, unit tests pass, integration ready | Technical Lead, Quality Assurance | Working Software, Test Results |
| Testing | All tests pass, UAT approved, performance validated | Business Users, Operations | Test Reports, User Acceptance |
| Closure | Production deployed, support transferred, lessons captured | Operations, Executive Sponsor | Deployment Report, Lessons Learned |
🎯 Implementation Best Practices
- • Define clear, measurable exit criteria for each phase
- • Establish approval authority matrix with escalation paths
- • Create standardized gate review templates and checklists
- • Schedule regular gate review meetings with key stakeholders
- • Document decisions and rationale for audit trails
- • Implement consistent scoring methodology across projects
- • Train teams on gate criteria and review processes
⚠️ Common Pitfalls to Avoid
- • Rubber-stamp approvals without thorough review
- • Inconsistent criteria application across projects
- • Lack of clear decision-making authority
- • Overly complex or bureaucratic gate processes
- • Insufficient stakeholder engagement in reviews
- • Missing documentation of gate decisions
- • Proceeding with inadequate exit criteria completion