Reading authority matrices without the org chart mythology
Authority limits only help if the matrix matches the titles people actually use when they sign.
Many matrices look tidy in a shared drive and fuzzy in the file. Titles on signature blocks drift — “Acting Head,” “Delegate for,” bilingual role names that do not appear in the Korean matrix column. During a financial audit of procurement approval applications, we map each signature to the nearest matrix row and mark where the mapping is a judgement call.
Ask three questions before you circulate the next batch:
- Does every person who routinely signs appear by title or named delegate?
- Are temporary acting roles listed with an end date?
- Is the currency of the limit stated, and does it match the application currency?
If the answer to any is no, the audit will spend time on interpretation that could have been spent on the numbers. Updating the matrix is usually cheaper than explaining a cluster of ambiguous approvals after the fact.