INTRODUCING THE THEORY

OF CONSTRAINTS

John F. DeVogt, Ph.D.

Professor of Management Emeritus

Williams School of Commerce
Washington and Lee University
Lexington, Virginia
 ABOUT TOC
• TOC applies the methods used by the
“hard” sciences to understand and manage
the material world of human-based systems
including the lives of individuals and
organizations.
• TOC comprises a methodology for solving
problems and implementing the solution
found.
Which System is
More Complex?
A B
 WHAT IS THE
DEFINITION OF A
PROBLEM?
• The traditional definition of a problem is a
source of perplexity, distress or irritation.
• The TOC/hard science definition of a problem
is a conflict between two
conditions/observations. (A basic belief in
science is that conflicts do not exist in reality;
i.e., something is wrong in our understanding.)
 THE THINKING
PROCESSES (TP) OF
TOC
• Tools that enable us to use logic to gain an
understanding of our reality and then to find
ways of improving it.
 BASIC CONSTRUCTS
OF THE TOC TP

• Causality: “If…then…”

• Necessity: “In order to…I must…”

 EXAMPLE OF
CAUSALITY
• “IF…THEN…”

I get I don't get

burned. burned

I touch a I touch a I am
hot stove. hot stove wearing an
oven mitt.
 EXAMPLE OF
NECESSITY
• “In order to…I must…”
Touching a hot stove will
burn me.

Avoid getting Do not touch a

burned. hot stove.
 PROCESS OF
ONGOING
IMPROVEMENT
• No matter what the subject matter,
accelerated improvement involves answering
the following questions

– What to change?
– To what to change?
– How to cause a change?
 ANSWERING THE
QUESTIONS

• What to change? Identify the core conflict or

problem (the constraint).
• To what to change? Construct a complete
solution.
• How to cause a change? Devise plans for
implementing the solution and achieving buy-
in where necessary.
EMPLOYING THE
TP IN ANSWERING
THE QUESTIONS

• What to change? Generic cloud process or

Current Reality Tree.
• To what to change? Evaporating Cloud, Future
Reality Tree, Negative Branch Reservations.
• How to cause a change? Pre-Requisite Tree,
Transition Tree, TOC Buy-In.
TOOL-TYPES OF THE
TP
• Necessity: • Causality:
– Generic Cloud – Current Reality Tree
Process (CRT)
– Future Reality Tree
– Evaporating Cloud (FRT)
(EC) – Negative Branch
Reservation (NBR)
– Pre-Requisite Tree – Transition Tree (TrT)
(PRT)
 WHAT TO CHANGE?

• Both the CRT and the Generic Cloud

Process permit us to state the current
situation as a conflict that must be resolved
if that situation is to be improved.
 The EC
Representation of
the Conflict

B D
One Requirement One Requirement
For A For B

A
The Objective

C D’
One Requirement One Requirement
For A For C
 WHAT TO CHANGE
TO?
• Uncover and challenge the assumptions
underlying the EC structure.
• Find an injection (change in reality) that
effectively destroys an assumption behind an
arrow in the EC.
• Build a FRT from that injection.
• Subject the FRT to Negative Branch
Reservations.
 HOW TO CAUSE THE
CHANGE ?
• The amended FRT will contain more than
one injection. For each of these injections, a
PRT will answer the question: what
currently prohibits its implementation?
• Each PRT requires actions and these are
devised through one or more TrTs.
 TOC APPLIED TO
BUSINESS
ORGANIZATIONS
• Acknowledging and managing the
interdependencies that exist within an
organization and among organizations and
their effect on flow throughout the entire
supply chain.
COST WORLD VIEW vs. THROUGHPUT
WORLD VIEW

• Prime measurement: • Prime measurement:

WEIGHT STRENGTH

• Any improvement of any • Most improvements of

link is an improvement of most links do not improve
the chain. the chain.

• Global improvement = • Global improvement =

sum of local improvement in the
improvements. constraint(s).
THROUGHPUT WORLD
VIEW (Strength)
• Suppliers, Vendors Functions, Departments, etc. Customers, markets

PULL
FLOW
WHAT IS THE THEORY
OF CONSTRAINTS
(TOC)?
• TOC is the TOC Thinking Processes and
the breakthrough, generic solutions that
were derived from applying them to specific
application areas (e.g., marketing, sales,
production, distribution, project
management, human relations, etc.).
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