Most people view Goldratt's teachings in a very narrow scope, and that is tragic. As others have mentioned, the Theory of Constraints is applicable to just about everything (I cannot think of anything where the TOC does not apply).
I believe Goldratt's goal with his first book “The Goal” was to introduce the Theory of Constraints in an engaging way through a fictional novel (much easier to read than a textbook). The intent of the novel is to prove that management is a science, not an art. A systematic, logical approach to identifying root causes (a.k.a bottlenecks) that impact the system's throughput (a.k.a. the goal) is introduced and explained in multiple scenarios. He shows that it is used in a variety of ways, including the production line, accounting, and sales and marketing. Profound results are proven step by step, but many make the mistake of thinking this is a book of recipes, when it is more a book of proofs.
Goldratt received much criticism for “The Goal”, most of which argued that the TOC was not generally applicable. Many people saw the first book as a set of recipes or plans, and discarded his theory because they could not take the situations from “The Goal” and overlay them or apply the solutions directly to their problem domain. That was never Goldratt’s intent. I believe that is when he wrote “It’s Not Luck” as a response.
In “It’s Not Luck”, he exercises the TOC in many more disciplines as well as introduces more tools to apply TOC. “It’s Not Luck” is a great companion because you get a bit more practice, though anyone anxious to apply the TOC and using the related tools will likely want to buy some of the textbooks to get quick guidance about using the tools i.e. building Current Reality Trees.
Some interesting memorable phrases/concepts/tools/what have you:
- Correlation is not Causation
- Common Practice does not mean Common Sense
- Cost accounting has profoundly negative consequences on any system (through induced behaviors, measures, rules and policies)
- Introduction of Throughput Accounting (perhaps the easiest way to explain/exercise TOC in an organization without TOC experts)
- Disproving supply and demand as we know it (“It’s Not Luck”)
- Current Reality Tree (tool to identify root cause)
- Lose-Lose situation is impossible (evaporating clouds).
“every situation, no matter how complex it initially looks, is exceedingly simple”
I have found this to be true every time I have examined a problem domain. I have never found more than one root cause in any current reality tree. Those who don’t take the time to understand the Theory of Constraints or the tools surrounding would never believe such a statement. Goldratt never asks for you to accept any concept or theory at face value, he proves it.
Goldratt has given us the process and tools to achieve profound results. For that, we are grateful.
I believe Goldratt's goal with his first book “The Goal” was to introduce the Theory of Constraints in an engaging way through a fictional novel (much easier to read than a textbook). The intent of the novel is to prove that management is a science, not an art. A systematic, logical approach to identifying root causes (a.k.a bottlenecks) that impact the system's throughput (a.k.a. the goal) is introduced and explained in multiple scenarios. He shows that it is used in a variety of ways, including the production line, accounting, and sales and marketing. Profound results are proven step by step, but many make the mistake of thinking this is a book of recipes, when it is more a book of proofs.
Goldratt received much criticism for “The Goal”, most of which argued that the TOC was not generally applicable. Many people saw the first book as a set of recipes or plans, and discarded his theory because they could not take the situations from “The Goal” and overlay them or apply the solutions directly to their problem domain. That was never Goldratt’s intent. I believe that is when he wrote “It’s Not Luck” as a response.
In “It’s Not Luck”, he exercises the TOC in many more disciplines as well as introduces more tools to apply TOC. “It’s Not Luck” is a great companion because you get a bit more practice, though anyone anxious to apply the TOC and using the related tools will likely want to buy some of the textbooks to get quick guidance about using the tools i.e. building Current Reality Trees.
Some interesting memorable phrases/concepts/tools/what have you: - Correlation is not Causation - Common Practice does not mean Common Sense - Cost accounting has profoundly negative consequences on any system (through induced behaviors, measures, rules and policies) - Introduction of Throughput Accounting (perhaps the easiest way to explain/exercise TOC in an organization without TOC experts) - Disproving supply and demand as we know it (“It’s Not Luck”) - Current Reality Tree (tool to identify root cause) - Lose-Lose situation is impossible (evaporating clouds).
“every situation, no matter how complex it initially looks, is exceedingly simple”
I have found this to be true every time I have examined a problem domain. I have never found more than one root cause in any current reality tree. Those who don’t take the time to understand the Theory of Constraints or the tools surrounding would never believe such a statement. Goldratt never asks for you to accept any concept or theory at face value, he proves it.
Goldratt has given us the process and tools to achieve profound results. For that, we are grateful.
(I'm sorry for the formatting)