How to optimize RACI within an Organizational Graph, Org Chart and align to organizational structure.

A Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed matrix is a perfect use case to demonstrate the visualization powers of Organizational Graphs.  Below we will step you through a picture by picture example of how you might use an organizational graph to capture, visualize and execute your RACI Matrix.

First let’s get on the same page as to the proper steps to creating a solid RACI effort matrix, what is the correct order of operation.

Step 1. Determine the Ultimate Goal (Finished Project) of a Project and then determine the Milestones, the critical success factors, that need to be in place for the Ultimate Goal to Manifest.

Step 2. Surround each Milestone with a Job that is fill by a Person, who is Accountable for owning how that Milestone will be achieved.  They are your Accountability units.

Step 3. Consult – Gather these Accountability Units into a Team/Meeting and get agreement on the Tasks/Results that each AU will use to acheive their Milestone.

Step 4. Next, each AU determines the Responsibility Roles that are needed to acheive each Tasks/Result and they connect this Responsibility to a Person through the person’s Role that is part of their Job.

Step 5. Once step 1-4 are completed, the AUs gather to determine the Team/Meeting structure all of the people will attend as part of their Jobs to keep the CI units Informed and Consulted.

This is the order of operations that is followed below.

Orientation: YOUR RACI BUILDING BLOCKs

SCREEN CAPTURE

Click the picture to the right and zoom in. What you will see are the building blocks of a RACI matrix.  We have our project Milestones, the Tasks/Results that have to manifest along the way, the Persons and Jobs that are Accountable for each Milestone, the Meetings that are Consulted and Informed and the Roles that are Responsible for completing the Tasks, delivering the Results.

RACI MILESTONES

SCREEN CAPTURE

Again the backbone of a RACI program or matrix is a clear understanding of the Milestones that are part of a project and how the Milestones support and build on each other.

In OGraph we add Milestones, name them and then link them with the connection label “Supports” – here we have a quick look at the backbone flow of our RACI matrix.

MILESTONE ACCOUNTABILITIES

SCREEN CAPTURE

To clearly see who is accountable for a Milestone we link a Job to a Milestone with the connection: “Accountable”.  This is the Job that is owned by a person that is accountable for thinking about and making ultimate descions around this Milestone.  Note: Structure first, people second. To make your RACI work lasting, we do not use proper names or people we use structure terms, Jobs, Roles – once the structure is correct, we can add the right people.

MILESTONEs are mapped to TASKS / RESULTS

SCREEN CAPTURE

Following the order of operation above we determine the Task/Results that must get done for each Milestone to be cleared. We add them into our Org Graph and used the connection, “Enables” to link them.

TASKS / RESULTS CONNECTED TO RESPONSIBLE ROLES 

SCREEN CAPTURE

Tasks and Results are acheived by people fulfilling their Responsibility Roles that are part of their Job.  So we use the connection “Responsible For” to make this link between Role and Task / Result.

In the software we can show and hide, turn on and turn off what we want to see. In the second picture we have created the view that now shows the Milestones, their Tasks / Results and Roles that are Responsible and the Jobs that are Accountable for each Milestone.

RESPONSIBLE ROLES TO JOBS 

SCREEN CAPTURE

Roles are part of a person’s Job and are connected to the Job with the connection “Function Of”. The second image shows this additional connection.

Add Teams and Meetings and we have a full RACI STRUCTURE / MATRIX

SCREEN CAPTURE

Shown here is complete and full RACI Structure / Martix. 

Add people to our RACI Structure and it comes alive.

SCREEN CAPTURE

Of course we need people. Our people connect to the RACE Structure / Matrix through their Jobs.

MEETINGS / TEAMS – CONSULT AND INFORM

FIVE SCREEN CAPTURE

Built into the software are five differnt ways to look at the same thing. Top to bottom: Heirarchial, Orthogonal, Circular, Symterical and Bundle Layout.

FIVE BUILT IN VISUALIZATIONS

FIVE VISUALIZATION OPTIONS

Built into the software are five differnt ways to look at the same thing. Top to bottom: Heirarchial, Orthogonal, Circular, Symterical and Bundle Layout.

"When I sat down, faced the reality, and modeled the cost to my company of not bringing new people up to speed using the 14 Point Checklist, I saw it was in the hundreds of thousands.”

- Clay G, CEO

“The really cool thing about using an Org Graph was to get all of our people into the game. Once our Individual Contributors saw how this was something we were doing “For Them” instead of “To Them”, they bought in and the Org Graph bloomed with amazing detail - all supplied by the people who really know what’s going on, amazing.”

- Bryan B, CEO

"Our engagement is up, our teams are more effective, people are able to go directly to the right person for an answer, when we want to change something we can SEE who it will impact and get them involved. All of this was hidden in the past behind layers of folders and files, text and outlines, never in simple diagrams and pictures, very powerful.”

- David, CEO

"The different ways to visualize the same thing really is amazing, sometimes I would look at what we created via a Hierarchical view and it was just scrambled eggs, then I clicked on Symmetrical View, and think, ah ha there it is, then we drill down with the Marquee Zoom tool and it just becomes clear, truly amazing.”

- Sara, Aqua Tots

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