View source for Eliyahu M. Goldratt

{{Short description|Israeli business management guru (1947–2011)}}
{{Cleanup-PR|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Eliyahu M. Goldratt
| native_name       = אליהו משה גולדרט
| native_name_lang  = he
| image             = Eliyahu M. Goldratt - photo.jpg
| image_size        = 180px
| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1947|3|31|mf=y}}
| birth_place       = [[Mandatory Palestine]]
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|2011|6|11|1947|3|31|mf=y}}
| death_place       = [[Israel]]
| nationality       = [[Israelis|Israeli]]
| field             = [[Theory of constraints]]<br/>[[Operations research]]<br/>[[Organizational psychology]]<br/>[[Management science]]<br/>[[Education]]
| known_for         = [[Theory of constraints]]<br />[[Causality|Cause and effect thinking]]<br />[[Paradigm change|Slayer of paradigms]]
}}

'''Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt''' ({{Langx|he|אליהו משה גולדרט}}; March 31, 1947 – June 11, 2011) was an Israeli business management guru.<ref>McClenahen, John S: [http://www.industryweek.com/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=11477 "Manufacturing's Influential Thinkers & Doers"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608170929/http://www.industryweek.com/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=11477 |date=2008-06-08 }} Retrieved on: October 24, 2008.</ref><ref>"Tales out of business school." ''The Economist.'' (January 21, 1995).  334 (7898), 63</ref> He was the originator of the Optimized Production Technique, the [[Theory of Constraints]] (TOC), the [[Thinking Processes (Theory of Constraints)|Thinking Processes]], Drum-Buffer-Rope, [[Critical Chain Project Management]] (CCPM) and other TOC derived tools.

He was the author of several [[business fable|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 (novel)|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.

==Life==
[[File:Eliyahu M. Goldratt grave 2.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Eliyahu M. Goldratt's grave]]
Goldratt was born into a rabbinic family, the son of [[Avraham-Yehuda Goldrat]], in British Mandatory Palestine one year prior to Israel's modern statehood. He obtained a BSc degree from [[Tel Aviv University]], and MSc and PhD degrees from [[Bar-Ilan University]] in [[Ramat Gan]], [[Israel]]. Goldratt died from complications arising from lung cancer on June 11, 2011 in his home in Israel.<ref>"Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Renowned Business 'Guru' and Author of International Best-Selling Business Novel 'The Goal,' Dies at Age 64", [http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eliyahu-m-goldratt-renowned-business-guru-and-author-of-international-best-selling-business-novel-the-goal-dies-at-age-64-123796619.html "PR Newswire"], June 14, 2011.  Retrieved June 16, 2011.</ref>

==Work==

===Creative Output years===

After some experience helping Israeli manufacturers, Goldratt left the academic world to join a company called Creative Output. The company developed and sold a software package, the Optimized Production Technology (OPT). OPT was billed as the first software to provide finite capacity scheduling for production environments. This software and the principles behind it were analyzed by a number of major publications<ref>G. Bylinsky. "An Efficiency guru with a brown box". ''Fortune''; 120 (September 1983)</ref>

Goldratt was actively involved in many controversies such as Cost Accounting v Throughput Accounting<ref>Goldratt, E. M.; "Cost accounting is enemy number one of productivity". ''International Conference Proceedings, American Production and Inventory Control Society'' (APICS) (October 1983).</ref> and culminated in the publication of "A Town Without Walls".<ref>Goldratt, Eliyahu M. & Plossl, George; "A Town Without Walls". Whitepaper, distributed during APICS 1984 International Conference in Las Vegas/USA</ref>

Within the company, Goldratt noticed elements that made him uncomfortable.<ref name="My Saga">Goldratt, Eliyahu M.; ''My Saga to Improve Production''</ref> For instance, in the second edition of ''The Goal'' several software implementations did not come close to their estimated potential. 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.<ref name="My Saga"/>

His answer was the book ''[[The Goal (novel)|The Goal]]'' that took 13 months to write. After completion, the book was not well received by the company staff and by large publishers.<ref name="My Saga"/> Finally, with help from Larry Gadd, the owner of North River Press, the book was published and became a great success.<ref>Laurence Gadd. Preface to ''[[The Choice (philosophy book)|The Choice]]''</ref> After a while, Goldratt noticed that many implementations were conducted using the book but not the software. This caused further stress in the company and Goldratt tried to capture the essence of how to implement the solution directly in what is now known as Drum-Buffer-Rope method. He published ''The Race'' to explain some of the concepts he was working on and developed a course to teach people how to manage their production using a computer simulation game.

Goldratt tried to move the company down the path of "consulting," trying to help people rethink the way they did things, but Creative Output's declining revenues and Goldratt's involvement with things other than the sales of OPT software convinced the shareholders to fire Goldratt (and afterward his closer collaborators).

===Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute years===

After leaving Creative Output circa 1985, Goldratt created the Avraham Y Goldratt Institute<ref>{{cite web | title = AGI Goldratt Institute | url = http://www.goldratt.com
 | access-date = June 13, 2011}}</ref> or AGI (named after his father) to promote the Theory of Constraints and help it be implemented worldwide.

