What is the RACI matrix — and how to build one that actually clarifies ownership.
Short answer
RACI is a responsibility assignment matrix that maps four roles to each task or deliverable: Responsible (does the work), Accountable (owns the outcome — one person only), Consulted (provides input before decisions), Informed (notified after decisions). It's used in project kickoffs and organizational design to clarify who does what. The most common mistake: multiple people listed as Accountable for the same task.
RACI (pronounced "ray-see") is one of the most widely used project management and organizational design tools. It prevents the ambiguity that leads to work falling between the cracks or being done twice.
The four roles.
Responsible (R) — the person or people who do the work. There can be multiple Rs for a single task. They execute the deliverable.
Accountable (A) — the person who owns the outcome. There must be exactly one A per task. The A approves the work, resolves disputes, and answers for the result. If two people are listed as A, you don't have accountability — you have a committee.
Consulted (C) — people whose input is sought before decisions are made. Communication is two-way (they respond, not just receive). Consulted parties don't make the decision, but they're asked for input before it's finalized.
Informed (I) — people who need to know what happened after decisions are made. One-way communication. They don't shape the outcome; they need to stay aware of it for downstream reasons.
Building a RACI matrix. Draw a table on the whiteboard: tasks or deliverables in rows, team members or roles in columns. Fill in each cell with R, A, C, or I. Leave cells blank if a person has no role in that task.
Common checks after building:
- Every row must have exactly one A. If there's no A, no one is accountable. If there are two, you have a conflict.
- Every row must have at least one R. If there's no R, no one is doing the work.
- Rows with many Cs are often a sign of a decision that needs a smaller group.
- Columns where one person is A for everything may signal a single point of failure.
When RACI is most useful.
- Project kickoff: who owns each workstream
- Organizational redesign: who makes what type of decision
- Recurring processes: who's responsible for what in a repeating workflow
When RACI fails. On very small teams (2–3 people) where everyone knows who does what. When the matrix is built by one person without the team — people don't feel bound by an accountability assignment they didn't agree to. When it's built and then never referenced.
After a RACI session at the whiteboard, snap the board with BoardSnap. The AI reads the table structure, role assignments, and cell entries and produces a clean RACI matrix ready to paste into a project document.
Frequently asked
Can someone be both Responsible and Accountable for the same task?
Yes — this is common for individual contributors or team leads who both do the work and own the outcome. In practice, the person listed as A on a task often does some of the R work as well. The key is that A remains singular — even when R has multiple people, A is always one.
What's the difference between RACI and RASCI?
RASCI adds a fifth role: Supportive (S) — people who provide resources or assistance to the Responsible person but aren't primarily responsible. It's used in organizations where support functions (legal, finance, IT) have a defined contribution that's distinct from Consulted. RASCI is more granular than RACI but adds complexity; RACI is sufficient for most project and team contexts.
How many people can be Consulted on a task?
Technically no limit, but more than 3–4 Consulted parties per task signals a decision that's too broad or a team that hasn't delegated authority. Excessive Consulted lists slow decisions dramatically. If 8 people are Consulted before a decision, consider whether 5 of them should be Informed instead.
See it work in ten seconds.
BoardSnap is free on the App Store. Snap a board — get a summary and action plan.