--- title: Intake Management explained description: "Methodology # Intake Management Capture new project requests through gated templates, send each gate to the approvers your policy names, and promote approved requests to projects, all from one place. Project intake gives your organisation a formal front door for…" url: "https://www.completix.com/docs/intake-management/" updated: "2026-10-30" category: Methodology --- # Intake Management explained Methodology # Intake Management Capture new project requests through gated templates, send each gate to the approvers your policy names, and promote approved requests to projects, all from one place. Project intake gives your organisation a formal front door for new work. Every request starts from a **request template**. A template splits the request into **gates**, and each gate is a form of its own. The requester fills in one gate at a time and submits it for approval. When a gate is approved, the next one opens. After the final gate is approved, the request can be promoted to a project. This lets you ask for a little information first and more only when an idea earns it. A quick idea screen can come before the business case, and the business case before the funding. Projects in Completix are created from approved intake requests. If you need a new project, start with a request. **Customer Portal Redesign**Requested Mar 2 by R. ChenOpenAll gates Gates **0 of 4 approved**Day 1 **Idea screen**Ready to submit 2**Business case**Opens after gate 1 3**Funding**Opens after gate 2 4**Readiness**Opens after gate 3 **Idea screen**Tell us about the ideaReady to submit **The idea**All required answered Project name ***Customer Portal Redesign Problem ***Customers cannot self-serve account changes SponsorMAM. Adeyemi Rough cost$600,000 to $700,000 Next gate: Business case DetailsCommentsHistory Requested byRCR. Chen Requested onMar 2, 2026 Line of businessRetail TemplateDigital Initiative PolicyVersion 3 **Gate submission required**Submit this gate for approval when it is readySubmit for approval A new request on its first gate. The gate list on the left shows progress, the form is in the middle, and the Details panel on the right shows the template and policy version the request follows. ## Submitting a Request 1. Click **New Project Request** on the Intake board and choose the template that matches your kind of request. 2. Complete the first gate. Required fields are marked with a red asterisk. Each section shows **All required answered** once its required fields are filled. 3. Click **Submit for approval**. The gate goes to the approvers your approval policy names for that gate. 4. When the gate is approved, the next gate opens. Use **Next gate** at the bottom of the form, or pick the gate from the list on the left, and repeat. Gates that are not open yet are shown with a lock and the note **Opens after gate N**. You can open **All gates** to read every gate of the request at once. Some fields only appear when another answer calls for them. For example, a **Vendor quotes** field may only appear when Sourcing is set to External vendor. This is set in the template, see [Field settings](#cx-fields). Use the **Comments** tab to explain anything the form does not capture. Comments stay on the request, so approvers at later gates can read them too. ## Reviewing a Gate When a gate is submitted, every approver the policy names for that gate reviews it. When a rule names more than one approver, they review in parallel and the gate is approved only when all of them approve. Each approver chooses one of three outcomes: | Action | What happens | | --- | --- | | **Approve** | Once every named approver approves, the gate is approved and the next gate opens. After the final gate, the request can be promoted to a project. | | **Need more info** | The gate goes back to the requester. Comments from the approver are visible on the request, and the requester can update the gate and submit it again. | | **Reject** | The request is closed. Add the reason in the comments before rejecting. | Every submission and decision is recorded with who acted and when. Open the **History** tab on the request to see the full trail. ### Phase ends A gate can be set to end a phase. When it is approved, it sets a status on the request, for example Qualified, and opens the gates of the next phase instead of leading straight to a project. This is useful when ideas are qualified long before anyone commits funding. ## Funding at a Gate A gate can include a **Budget plan**, so funding is requested and approved before the project exists. The budget plan works the same way as funding on a project: 1. Enter the approved budget split into **Capex** and **Opex**. 2. Click **Add fiscal year** to spread the budget across fiscal years. The unallocated amount shows what is left to assign. 3. For each fiscal year, assign the funds and pick the envelope they come from, then submit the funding request. 4. A funding manager approves the funding request. Each fiscal year shows its funding status. **Budget** Approved budget$640,000Capex ***$500,000Opex ***$140,000 **FY2026**Not fundedCapex$300,000Opex$80,000$380,000 **FY2027**Not fundedCapex$200,000Opex$60,000$260,000 Add fiscal year · $0 unallocated A budget plan on the Funding gate, split across two fiscal years. Each fiscal year shows its funding status. If the template turns on **Wait for funding approval** for a gate, that gate stays open until every funding request on it is approved. Completix never releases funds on its own, a funding manager always decides. ## Promoting a Request to a Project Once the final gate is approved, the request can be promoted to a project. The request and its full history stay available, so anyone can later see how the project was approved, gate by gate. ## Building Request Templates Each type of request has its own template. A template is a form you build gate by gate. Each gate holds one or more sections, and each section holds rows of fields. 