A sample of retail industry using RACI matrix for information governance

Organizations are often struggling to handle information-related roles and responsibilities. We often hear questions like, "Who owns the data?" "," What is the location of the data administrator in the organization? "," Who should join the Information Governance Committee? ”。

The RACI matrix is an excellent tool to solve these problems in a factual way. The meaning of the acronym "RACI" is as follows:

 (responsible): Specifies the person who is responsible for managing an attribute. A property may have more than one responsible party.
 (accountable): The person who ultimately assumes the responsibility for the data attribute. An accountable person may delegate responsibility for managing a property to a responsible party. There should be only one responsible party.
 Consulting (consulted): one or more people who provide advice through two-way communication.
 Informed (informed): one or more persons communicated through one-way communication.

Here's a RACI example of a retail business. The operating department is responsible for managing the assortment of products and is usually the owner of the overall product information in the http://www.aliyun.com/zixun/aggregation/24095.html > Retail business. However, the different attributes of the product information must be governed by different departments within the organization.

The following is a RACI matrix sample of product information governance for retail enterprises:

attribute category responsibility advisory inform product hierarchy Management Department


Finance Department Operation Department marketing department storage Operation, e-commerce and IT department global Trade Project Identification Code (GTIN) supplier Operating Department Finance department storage operation, e-commerce and IT department product description supplier, marketing department Business Department IT department product type Operation department Finance department IT department   Door supplier name and identifier Operating department finance department, Supply chain department storage operation, e-commerce and IT department supplier Certification Guarantee Department Operation Department storage operation and IT department harmful material/recycle content supplier Operation Department supply Chain department and Guarantee department storage operation, legal and IT department weight and dimension Operation Department supply Chain Department storage operation, legal and IT department packaging Operation Department supply chain and Quality Assurance Department IT department product picture e-commerce and marketing department operating department storage operations, customer service and Quality Assurance department legal and IT department costing and pricing operations and Finance Department operating department storage operations, electronic Business and Customer service department information security and IT Department product relationship Marketing department Business Department IT department product status Management department marketing and Finance Department IT department promotion business Department IT department

The operating department assumes the overall responsibility for the product hierarchy. Specifically, the product catalog requires a highly flexible hierarchy. For example, the operating department may wish to produce a new spring print catalog containing a limited subset of products. This directory requires the use of information tailored to the print format, as well as a hierarchy of product-specific organization methods. The Finance Department is also a responsible party because the product hierarchy affects the product report. Users need to consult the marketing department because the product hierarchy affects the catalog and marketing activities.

This is just the beginning. At the product level alone, there are countless factors that must be addressed through reliable information governance. Examples include:

The

 Global Trade Project Identification Code (GTIN), a set of identifiers developed by GS1, used to refer to a product or service. These identifiers contain 8, 12, 13, or 14 digits, which is one way to ensure that manufacturers and retailers represent products in the same way. Most consumers see GTIN as barcodes on products they buy at their local retailer. When introducing new products, the manufacturer (supplier) will be responsible for applying to GS1 for new GTIN. Since each GTIN contains the manufacturer-specific prefix specified by GS1, the operating department can run simple validation and compare the name of the
Builder with the approved prefix list. Doing so avoids unnecessary errors in the downstream of the new product rollout workflow.

 Product description. The supplier is responsible for providing the correct product description related to marketing. The
 Product type. The operating department is responsible for the product type, and the product type determines the attributes that need to be applied to the product. For example, harmful products may require attributes such as material code and processing code. The
 The vendor name and identifier. The buyer or business person in the Business department is responsible for communicating with the supplier. Business personnel need to ensure accurate input of supplier information within the product system to ensure that this information is properly deployed in order to produce supplier performance and profitability statements.
 Vendor certification. The Quality Assurance department or compliance department is responsible for ensuring that suppliers comply with all local regulations.
 Harmful substances/recycled content. The supplier is responsible for completing these attributes during the launch of the new product. Supply chain departments and quality assurance departments need to be consulted on these attributes.
 Weight and size. To determine the weight and size of the product, we need to consult the supply chain department. The operating department shall perform basic validation on the weight and size information provided by the supplier. In the worst-case scenario, if the product size is expressed in feet rather than inches, the logistics department may not be able to achieve the most reasonable loading.
 Packaging. Retailers tend to order a large number of products at once, and they need to be divided into smaller packages for sale within the store. The operating department is responsible for packaging properties. Since this will have an impact on logistics and distribution centers, it is necessary to consult supply chain departments. In addition, some retailers may need to check some of the packaging before they are put into sales, so they also need to consult the quality Assurance department.
 Product picture. The operating department is responsible for promoting multi-channel sales of products, including directories and networks. These channels require high-quality digital images. The marketing and e-commerce teams may be responsible for these product pictures in the catalog and the site, respectively. These departments need to be consulted as shop operations and customer service departments work with product pictures. Some retailers will check the pictures and product labels in the lab before putting the product into sale, so they need to consult the quality Assurance department.
 Costing and pricing. The operating and financial departments are jointly responsible for the financial performance of the product, and therefore need to collaborate on cost accounting and pricing information. Low-cost products can bring competitive advantages, retailers do not want such product information leakage. The same is true for product pricing related to marketing promotions. Therefore, in order to protect this kind of information, you need to inform the relevant aspects of information security.
 Product relationships. In the cross sales, upward sales and replacement products, such as product relations, the operating department is responsible for, marketing department. The
 The product status. The operating department is responsible for the status of the product along the lifecycle, including activity status and discontinued status. It is also necessary to consult the marketing department and the finance department at this time.
 Promotions. The operating department is responsible for promotional-related attributes such as seasonality, bundling and pricing. It is also necessary to consult the marketing department and the finance department at this time.

The

Information ownership problem is fraught with friction and contention for influence. The RACI matrix is an excellent tool to eliminate the subjective emotion from the discussion and to discuss the actual information in a finer degree on the attribute level.