Signs ownership is unclear
- The same question gets asked in several places before anyone answers it.
- Two people do the same task, or nobody does it.
- Work stops when one person is out.
- Decisions get reopened because nobody knew who had the final say.
List the work, then the people
Start with the recurring work the company depends on: sending invoices, onboarding new hires, renewing vendor contracts, approving time off, publishing the website. Then assign an owner to each one. Working from the list of tasks, rather than from job titles, surfaces the gaps.
Use a simple RACI chart
RACI is a common way to show who does what on a task or decision:
- Responsible: the person who does the work.
- Accountable: the one person who owns the outcome and makes the final call.
- Consulted: people whose input is needed before the work is done.
- Informed: people who need to know once it is done.
The most important rule is one accountable person per task. If two people are accountable, nobody is.
Make it visible
Keep the ownership list where everyone can find it, and link it from your SOPs and onboarding material. New hires should be able to see on day one who to ask about what.
Review it when the team changes
Every hire, departure or reorganization changes who owns what. Update the list at the same time, and review the whole thing at least once a quarter.
We map ownership, build RACI charts and write the SOPs behind them, then keep them current as you grow. See team management.