Owner Accountability

Every initiative in StartConsole has a designated Owner — the person accountable for keeping the initiative current, resolving blockers, and responding when signals are raised. The Owner field is the primary accountability anchor in the portfolio.

Setting and changing the owner

The Owner field is set when an initiative is created. To change it, open the initiative detail page, click the Owner field, and select a new user from the dropdown. The change is recorded in the initiative audit trail with a timestamp.

Ownership should reflect real accountability — the person named as Owner is the one who will receive notifications and be visible to leadership in portfolio reviews. Keep this field current if team structures change.

How owners are notified

When a signal is raised on an initiative, the assigned Owner receives an automatic notification. The notification includes the flag category, a brief description of the condition, and a link directly to the initiative. This means owners do not need to check the Signals page manually — they are alerted when something needs their attention.

Owners also receive notifications for gate review submissions, key result updates, and approaching deliverable deadlines, depending on your organisation's notification configuration.

What owners are expected to do

Owners are responsible for keeping three areas of their initiative up to date in StartConsole:

• Initiative status — reflect the true current state (Active, Delayed, On Hold) so the portfolio view is accurate
• Deliverable progress — mark deliverables complete as work finishes so delivery signals stay current
• Financial actuals — update budget actuals when spend occurs so budget signals reflect real data

When a signal is raised, the owner should review the recommended action, take the appropriate step, and — if a decision was made — log it in the Decisions section.

Finding all initiatives by owner

In the Portfolio view, use the filter bar and select a specific owner from the Owner filter. This shows every initiative that person is responsible for across the portfolio. Leadership and PMO directors use this view to assess individual accountability and workload.

The Signals page also displays the owner name against each active flag, so it is immediately clear who needs to act on each condition.