Rating: 
Summary: Theory of Constraints applied to Projece Management
Review: As a novel, it is a failure. As a text for the implications of theory of constraints to the context of project management, it is proper. It explores the discussion of " throughput vs cost model" explained in his book "Goal", to the field of project management. The plot is a set of classroom discussions by a management professor, who is unsure of his tenure. ( In the family angle, he has his wife who overspends, with no possibility for having a kid , in a traditional way). The effect of theory of constraints is revisited through other professor. Later, our hero starts to apply this in his class room discussion. The key idea is to recognise how each step in a project is given extra safety by concerned person. The buffers are moved to a creat a common project buffer. Instead of looking at time aspect only, the issue of critical resource is given attention. ( Like bottleneck in production case). After a lot of discussions, he is led to discover the abstraction of critical chain ( rather than critical path) as the basis of project management. The evolution of the concept is explained with diagrams in a highly readable way. (At the end of novel, in the family front, they decide to try surrogate motherhood since they can afford it with his tenure position). The book is relevant for mangement educators. It can not be considered as a novel. GOAL is a unique event. Critical chain is a let down.
Rating:
Summary: TOC applied to Uncertainty
Review: In this book Goldratt is applying the TOC to PM. Here He is introducing a new approach to PM called Critical Chain, applying concepts such as scheduling at 50% of completion time, using early finishes, avoiding student syndrome and Parkinson Law, etc, Goldratt promise that projects using this concepts would finish on time and under budget.I find very innovative the concept of Buffer Management. Here we are taking the slack time from all the project activities and place that time at the end of the project in an activity called "project buffer". Other great concept is do not Multitask, which in my oppinion is one of the principal project of why projects do not finnish on time. A weakness in this book is: there is not an application of Critical Chain in a multi-project environment. In summary, I've found in this book several interesting concept to improve project performance. Now, there are much better bookS than critical chain, in example Critical Chain Project Management by Leach and Project Management in the Fast Line by Newbold.
Rating: 
Summary: Wow, it works in the novel...
Review: As with the Goal, the concepts that Goldratt uses to proselytize are a subtle mix of concepts that are on the border of being completely natural to the reader. Anyone who has managed projects, worked with EVM or other common methods will find a lot of the material that he presents to be just a slight twist on what they are used to seeing. In doing so, he manages to introduce a number of concepts that are new to the audience, but are not totally alien to their knowledge of how projects ought to work. Unfortunately, he goes one step further (as in The Goal) and uses the form of fiction to tie the whole thing together. When I was done with the book, I set it down and said "those were some interesting concepts, and they sure helped the folks in the book". It was a few moments later that I realized that the characters, plot and workability of the concepts in the book was complete fiction. Everything worked so well when the characters used his methods, and didn't work at all when they didn't. That has a disturbing tone to it, since I know plenty of projects that have gone the other way in both cases. This is not to say that the concepts that Goldratt brings forth aren't interesting, valid or usefull (especially when effectively tied to other management concepts), but it is to say that you won't get anything useful out of this book, aside from a desire to attend one of his seminars.
Rating:
Summary: Theory of Constraints applied to Projece Management
Review: As a novel, it is a failure. As a text for the implications of theory of constraints to the context of project management, it is proper. It explores the discussion of " throughput vs cost model" explained in his book "Goal", to the field of project management. The plot is a set of classroom discussions by a management professor, who is unsure of his tenure. ( In the family angle, he has his wife who overspends, with no possibility for having a kid , in a traditional way). The effect of theory of constraints is revisited through other professor. Later, our hero starts to apply this in his class room discussion. The key idea is to recognise how each step in a project is given extra safety by concerned person. The buffers are moved to a creat a common project buffer. Instead of looking at time aspect only, the issue of critical resource is given attention. ( Like bottleneck in production case). After a lot of discussions, he is led to discover the abstraction of critical chain ( rather than critical path) as the basis of project management. The evolution of the concept is explained with diagrams in a highly readable way. (At the end of novel, in the family front, they decide to try surrogate motherhood since they can afford it with his tenure position). The book is relevant for mangement educators. It can not be considered as a novel. GOAL is a unique event. Critical chain is a let down.
