Have you ever been in a team situation that was just not working out? At Camp Ketchum, it’s a situation that our campers have had to face as they’ve worked together to address a complex client challenge in a very brief amount of time – in many cases, having only known each other for a couple of days.
Well here is RASCI, a very useful model I came across years ago that provides a structure for teams. It’s an internal communication tool for task management, with the objective to empower the people on the team, make them accountable and produce great teamwork. It helps us to divide and concur, to operate faster and better by providing role clarity in complex situations. Here are the roles that go with the model:
- R = Responsible
- A = Approve
- S = Support
- C = Consult
- I = Inform
This is what goes with the roles:
R: There must be one and only one R. It is important to know, that R is not a hierarchical thing – the role doesn’t depend on a title. R is being about having a real passion to lead the task and be accepted by the group. R has an integration role and is directly accountable for quality of decisions. This person ensures that the task is completed effectively and handed over for the next step in process. Listening and sharing are essential traits for success as an R.
A: This person is responsible for the final sign-off before action is taken. You just can’t do the action until it is approved. This person checks that it all stacks up and supports resource allocation. There can be more than one A, but the aim is always to have as few as possible, since all A’s must approve every action that takes place. This person coaches, provides feedback, adds value, provides direction, sets overall terms of reference and is ultimately accountable for overseeing the implementation.
S: Support does the “real work,” providing data and analysis for decision making. It’s most effective to have a small group of people as S’s.
C: The person in the “Consult” position should be a specialist with expertise to add value by contributing to the quality of the decision. C’s input should be obtained before a decision is made, though it may not necessarily be used.
I: “Inform” designates people who need to know about decisions made but do not need to be involved in the actual decision-making process. They should be advised after decisions have been made to avoid being sucked into doing subordinates’ jobs.
So that’s it. Try it out and let me know how it works for you!
