Who Owns Software Spend? RACI for IT, Procurement and Finance
A practical RACI for software asset management: who is responsible, accountable, consulted and informed at each stage, from request to renewal and audit.
By the MI Solutions SAM team9 min read2 exhibits
Software spend falls between departments. IT deploys it, procurement buys it, finance pays for it, and business teams use it. When everyone owns a part, nobody owns the outcome, which is why renewals slip and waste accumulates. A RACI makes ownership explicit: who is Responsible for doing the work, who is Accountable for the result, who is Consulted and who is Informed.
01Responsible
Does the work.
02Accountable
Owns the result and makes the final decision. Only one per activity.
03Consulted
Gives input before the decision.
04Informed
Is told after the decision.
The RACI
Activity
Business owner
IT
Procurement
Finance
SAM lead
Request software
A
C
C
I
R
Approve purchase
A
C
R
C
I
Negotiate contract
C
C
A/R
C
C
Record contract
I
I
R
I
A
Assign licenses
C
R
I
I
A
Reclaim licenses
C
R
I
I
A
Decide renewal
A
C
R
C
R
Budget
C
R
C
A
C
Validate savings
I
C
C
A
R
Audit response
C
R
C
I
A
R = Responsible, A = Accountable, C = Consulted, I = Informed.
The same RACI as a heat map shows where each role's weight falls:
Exhibit 1
Where it usually breaks
Exhibit 2
Making it work
Name a person, not a department
For each vendor's accountability.
Use it in the renewal process
Every renewal starts by confirming the accountable owner.
Publish it
Where requests and renewals happen, not only in a governance document.
Review it yearly
And whenever the organization changes.
How MI One helps
Frequently asked questions
Should IT own all software?
IT should own deployment and security, but business owners should be accountable for the value of the tools they use.
What if nobody wants to be accountable?
Ask who would notice if the tool disappeared. That person or their manager is the owner.
Can one person own many vendors?
Yes. Owners should be accountable for the tools in their area; a head of sales operations might own the CRM, sales engagement and e-signature tools.
See where your software budget goes
Bring your five largest vendors to a 30-minute call. Our SAM experts will show you where the savings usually hide, and how fast MI One can surface them.
