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Title: The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement
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Manufacturer: North River Press
List Price: $24.95
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| The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press Key pillar for Lean Manufacturing | | The concept(s) in this book are a key part of the lean manufacturing grouping of concepts. This is one of the little hinges that swing big doors. It is a high leveragbe activity to identify your constraints and to focus improvements at this constraint. | | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press Everybody can understand | | I found THE GOAL a book written in a direct language. My personal interest toward the topic takes me to look forward to the next book that the author wrote. Perhaps it's not only a question of Economics. | | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press Rolling down hill with my wife and my job | The "Goal" is tied to Fortune Magazine's small business editorial staff taking into consideration the epilogue is dedicated to case interviews by David Whitford, Fortune's "Small Business Editor at Large". To this extent, the book is an editorial for the commercial adventures of the author. On the other hand, unlike other business books, Goldratt manages to keep readers interest between applications by providing the drama of the day-to-day in the life of the principal player in the story, Alex Rogo (Plant Manager) who is positioned in the book to have [only] ninety days to save his plant, job, and marriage. We add to this a general disenchantment by Rogo's managers, the usual skepticism of labor unions, and we have an interesting read.
From a critical review perspective the book misses one important ingredient. There is no index of words or terms. So, the reader becomes displaced in note-taking and highlighting of sentences in the text. Not something all people enjoy when trying to synoptically reference the material; no matter how diligent they might be as scholars. In this regard, the book tries to pass itself off as a novel, when in reality it is a textbook, written in story form.
The story flow is straight forward. The book has a beginning, middle, and an end. Alex Rogo and his working associates deduce along as an academic and consultant named Jonah feeds vignettes of information throughout. Jonah gives Rogo the "Where's Waldo" approach to [a] next-move- dialog: then running to the airport or meeting leaving Rogo to search for answers in the nuanced language of the fog. Rogo then consults his fellow workers, his children, or his, about-to-be, estranged wife for clues to the answer. All while Rogo's boss has Rogo walking a widow's walk with traces of Snidely Whiplash - as Nell [that would be Rogo] remains tied to the railroad tracks. The drama leads to the reader wanting to identify with Rogo and help him prevail in [a] classic fight between good and evil - the company management in this case being uninformed, if not evil.
The book introduces situations known as "constraints" about which Rogo and company are to solve. These constraints revolve around production machines receiving too few, too many, or no production parts at all. Juxtaposed to the shop floor, the on the ground methodology begins with a simple example as Rogo Sheppard's a column of Boy Scouts on their way through the forest and the observation is made that if one of the Scouts does not walk at the same pace as the rest, the column comes apart This writer believes this may be the Goldratt version of Edwards Demining finding an oil spot on shop floor. Anyway, for the reader planning to examine the [whole] book, let me say that there will be times you do associate yourself with certain actors in the story - sometimes in a scary six degrees of separation, both business and personal.
No point in giving away the ending, however, one might imagine that all business books end rather well, and, for the record, please add an index in the next printing.
| | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press Sexist, Simplistic, and Just Plain Boring | In the end of this "novel," the protagonist that just managed a massive turnaround of his manufacturing plant is on his way to managerial infamy as the head of the whole division. But first, he has to choose whom from among his through-putting dream team to promote to his former position, Plant Manager. Does he choose the wizened old Controller who is near retirement? Or the engaging, brilliant young number-cruncher? How about the member of his team who has clearly proved herself as the most intelligent, articulate, results-oriented, and focused member of the plant's management (and, incidentally, the only woman who is in a managerial position in the WHOLE BOOK?) Or, could he possibly choose the bear-like neanderthal who disrupts meetings with his foul language and inane suggestions, and whose current job primarily consists of stopping brawls on the plant floor?
Two points for the neanderthal!
In a senseless and ridiculously dated move, the protagonist bypasses the only female in management and, yes, promotes the neanderthal, who seems to lack any of the intellectual capacity and analytical thought of the rest of the management team. But the choice seems to fit, considering that even apes grooming themselves would be able to recognize the idea of a "bottleneck" in the system, and without consulting a Yoda-like physics teacher sage. How "Alex Rogo" managed to get an MBA without ever learning how to manage people--and, for that manner, an Engineering degree without learning how to manage processes--is beyond me.
But I will give Mr. Goldratt one thing--for a sexist, ploddingly simple business man, he writes pretty well. Despite begrudging the underlying assumptions about women in management and nearly pulling my hair out over Alex Rogo's unending questions (we don't even find out until page 40 that the goal of a company is to--gasp!--make money!), I did stay up until past 2 a.m. reading his glittery prose. And that was two days before my assignment on the book was due.
In fact, there's one brilliant scene in particular, with Alex Rogo and said female manager coming home laughingly drunk late one night only to find his estranged wife waiting for them in the dark...it leads me to think that maybe Eliyahu Goldratt should write soap operas. | | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press This is THE book that will improve your business! | I have lost count of the number of people to whom I have recommended this book. Whatever area of management you find yourself in, and at every level from business studies student to CEO and CFO, you are bound to pick up something useful from "The Goal."
The story follows the complex life of Alex Rogo. With the help of his old friend, Jonah, he identifies and solves problem after problem on the road to saving his manufacturing plant, his own job, those of his colleagues, and his marriage. Each problem is broken down into its simplest components so that the real priorities are easily identified and dealt with.
Satisfying the senior management of his company and the accountants that he has turned around the fortunes of his plant proves difficult, but he supports his arguments with solid evidence.
Managers will recognise many of the problems that Alex encounters as, although part of this fiction, they belong to the real world rather than the theoretical text books that they may be used to reading. The story is far from dull and is easy to read and to understand.
What particularly appealed to me, as a practitioner of process modelling and simulation, was the way that these techniques were used to bring about significant business improvements. The power and value of such techniques was ably demonstrated and should encourage many more companies to put them into practice.
Eli Goldratt has succeeded where many have failed, to put these concepts into language that everyone can understand and therefore benefit.
The only negative comment that I have about this book is that I felt that the background story became a little bit tedious towards the end, but the value gained from reading the rest far out-weighed this minor moan.
Buy it. Read it. Improve! | | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by North River Press Book Description | | Over 2 million copies sold! Used by thousands of companies and hundreds of business schools! Required reading for anyone interested in the Theory of Constraints. This book, which introduces the Theory of Constraints, is changing how America does business. The Goal is a gripping, fast-paced business novel about overcoming the barriers to making money. You will learn the fundamentals of identifying and solving the problems created by constraints. From the moment you finish the book you will be able to start successfully addressing chronic productivity and quality problems. |
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