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What is a RACI? And why do you need one?

If you’ve ever worked on a team project and found yourself utterly confused by who should do what, a RACI chart might help. RACI stands for “responsible, accountable, consulted and informed”. Some project managers refer to it as a responsibility assignment matrix, but it’s useful no matter what you call it.

You might be fatigued by business acronyms, but a RACI is worth considering. It clarifies roles in a project, especially roles involving communication and decision making. It’s a standard component of project management. And it’s easy to create.

From my experience, it’s appropriate to use a RACI in four situations:

  1. When existing teams are asked to work together in new ways, such as virtually
  2. When new teams are formed to work on a new project
  3. When individuals join a project and need to understand how they’re expected to contribute
  4. When you need to clarify decision-making authority

Clarifying roles – and the boundaries of those roles – matters in professional firms, where multiple individuals have authority to make decisions or direct work.

Let’s test a RACI matrix, using a simple example.

Suzi is responsible for marketing in a small firm. One of the employment lawyers, Sheila, wants her create a list of contacts to invite to a new clients-only webinar she wants to present in six months. The webinar will feature an expert panel, comprised of firm clients.

Task: Create a draft list of clients to invite to the webinar. (Note that this is just one task among many in in the project).

Responsible: Suzi
The responsible person completes the task. A task always produces an outcome, i.e. the list.

Accountable: Sheila
The accountable person approves the work the responsible person does. S/he has authority to accept it or request revision. While multiple people might be responsible, consulted or informed for each task, only one person should be accountable. Clarify who this person is at the outset to avoid conflicts and/or delays later on. In a small team, one person might be both responsible and accountable.

Consulted: Sheila’s co-presenters and practice group
The opinions of this group count, but don’t rule. They might provide information to be considered, such as whom to invite or delete from the list. That said, decisions can be made and work can progress without their input. Remember this when you’ve asked for the opinion of people in this group, but haven’t heard back from them (if you can, make this clear at the outset of the project).

Informed: Other firm members
People in this category want to be kept up to date. They also want to know if the task will affect their ongoing work. For example, if a lot of practice group members will be expected to organize or attend the seminar while they’re needed to work on a major client matter.

Most teams use a simple excel spreadsheet to create a RACI. Some use software, but data entry can often take on a life of its own and distract people from the work itself. Your goal is to get something done, not to complete forms.

RACIs aren’t a substitute for the essential components of a major project – engagement letters or project charters, statements of work, work breakdown structures, risk registers, etc. Rather, they complement them.

During the pandemic, the shift to remote work has required professionals to be more organized than ever at a time when they’re busier than ever. A RACI is one way to mitigate risks to project quality, schedules and budgets. It also avoids confusion, which reduces stress while people are dealing with so much else at home and in the office.

Further resources:

To Hold Someone Accountable, First Define What Accountable Means, from Harvard Business Review.

It’s Your Decision, from Deloitte.

Delegating to Part-Time Employees: Special Considerations

Professional firms increasingly rely on part-time and temporary personnel to complete administrative tasks. While this is a cost-effective way to manage business, it can inadvertently create complications in working relationships.

Unique challenges of delegating to part-time administrative staff

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Set Up Your Virtual Team for Success: Expert Advice

In a recent survey of 1,700 knowledge workers, 79% of respondents indicated that they always or frequently work in dispersed teams across offices and locations. The trend is echoed in professional firms of all sizes, as business operations are reconfigured for greater efficiency and individuals seek flexible work arrangements.

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LPM Initiatives at Large Law Firms – The Road Ahead

This post was co-authored by my colleague, Jim Hassett, Ph.D.. It was originally published on the Canadian legal blog, Slaw.ca on October 1, 2014

Many large law firms in Canada and the U.S. have begun to implement legal project management initiatives, albeit with varying degrees of success. Legal Biz Dev Certified Legal Project Management Coach™

Jim Hassett’s latest book – Client Value and Law Firm Profitability – provides new insights into why some firms have had much more success than others. Over the last eighteen months, Jim conducted confidential interviews with law firm leaders from 50 AmLaw 200 firms. Forty-two percent were chairs or managing partners, and the balance were senior partners and executives.

Study participants were promised that they would not be quoted by name, which led to some unusually frank responses.

When we asked participants about what they were doing to become more competitive, many started with legal project management (LPM), including the managing partner who said, “Lawyers have to be focused on LPM or they’re just not going to be successful in bringing in the work.”

When asked which aspects of LPM were most critical to firms’ short-term success the top two areas participants singled out were defining scope and managing client communication. Both require significant behavior change among partners and neither can be addressed by the software that so many firms see as a starting point. Which creates a predicament for many organizations.

The book also includes detailed perspectives on how firms are adapting to a changing marketplace. New staff positions in pricing, value and LPM were described as particularly effective, but other tactics led to mixed results, including:

  • Contract attorneys and outsourcing
  • Software
  • Knowledge management

Some of the differences in opinion about these tactics were based on firm needs and expectations. Others were based on differences in how the programs were implemented. We took the feedback at face value.

This is not to say that LPM is easy to implement. Those that have invested heavily in educational programs for the entire firm, as opposed to behavior change programs focused on a smaller group of internal champions, have often been disappointed, like the AmLaw 200 chairman who confidentially reported:

Every shareholder and top level associate in our firm has had a full day of project management training. I’d like to tell you that they use it, but they don’t. – Chair

Respondents did provide a common answer to the question of what actually does work: Getting partners on board by showing them “what’s in it for me”. Forget the theory and go right to practical applications.

Train partners, work shoulder to shoulder with them, gathering the right data and helping them update the way they manage matters. Encourage them to make small, calculated changes to ingrained work habits and habits of thought. While the matter is ongoing or when it concludes, look for hard evidence that signals improvements in client value, profitability and efficiency. Then build on successes that could benefit other teams and matters. The behaviour changes will eventually beget cultural changes that will spread through the firm.

We often see the positive results of this approach in the LPM coaching that we facilitate. Lawyers who begin the process with entrenched notions of “what works” usually end the process by being surprised at new insights and new skills that boost their confidence and their performance.

If you would like to learn more, Jim’s book Client Value and Law Firm Profitability will be published October 8, 2014. Excerpts and an order form can be found on Jim’s website and the book is also available through Amazon in both paperback and Kindle editions.

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Encouraging Adoption of Project Management Skills in Your Firm

What would happen if you were able to practice more efficiently or build better work habits? Law firms are facing increased pressure to provide clients with predictable pricing and efficient matter management. Legal project management (LPM) techniques are widely recognized as a sound way to meet both needs. But firm leaders are often met with resistance when they broach the subject with their lawyers. Read more

Building Trust Within a Project Team

Legal project management often requires lawyers to change how they work with each other. Given the personalities and cultural dynamics within firms, persuading some people to even consider collaborating can be quite a challenge – even if it’s in the best interest of the client. What’s a project leader to do? Read more