Make Ownership Obvious

Responsible Person: ownership named, speed restored.

A simple way to make ownership obvious

“When everyone is responsible, no one is accountable. Name the owner and watch speed return.” — Eric Wiley

Why teams stall: fuzzy ownership

Most execution problems aren’t skill problems—they’re permission problems. People hesitate because they’re not sure who decides, who helps, and who needs to know. A lightweight tool fixes that fast.

RACI in 60 seconds

• R — Responsible: the doer(s) who execute the work.
• A — Accountable: the single owner who signs off and answers for the outcome. One A—always.
• C — Consulted: people who give input (two‑way).
• I — Informed: people kept in the loop (one‑way).

RACI isn’t an org chart. It’s a clarity chart for a specific outcome.

Build it in 10 minutes

1. Define the outcome: write the result in one sentence with a due date.
2. Name the A: one person. No committees.
3. List the R’s: who actually does the work.
4. Trim the C’s: invite only the voices that change the work.
5. Set the I’s: who needs updates and how often.
6. Decision rights: write what the A/R can decide without escalation.

Drop‑in template (copy/paste)

Outcome: 
A: 
R: 
C: 
I: 
Decision rights: 
Cadence: 

Quick examples

• Client proposal turnaround (48 hours): A: Sales Manager. R: AE, Pricing Analyst. C: Legal (terms only). I: VP Sales. Decision rights: AE can adjust pricing within ±50 bps to hit win‑rate target.
• Monthly KPI dashboard: A: Ops Director. R: Analyst. C: Finance (definitions). I: Leadership Team. Decision rights: Director can revise visuals; metric definitions require Finance sign‑off.

Rules that keep it fast

• One A. Two A’s means no A.
• Name people, not teams. Clarity needs a person, not a department.
• Keep C lean. Too many voices = slow. Default people to I.
• Update on change. RACI should evolve when roles or scope shift.
• Publish where work lives. Pin it in the project doc or channel.

A two‑week rollout

Days 1–3: Pick five recurring outcomes (e.g., proposal approvals, KPI updates, incident response). Draft RACIs.

Days 4–7: Share, tighten the C list, and set decision rights. Publish in one place.

Days 8–14: Operate with the new RACIs. Use weekly downloads to tune edge cases. Archive wins as standards.

Bottom line

Speed returns when ownership is obvious. Use RACI to name the owner, empower the doers, and right‑size the voices. Fewer handoffs, fewer surprises, better results.

— Eric Wiley

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Wiley Performance Advisory
Your Wingman on the Next Big Push.