TOC uses a lengthy list of techniques to accomplish its ends.
Goldratt offers five focusing steps to locate bottlenecks, and an
equal number of thinking processes, along with the Evaporating
Clouds, Reality Trees and a number of other tools.
A systems approach characterizes Goldratt's style. The five
focusing steps, for example, start with identifying the
system's constraint. Managers are urged to decide how to
exploit that constraint, to subordinate their other decisions to
that goal, to elevate or add capacity to the constraint, and
finally to start over again.
Constraint management covers a variety of issues, often relying
on vivid imagery. The Evaporating Clouds, for instance, are used to
settle disputes, which Goldratt likens to clouds covering the real
motivations behind the participants in the conflict.
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The thinking process tools are especially effective for
improving problem-solving, according to McMullen. They are based on
cause-and-effect diagrams-complex flow charts, some of which, TOC
orthodoxy maintains, can only be properly prepared by a certified
Jonah.
While occasionally arcane, the TOC tools are well worth learning
for any manager. McMullen believes they will eventually become
standard business tools: "Goldratt has basically articulated a
structured way to work through problems on any level."
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