Category Archives: Theory of Constraints

The Myth of the Genius Programmer

Posted on June 29, 2009 by John Hunter

Nice talk on fear of looking foolish. The speakers discuss the idea that visibility is good. Don’t hide. Make everything visible and the benefit from many people’s ideas. The talk focuses on software development but is true for any work. “criticism is not evil” – Very true. “At Google we are not allowed to submit code until there is code review.” At the bottom line they are repeating Deming’s ideas: improve the system – people are not the problem, bad … Continue reading →

Posted in Google, Psychology, Respect, Software Development, Systems thinking, Theory of Constraints, webcast | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Pragmatism and Management Knowledge

Posted on August 22, 2007 by John Hunter

Is the Theory of Constraints (TOC) a Theory? [the broken link was removed]: I suppose it’s a question of precision then. There are many things that you could argue are useful, if you argue backward from the end result. Yet they are not predictive, or repeatable to any degree of precision. In addition to “last things” there should also be the “next things” that a theory allows for or predicts. As a pragmatist, it’s hard to argue with results. As … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Management, Theory of Constraints | Tagged | 1 Comment

Multi-Tasking: Why Projects Take so Long

Posted on July 30, 2007 by John Hunter

From a new, interesting, Theory of Constraint blog by Kevin Fox – Multi-Tasking: Why projects take so long and still go late In many companies the impact of multi-tasking is obscured by the fact that in spite of its prevalence most projects still finish on time. While this reliability is nice, it masks the even more significant opportunity to cut project durations substantially. If projects are being delivered on or close to schedule, and multi-tasking is occurring, it can only … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Theory of Constraints | 3 Comments

Metrics and Software Development

Posted on March 27, 2007 by John Hunter

Lean-based Metrics for Agile CM Environments [the broken link was removed] by Brad Appleton, Robert Cowham and Steve Berczuk: Measure Up! Don’t use metrics to measure individuals in a way that compares their performance to others or isolates the value of their contributions from the rest of the team. The last of the seven principles of Lean software development tells us to “Optimize across the whole.” When measuring value or performance, it is often better to measure at the next … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, IT, Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles, Software Development, Theory of Constraints | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Common Cause Variation

Posted on November 30, 2006 by John Hunter

Every system has variation. Common cause variation is the variation due to the current system. Dr. Deming increased his estimate of variation due to the system (common cause variation) to 97% (earlier in his life he cited figures around 80%). Special cause variation is that due to some special (not part of the system) cause. The control chart (in addition to other things) helps managers to avoid tampering (taking action on common cause variation as though it were a special … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, Deming, Management, Quality tools, Theory of Constraints | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Fun Camping Drum-Buffer-Rope Example

Posted on July 3, 2006 by John Hunter

Shmula Goes Camping: Drum-Buffer-Rope Managing the Constraint is mostly about managing the non-bottleneck systems and making them “aware” how fast they should work — when they should slow down, when they should stop, or when they should increase pace and by how much. The Drum-Buffer-Rope system allows for a systems-wide awareness. The Drum The Bottleneck or Constraint, acts as a Drum — it sets the rhythm that the whole system should follow. In Lean Manufacturing, this is also called “Takt … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Quality tools, Theory of Constraints | Tagged

Lean and Theory of Constraints

Posted on March 22, 2006 by John Hunter

David Anderson’s post, Lean vs. TOC – No Conflict [the broken link was removed], is an excellent addition to the previous post here: Lean Thinking and Management. I demonstrated these ideas recently by taking an updated version of my XIT Sustained Engineering paper from the TOCICO in Barcelona [the broken link was removed] to the Lean Design and Development conference and recasting all the exploitation and subordination steps as waste reduction instead. David refers to a post, looking for a … Continue reading →

Posted in Lean thinking, Management, Software Development, Theory of Constraints | Tagged , | 1 Comment

ToC Conference Recap

Posted on November 25, 2005 by John Hunter

Thoughts on TOCICO [the broken link was removed] by David Anderson: “Subordination happens first!” In the 5 focusing steps, the third step is to subordinate the rest of the system to the decision made in step 2 to fully exploit the capacity constrained resource. I had observed in my work with the XIT Sustained Engineering group (the subject of my paper for the conference), that the subordination actions always had to happen first before the constraint could be fully exploited. … Continue reading →

Posted in Management Articles, Software Development, Theory of Constraints | Tagged ,

Management Science for Software Engineering

Posted on November 19, 2005 by John Hunter

Management Science for Software Engineering [the broken link was removed]: using the Theory of Constraints 5 focusing steps and the drum-buffer-rope solution for production flow problems, it was possible to increase the productivity of a sustained engineering department by more than 200%. In the final, quarter of the study period, a 25% increase (elevation) of the capacity constrained resource, produces a 25% increase in overall system throughput – just as the theory and model would predict. Read the full paper … Continue reading →

Posted in IT, Management Articles, Software Development, Theory of Constraints | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Critical Chain, TOC Email List

Posted on August 30, 2005 by John Hunter

Email lists have been going out of style, but they can be a useful way to interact with a shared community (when moderated properly). The Theory of Constraints (TOC) email list (Yahoo group) CriticalChain, is useful for those interested in TOC concepts. This list is for those who are interested in project management via Critical Chain Scheduling and Buffer Management, as well as the application of other aspects of the Theory of Constraints to project management. The target audience for … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Theory of Constraints

Measures of Success

Posted on August 25, 2005 by John Hunter

Measures of Success [the broken link was removed] interview of Alex Knight by Michaela Rebbeck. The interview discusses a model of measurement based on Theory of Constraints ideas. The fundamental difference with my proposition is the shift in the mental model we have about measures. I believe in replacing the ‘stick and carrot’ mentality with commitment to a culture where measures are used to help identify key opportunities for improvement and contribute to a ‘no-blame’ measurement mindset. … In a … Continue reading →

Posted in Management Articles, Theory of Constraints | Tagged