A project can have everyone copied into the discussion and still have nobody clearly authorised to approve the result. A RACI chart helps when it makes those responsibilities explicit. It becomes less useful when it merely turns the email distribution list into a colourful grid.
The four roles are responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. Atlassian’s decision-making playbook describes the responsible role as completing the work and the accountable role as its final approver. Agree on the meanings your team will use before assigning initials.
Take a fictional product-launch page. Someone drafts it, someone approves it, specialists provide input, and other colleagues need to know when it is live. These are different kinds of involvement. Marking everyone responsible does not explain who must do the next piece of work.
Ask the proposed approver whether they have the authority and availability to make that decision. Ask the person doing the work whether the required consultation is practical. A matrix approved without those conversations can document an arrangement that nobody can actually follow.
Resolve the awkward cells aloud
- If two people appear to have final approval, who resolves a disagreement?
- If a consulted person does not respond, what happens next?
- If the responsible person is absent, who arranges cover?
- What information does an informed person need, and when?
These questions expose the working process behind the letters. Keep consultation tied to a purpose; involving more people is not automatically a better decision.
Use deliverables or meaningful decisions as rows, rather than recording every tiny action. Review the chart when the scope or team changes, and keep a dated version where participants can find it.
At the next handoff, compare the chart with what really happened. If approval repeatedly comes from someone absent from the matrix, investigate the discrepancy. A RACI chart earns its place by making work easier to move forward, not by remaining perfectly formatted while the actual decisions happen elsewhere.