RAPID and RACI - Concept

RAPID is a decision making tool developed by Bain & Co., one of several tools available to diagnose the sources of decision making problems and map out how decision should be made, in a variety of settings, team sizes, or organizations. It is based on the acronym of different roles that people play in the decision making process (although the sequence typically does not matter):


R stands for “Recommend,” typically the person who drives the process, does most of the work.
I means “Input,” i.e. somebody whose opinion is valued but who does not have a vote or veto over the decision.
A stands for “Agree” (or it could also be “Approval”), in other words an I with more power, with a vote or a veto.
D means “Decide,” this is the person who can commit the organization to action (typically one person!).
P stands for “Perform,” this is the person who carries out the work once the decision is made. Note that often a P is also an I in many decisions.

RAPID is a very helpful tool to clarify decision making processes, removing ambiguity, and documenting the structures of decision making in an organization. It hopefully leads to faster and more efficient decisions, but that can also be one of the potential drawbacks and trade-offs. In organizations that have a culture of highly participatory decision making, using a RAPID approach may not be that effective.

Note that there are a number of other, similar approaches to decision making, all with their own acronyms. I have seen RACI and RASCI being used (Responsible, Accountable, Supportive, Consulted, Informed). In essence, they are all quite similar. Pick your acronym!

The second chart above shows how you could potentially use a RAPID or RACI approach in documenting decisions. This is an example from a project we did at a B2B client, documenting decisions in their “Order to Cash” process.