Project Portfolio Management | By Francis S. Patrick | Read time minutes
In 1984, Dr Eliyahu M. Goldratt introduced the Theory of Constraints (TOC) in his novel 'The Goal.' TOC is an overall management philosophy geared to help organisations continually achieve their goal. The title comes from the view that any manageable system is limited in achieving more of its goal by a small number of constraints, and there is always, at least, one constraint. The TOC process seeks to identify the constraint and restructure the rest of the organisation by using five focusing steps.
The way to get something done is, quoting the well-known Nike footwear advert, to 'just do it.' Focus on the task and get it done. For those who work in organisations that rely on programmes of projects, multi-project environments where resources are shared across a number of projects, there are usually a lot of things that need to get done. An environment of many projects typically generates many priorities for project resources and managers alike and can make that focus difficult to achieve.
Applying the Theory of Constraints (TOC) to the realm of project management provides a whole system view of the challenge.
Read the full article Turning Many Projects into Few Priorities with TOC | PDF | Size 172 KB
Recommended read: How to Determine the Number of Projects to Deliver in a Given Year, by Abid Mustafa.
Recommended book: The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement