RACI diagram
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A RACI diagram, or RACI matrix, is used to describe the roles and responsibilities of various teams or people in delivering a project or operating a process. It is especially useful in clarifying roles and responsibilities in cross-functional/departmental projects and processes.
RACI may be pronounced "racy" or "rack-y".
[edit] Methodology
The RACI diagram splits tasks into four participatory responsibility types, which are then assigned to different roles in the project or process. These responsibilities types make up the acronym RACI.
- Responsible - Those who do work to achieve the task. There can be multiple resources responsible.
- Accountable - (Also Approver) The resource ultimately answerable for the correct and thorough completion of the task. There must be exactly one A specified for each task.
- Consulted - Those whose opinions are sought. Two-way communication.
- Informed - Those who are kept up-to-date on progress. One-way communication.
Very often the role specified as "accountable" is also specified "responsible." Outside of this exception, it is generally recommended that each role in the project or process for each task receive at most one of the participatory role types. Although some companies and organizations do allow, for example, double participatory types, this generally implies that the roles have not yet been truly resolved and so impedes the value of the RACI approach in clarifying each role on each task.
There are a number of variations to this scheme, some adding additional roles, another changing the R and A definitions; see below under Variations.
The following is an example of a RACI Diagram, showing how individual tasks are assigned to different roles.
In the example, the Business Owner is Accountable in communicating Business Policy and must inform the Business Program Manager and Business Process Manager.
[edit] Variations
RACI-VS or VARISC
This is an expanded version which adds two additional roles:
- Verifies - Those who check whether the product meets the acceptance criteria set forth in the product description.
- Signs off - Those who approve the V decision and authorize the product hand-off. It seems to make sense that the S for each terminal element should be the party with A for its successor.
CAIRO or RACIO
This is an expanded version which uses the same basic designations (reordered, in the case of CAIRO) with the addition of O (Out of the Loop, or omitted), designating individuals or groups who are specifically not part of the task. Specifying that a resource has no role or responsibility can be as beneficial to a task's completion as specifying those who do have a role.
RASCI or RASIC
This breaks the Responsible role into:
- Responsible - Those who are responsible for the task, ensuring that it is done as per the approver.
- Support - Resources allocated to Responsible. Unlike Consult, who may aid in the task, Support may be tasked with work.
RACI (alternative scheme)
There is an alternative coding, less widely published but used by some practitioners and process mapping software, which modifies the application of the R and A codes of the original scheme. The overall methodology remains the same but this alternative avoids potential confusion of the terms accountable and responsible — understood by management professionals but not always so clearly differentiated by others:
- Responsible - Those responsible for the performance of the task. There should be exactly one person with this assignment for each task.
- Assists - Those who assist completion of the task.
- Consulted - Those whose opinions are sought. Two-way communication.
- Informed - Those who are kept up-to-date on progress. One-way communication.
