About Eliyahu M. Goldratt
Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt (Hebrew: אליהו משה גולדרט; March 31, 1947 – June 11, 2011) was an Israeli business management guru. He was the originator of the Optimized Production Technique, the Theory of Constraints (TOC), the Thinking Processes, Drum-Buffer-Rope, Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) and other TOC derived tools. He was the author of several business novels and non-fiction works, mainly on the application of the theory of constraints to various manufacturing, engineering, and other business processes. The processes are typically modeled as resource flows, the constraints typically represent limits on flows. In his book The Goal, the protagonist is a manager in charge of a troubled manufacturing operation. At any point in time, one particular constraint (such as inadequate capacity at a machine tool) limits total system throughput, and when the constraint is resolved, another constraint becomes the critical one. The plot of Goldratt's stories revolve around identifying the current limiting constraint and raising it, which is followed by finding out which is the next limiting constraint. Another common theme is that the system being analyzed has excess capacity at a number of non-critical points, which, contrary to conventional wisdom, is essential to ensure constant operation of the constrained resource. After some work, Goldratt discovered that the habits and assumptions (paradigms) of employees and managers prior to using the software were still prominent and negatively influenced results after implementation. After leaving Creative Output circa 1985, Goldratt created the Avraham Y Goldratt Institute or AGI (named after his father) to promote the Theory of Constraints and help it be implemented worldwide. From the beginning of the 2000s, Goldratt created the self-funded Goldratt Group and launched the Viable Vision initiative.
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