by Michael Baker, co-founder of EduBirdie
What do we know about goals achievement? Certainly, whatever you may think, it will come back to you in the form of real events and things. Today the topic of our discussion is the book “The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement” written by Israeli physicist Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt who is aware of the process of achieving the goals and managing business.
To begin with, Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt known as a “master Yoda”, as “guru” in the sphere of business. Furthermore, he was a creator of the Optimized Production Technique and the Theory of Constraints (TOC).
What could be imply about management and business from the “The Goal”?
However, the novel published in 1984, nevertheless, it is still relevant even in the 21st century, in the time of rapid and unexpected changes.
The plot of the book could be described in the one sentence: the director of the factory faced with the great amount of issues, which he was not able to cope with.
In general, the author states it is necessary to identify the problem, discover its common rules and only after it deal with the minor tasks such as sharping the pencils. Usually, everybody claims it is obvious. In fact, people procrastinate and do not cope with significant issues.
The book is divided into two parts. The first one consists of four chapters, which are mainly about the Theory of Constrains (TOC), process and methods of changing and presenting possible solutions.
What exactly is TOC?
TOC is a quintessence of the novel. Actually, it is a management methodology developed in the 1980s, by Eliyahu Goldratt, based on finding and managing the key constraint system. Goldratt mentions that controlling a very few aspects of the system could have a powerful impact on the work of the whole system.
Five Focusing Steps:
– Discover the system’s constraints
– Make a decision how to use the system’s constraints.
– Subordinate everything else to the above decision.
– Develop the system’s constraints.
– If a constraint has been broken, go back to the first step.
Additionally, there are three important methods for implementing the Theory of Constrains.
A Socratic method – the main point is do not provide somebody with exact answers, but asking questions that help to create unique solutions
Effect-Cause-Effect method – Goldratt defines it: “The process of speculating a cause for a given effect (hypothesis) and then predicting other effects from the same cause. Verifying each predicted effect builds a logical tree and provides a powerful way to determine core problems”
Evaporating Clouds Method – you could find the definition in the Chapter 4. The idea of this technique is to involve verbalizing the assumptions underlying the problem and to challenge them to find the invalid assumptions.
Philosophy of Business.
The second part of “The Goal” includes five chapters. The author tells readers about the devastating impact of the organization’s psychology and reaching the initial consensus. The author, also, explains how to transform from the ordinary manager to the leader.
Furthermore, there are three significant concepts: increase throughput, decline stock or resources, and limit operating expense. All these ideas developed to help the company to reach more money. As a result, according to the Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt it is a philosophy of business.
To summarize, “The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement” is a masterpiece for everybody who is interested in business and success. The book is perfect in its simplicity and understandable structure. For sure, the novel teaches people about the importance of strategic planning and constraint management.
Michael Baker is the youngest co-founder of EduBirdie. He creates guides on self improvement and leadership and holds the seminars for his employees. Right now he plans to start a new project for postgraduate students, which will help find employment for young professionals.
