A RACI says who does what. Here is its definition (R/A/C/I), a concrete example, the 9 best practices of a clear RACI — and how Maestro generates it from your procedures.
For each activity, a RACI describes who does what across four roles: Responsible (does the work), Accountable (answers for the result), Consulted (is consulted), Informed (is kept informed). It is the simplest tool for clearing up the "I thought that was your job".
| Activity | R | A | C | I |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Write the procedure | Subject-matter expert | Quality lead | Ops | Management |
| Approve | Quality lead | Management | — | Team |
| Train on the job | Manager | HR / L&D | Expert | Quality |
The rules Maestro applies — and checks automatically — every time it generates a RACI.
Each row starts with a verb + a business object ("Set the parameters"), never a noun label ("The parameters"). Aim for 1 to 5 activities per phase.
An obligation, a prohibition, a condition, a frequency or a parameter is not an activity: isolate it as a business rule, linked to the activity concerned.
One and only one Responsible carries out the activity. Need two? Create a dedicated role.
A single Accountable answers for the result — ideally the same one across a whole phase. Several As: to be settled.
The Informed alerts the Responsible for the downstream activity. It is not permanent oversight of the whole column.
The Consulted contributes at a given moment, not through continuous follow-up: a C present on too many activities is suspicious.
A RACI role designates an identified person — not a team, a committee, a service or a department.
The label specifies a contact scope (team, site, line, on-call rota, directory): you must be able to reach the person, literally.
If two roles compete for the R, it goes to the more junior one — the one who executes. For two genuine responsibilities, create two roles.
A RACI is understood by everyone, in two minutes. Above all, it is the backbone that links documentation, responsibilities and training: one activity points to its procedure and to the learning path of the role concerned. Where BPM produces expert modelling, a RACI produces execution.
Maestro reads your procedures, identifies the activities and proposes an R/A/C/I role assignment per activity. You validate or adjust; the RACI stays linked to the documentation and to the training, and can align a local site with corporate rules. No over-engineering: a clear, actionable RACI, kept up to date.
Responsible (carries out the task), Accountable (answers for it, a single person), Consulted (gives input), Informed (is kept in the loop).
Nine principles: activities as action verbs; separate activities from business rules; a single R; a single A; the I informs the next R; the C stays occasional; a role (not a group); a reachable role; and, when in doubt, the R closest to the shop floor.
No. A RACI stands on its own and stays readable by everyone. Maestro generates it from your procedures, with no BPMN modelling.
From your existing procedures — or, where there are none, from your experts' knowledge captured in interviews.
Yes: the RACI links corporate rules to their local roll-out, site by site.
A fixed-scope Flash Audit: you walk away with concrete simplification leads, produced by Maestro.
Book a Flash Audit