Why RACI makes collaboration worse - Jenny Wanger (Product Operations Consultant)

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy dive into the nuanced world of team collaboration with Jenny Wanger, product ops consultant. Jenny challenges the overuse of RACI matrices in product teams, arguing they often obscure deeper organisational issues rather than solve them. They discuss better alternatives, the root causes behind requests for RACI, and the value of prioritising human relationships over rigid frameworks.

Chapters 0:00 – The accountable vs. responsible dilemma 0:37 – Meet Jenny Wanger: Product ops and Reforge 1:20 – RACI: A quick explainer 3:16 – Why RACI falls short in product teams 7:00 – Infantilisation and territorialism 9:18 – The flaws in the terminology 10:14 – The consulted conundrum 11:05 – RACI as a conversation starter 12:01 – Better alternatives: Rapid and others 14:20 – When RACI might be useful 18:01 – Team dysfunction and RACI misuse 23:00 – A case study in resolving collaboration issues 26:00 – RACI as scaffolding, not infrastructure 28:02 – AI, documents, and relationships 30:05 – Diagnosing the real problem behind a RACI request 32:38 – Job descriptions vs. RACI 35:25 – Everyone’s a bit of everything 37:04 – Focusing on mission and collaboration 39:57 – Final thoughts and where to find Jenny’s work

Key Takeaways — RACI isn't a cure-all: It often signals deeper dysfunction like poor team structure, unclear mission, or lack of trust. — Healthy teams don't need RACI: When collaboration and communication are strong, formal frameworks become redundant. — Use RACI as scaffolding: Let it initiate conversations, but don’t enshrine it as a permanent solution. — Language matters: Terms like “accountable” and “responsible” are often confused, making the framework less clear than intended. — Consider better alternatives: Frameworks like RAPID offer more clarity around decision-making without creating silos. — Prioritise relationships over roles: Documents don't build culture—conversations and mutual understanding do.

Featured Links: Follow Jenny on LinkedIn | Jenny's RACI feature at her website | Dave Johnson's page at The Pragmatic Agilist

Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.