It can sometimes be complicated to know exactly who should make a particular decision. Doubly so in healthy organisations with a strong sense of shared ownership. The concept of Directly Responsible Individuals (DRIs) addresses this by identifying up-front who is responsible for what.
One person that is directly responsible or accountable for fulfilling the success of a certain task, project or area or responsibility.
The idea is that every project is assigned a DRI who is ultimately held accountable for the success (or failure) of that project or objective. Apple coined the term DRI a long time ago.
What does a DRI do?
DRIs are usually assigned to specific projects, targets or initiatives. They won’t necessarily be the people doing the work, but they will likely be responsible for…
- Getting necessary tools, knowledge, people and resources together.
- Making decisions or acting as a tie-breaker.
- Defining done.
- Holding contributors accountable.
- Setting expectations on the project.
- Communicating progress to the wider organisation.
- Managing risks associated with the project.
Further Reading
If you want a more comprehensive overview of how this can work in practice, read GitLab’s comprehensive guide on DRIs…
And maybe check out a few other useful tools in this toolbox…