1. Click **Add gate** to add a gate, then name it and give it a short description. 2. Inside the gate, add sections, then use **Add row** and **+ Field** to place fields from your custom field library. 3. In **Gate settings**, choose how the gate's sections appear to the requester: **All on one page** or **One at a time**, with each section as its own step. 4. Turn on **Wait for funding approval** if the gate should stay open until its funding requests are approved. 5. Set the gate's approvers under **Approval policy**, see [Approval Policies](#cx-policy). 6. Use **Preview** to check the form as a requester will see it, then click **Publish**. **Digital Initiative**Published Mar 1Published v3PreviewPublish 4 gates 1**Idea screen**1 section · 4 fields 2**Business case**1 section · 5 fields 3**Funding**1 section · 1 field 4**Readiness**2 sections · 5 fields Add gate **Business case**Second gate, for ideas that passed the screen **The case**Description, optional T**Benefits**Text · This template* **Strategic fit**Scorecard · Shared $**Budget breakdown**Budget breakdown · Shared* **Vendor quotes**Document · This template + Field + Add row Gate settings Sections **All on one page**Every section in one scroll **One at a time**Each section is its own step **Wait for funding approval**The gate stays open until every funding request is approved Approval policy+ Add rule Default Approvers1 Rule 12 Remove gate The template builder. Gates are listed on the left, the selected gate's sections and fields are in the middle, and the gate's settings and approvers are on the right. ### Field settings Click any field in the builder to open its settings: | Setting | What it does | | --- | --- | | **Name** | The label the requester sees. | | **Help text** | A short hint shown with the field. | | **Layout** | How wide the field is in its row: Small, Medium, or Large. | | **Required** | The requester must fill the field before submitting the gate. | | **Visibility** | Show the field only when another field has a given value. Click **Add condition** to add one. | **Vendor quotes**Document · This template× NameVendor quotesHelp textAttach at least two quotes Layout SmallMediumLarge **Required**The requester must fill this field before submitting the gate **Visibility**Add condition Sourcing IsExternal vendor Delete fieldDone Field settings for Vendor quotes. The field is required, and only shows when Sourcing is External vendor. Under each field's name, the builder shows its type and where it comes from: | Label | Meaning | | --- | --- | | **Fixed** | A built-in field, such as Project name, Customer, or Fiscal year. | | **Shared** | A custom field from your site's field library, which other templates can use too. | | **This template** | A field that belongs to this template only. | ### Template versions Each time you publish, the template gets a new version, shown as **Published vN**. Requests already in progress stay on the version they started with, so changes only apply to new requests. Only users with permission to manage intake templates can create or change them. If your form is missing a field, contact your site administrator. ## Approval Policies Each template has its own approval policy, with the same gates as the template. The policy is versioned along with the template, and each request shows the policy version it follows in its Details panel. For each gate, the policy has **Default Approvers** and can have any number of **rules**. A rule has conditions based on the request's field values, for example a Scorecard total score greater than a set value, and names the members or groups whose approval is required when it matches. You can edit a gate's approvers in two places, and both change the same policy: - From the gate's **Approval policy** panel while building the template. - From **Approval Policies** in Site Settings, under **Project intake**. Pick the template, then the version and the gate. **Project intake**Route each gate of an intake request to its approvers, one versioned policy per templateActive **Digital Initiative**4 gates · 3 versionsOpen template **Version 3**Mar 1, 2026Current 1Idea screen1 rule 2Business case2 rules 3Funding1 rule 4Readiness1 rule Default Approvers1 Rule 11 Conditions Strategic fitTotal ScoreGreater than40 Add condition Approval required from MembersGroups1Portfolio Board × Delete rule Rule 22 Add rule The Project intake policy in Site Settings. Version 3 of the Digital Initiative policy is selected, with Gate 2 open. Rule 1 sends business cases with a Strategic fit score above 40 to the Portfolio Board group. The approval policies in Site Settings apply when lines of business are turned off. When lines of business are on, they are used as the starting point for each new line of business. A policy decides who approves a gate, never the outcome. Every approval, rejection, and request for more information is made by a person. #### Related Articles [How to use Gating to create a process](#) [Create and Manage Templates](#) [Site Settings](#) [Create and Manage Portfolios](#)