During the time of the AGI, Goldratt got deeply involved with the further development of TOC, mainly the [[Thinking Processes (Theory of Constraints)|Thinking Processes]] (launching it publicly in 1991), [[Critical Chain Project Management]] and other applications.  His concepts influenced applications outside manufacturing and supply management, including the field of [[sales process engineering]].<ref name="Selden">{{cite book|title= Sales Process Engineering: A Personal Workshop |first = Paul H.|last = Selden|publisher=ASQ Quality Press|location = Milwaukee, WI|year=1997|pages =33–35, 264–268}}</ref>

In 1997, Goldratt followed his plan to retire from the Institute prior to his 50th birthday.

===Goldratt Group years===

From the beginning of the 2000s, Goldratt created the self-funded Goldratt Group and launched the Viable Vision initiative.

He continued the development of TOC both in the Goldratt Group and in active support for other developments like TOC for Education, TOC in Healthcare, TOC for the Individual (in the continuity of the Odyssey Program, and the publishing of ''The Choice'').

==Writings==
===Business novels===
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Jeff Cox. ''[[The Goal (book)|The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement]]''. (1984). North River Press; 2nd Rev edition (1992). {{ISBN|0-88427-061-0}}; 20th Anniversary edition (2004) 0-88427-178-1 The book introduces TOC process for improving organizations and briefly TOC's accounting aspects. While set in a manufacturing company, the book provides the context for a more generic approach to continuous improvement.<ref name="Rahman1998">Shams-ur Rahman, (1998) "Theory of constraints: A review of the philosophy and its applications", ''International Journal of Operations & Production Management'', Vol. 18 Iss: 4, pp.336 - 355</ref> 
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''[[It's Not Luck (book)|It's Not Luck]]''. (1994) {{ISBN|0-88427-115-3}} applies TOC to [[marketing]], [[Distribution (business)|distribution]] and [[business strategy]]; Goldratt illustrates use of the thinking processes to address policy constraints.<ref name="Rahman1998" />
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''[[Critical Chain (book)|Critical Chain]]''. (1997) {{ISBN|0-88427-153-6}} applies TOC to [[project management]] and illustrates the [[Critical Chain]] method for managing projects while commenting on the [[MBA]] academic environment and its issues
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Eli Schragenheim, Carol A. Ptak. ''[[Necessary But Not Sufficient (novel)|Necessary But Not Sufficient]]''. (2000) {{ISBN|0-88427-170-6}} applies TOC to [[enterprise resource planning]] (ERP) and operations software
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''Late Night Discussions on the Theory of Constraints''. (1998) {{ISBN|0-88427-160-9}}
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Ilan Eshkoli, Joe Brownleer. ''Isn't It Obvious?'' (2009) {{ISBN|0-88427-178-1}} The story is about a husband (manager) and wife (purchaser) working in her family's retail chain. An unexpected crisis helps them to find new ways of doing things, ending in success.

===Nonfiction books===
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Robert E. Fox. ''The Race''. (1986) {{ISBN|0-88427-062-9}} further develops the logistical system called drum-buffer-rope (DBR), based on metaphors developed in ''The Goal''.<ref name="Rahman1998" />
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''Essays on the Theory of Constraints''. (1987) {{ISBN|0-88427-159-5}}
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''What is this Thing Called Theory of Constraints''. (1990) {{ISBN|0-88427-166-8}} addresses the five focusing steps of ongoing improvement and fundamentals of the [[Thinking Processes (Theory of Constraints)|thinking processes]].<ref name="Rahman1998" />
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''The Haystack Syndrome: Sifting Information Out of the Data Ocean''. (1991) {{ISBN|0-88427-184-6}} looks deeper into the idea of performance measurements, examines differences between data and information, and explains the logic of the need for information.<ref name="Rahman1998" />
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. ''Production the TOC Way'' (Revised Edition). (2003) {{ISBN|0-88427-175-7}}
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Efrat Goldratt-Ashlag. ''The Choice'' (2008) North River Press; {{ISBN|0-88427-189-7}}  Revised edition (2010) North River Press; {{ISBN|0-88427-193-5}}    The book discusses Goldratt's approach through a conversation with his daughter Efrat, as he explains to her his fundamental system of beliefs. The revised ed. includes Efrat's own notes she made during the conversation with her father, helping the reader determine the true essence of the book.

===Plays===
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt. 1995. UnCommon Sense. The play (final revision), New Haven, CT: Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute.

=== Influence ===

* The Goal and Goldratt's thinking was a significant influence for the authors of The Phoenix Project,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Making Of The Phoenix Project |url=https://itrevolution.com/articles/construction-phoenix-project-and-selling-devops-downward-spiral/ |access-date=2025-03-04 |website=IT Revolution |language=en-US}}</ref> a book by Gene Kim

==See also==
* [[Business fable]]
* [[Organizational capital]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [http://www.toc-goldratt.com/index.php?cont=21 Biography of Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20111001062433/http://www.goldrattconsulting.com/dr-eli-goldratt/dr-goldratt-biography Profile at his Goldratt Group site]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091128022607/http://www.tocthinkers.com/2009/11/isnt-it-obvious-interview-with-eli-goldratt-mp3.html MP3 60 minute Interview with Dr Goldratt, November 2009]

{{Management}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldratt, Eliyahu M.}}
[[Category:Theory of constraints]]
[[Category:Quality experts]]
[[Category:20th-century Israeli Jews]]
[[Category:21st-century Israeli Jews]]
[[Category:1947 births]]
[[Category:2011 deaths]]
[[Category:Israeli business theorists]]
[[Category:Business writers]]
[[Category:Israeli management consultants]]
[[Category:Deaths from lung cancer in Israel]]
[[Category:Jews from Mandatory Palestine]]
[[Category:Israeli economists]]