Rating:
Summary: The Goal re-applied to PM
Review: I received The Goal as part of my MBA Operations Management course but held off reading until I graduated. I couldn't put The Goal down, nor could I put down Critical Chain. Critical Chain revisits the same ideas from The Goal and applies them to Project Management. I hoped for an aha... and got several minor ones. I do recommend this book. But don't let the book lull you into thinking everything is figured out. I haven't quite figured out where the precise misses are (relative to my world), but I know there are some gaps. Guess I'll have to think some... but don't we all! Recommended reading approach: read once through and then revisit the chapters where our hero is in class and also the one where he is enjoying the TOC lecture (ie. on the second pass, ignore the fictional dialog regarding our hero's fight for tenure). Read SLOWLY at this point, and have a notepad handy to apply the ideas to your world. Think! I learned a heck of alot more the second time through.
Rating: 
Summary: Goldratt is an Industrial Engineering Guru!
Review: Goldratt has done many valuable things for the practice of Industrial Engineering and Operations Management. To fully appreciate what he is doing, one really should have a background in mathematical programming, but what he has done for project management is truly valuable. He is very intentional in his writing style, and fortunately for the layperson, he leaves the linear programming formulation of what he's describing out of things. It is true that Goldratt's ideas could be stated in twenty pages or so, but he is very wise and intentional in not giving away the answers. None of my professors at Berkeley would give out answers when it is better for students to learn things on their own. At least one of the Goldratt books is tremendously helpful reading before starting the graduate programs in transportation engineering. It presents in a very intuitive way what Carlos Daganzo, Gordon Newell, Adolf May, and other big names in traffic flow theory have explained so explicitly in precise mathematical form. The five step focusing process is very useful in the evaluation of cyclic servers and bottlenecks, the statistical process control techniques are necessary to keep projects, plants, and transit operations on schedule, and the evaporating clouds are tremendously helpful in solving planning problems of conflicts between the environment and improving transportation system performancs, etc. Goldratt's work is so much more valuable than optimization techniques alone could ever be. Goldratt helps spot what is and is not a valid optimization problem. It ingrains the basic results of optimization in the reader's mind, so it can be applied quickly and intuitively. All the benefits of the simplex algorithm with none of the mathematical formulations. And yes, a lot of business school curricula are full of it. Mark McDonald
MS/PhD Candidate
University of California, Berkeley
Rating: 
Summary: Quite readable for an educational book
Review: I got this book for my "excellent work". Initially I thought it was going to be boring, but it turned out it is reasonably well written and interesting. However, at times it is too slow and makes you realise why there are all these management summaries out there. The concept of "critical chain" itself is quite useful, if implemented properly. However, I don't think many companies will be able to do this, because of the temptation to remove the buffer time after the new estimates are made, and the fact that people will know this in advance, and still secretly add buffer time of their own to the individual steps. This is what happened where I worked, anyway.
Rating:
Summary: You'll like how it makes you think!
Review: The "business novel" writing style is a good way to learn new concepts and enjoy a good story at the same time. As a project manager, I found the theory of constraints to be a new and provocative idea to this profession.
Rating:
Summary: Should have quit while he was ahead
Review: This book is as painful to read as The Goal is delightful. As the old saying goes, "If you've got a good thing, you might as well beat it into the ground." Can we consider a critical path in a project similar to a bottleneck? Sure; now let's move on to bigger and better things. The writing is third rate and the application isn't enough of an extension of The Goal to lead the reader through the number of pages offered. Between thumbing his nose at academics, big business and anyone else he's been slighted by, Goldratt forgets that his primary mission is to let the reader in on his secrets of project management. If you can't check it out from your public library, then you're better off not bothering with it.
Rating:
Summary: Critical Chain Review - Rochester, NY
Review: This book was absolutely phenomenal. The storybook style of Goldratt made this a superbly easy read, much UNLIKE typical tech manuals. The ideas can be implemented in any business & I loved the examples of various project types that crossed numerous boundaries too!
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