Book Reviews   Price: Rs. 125.00 Projects in Less Time: A Synopsis of Critical Chain By: Mark J. Woeppel Reviewed in Monthly Newsletter of the Indian Institution of Production Engineeers Dr. Eliahu Goldratt is an educator, author, scientist, philosopher, and business leader. But he is, first and foremost, a thinker who provokes others to think. Theory of Constraints (TOC) is a method of creating ongoing improvement in operational processes, as well as a general management philosophy. Goldratt introduced this theory to world in his best-selling book THE GOAL, where he applied the principles to a manufacturing setting. In CRITICAL CHAIN, Goldratt builds upon the teachings found in THE GOAL. He quickly describes of constructs of TOC, while spending more time addressing some specific phenomenon of project management versus process management. This is where the “Asha”s come into play. Goldratt’s characters debate and learn why projects often run overdue and over budget, or finish with less completed than originally specified. The characters debate critical path vs. non-critical path, tasks, early vs. last start, resource conflicts, safety buffers in each task, negotiating with subcontractors and suppliers, as well as the erroneous progress accounting / measurement techniques that give everyone a false sense of progress toward completion. Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) has been hailed as the biggest innovation in project management in 40 years. Projects in Less Time; A synopsis of Critical Chian by Mark J. Woeppel explains the main ideas behind this breakthrough concept. Woeppel builds on a short, easy to understand synopsis of Eli Goldratt’s pioneering book, Critical Chain, by deftly augmenting it with commentary case studies and implementation advice. Readers not only gain a meaningful appreciation for the ideas behind CCPM, they clearly see significant implications for real projects. Mark does an excellent job relating the important parts of Goldratt’s story to the actions needed to begin to reduce much of the chaos that attends projects in most organizations. Mark’s writing is clear and concise, and illustrations are simple and effective. He sharpens the focus of Goldratt’s work and translates the key ideas into usable information. Success with critical chain continues in many organizations large and small, and on many types and sizes of projects. Mark Woeppel is a very experienced Theory of Constraints expert and widely respected in TOC circles. He’s done a nice job here of explaining Goldratt’s Critical Chain approach to managing projects. Mark has written a chapter by chapter synopsis of Goldratt’s Critical Chain book, along with his own commentary and a case study. My first thought was that this was a cunning plan to write a book very quickly, but even though I’ve already read Critical Chain a half-dozen times, or more, and I’ve used the approach in reality, I am must say that I’ve learnt more from Mark’s additional commentary. If you are in a hurry and want to understand the essence of Critical Chain this is the book to read. There aren’t many wasted words but the important TOC concepts are covered and even expanded upon in this synopsis of Goldratt’s Critical Chain. It would be well worth any project manager’s time to read this (125 pages) book.   Productivity & Quality Publishing Pvt. Ltd. 38, Thanikachalam Road, T Nagar, Chennai 600 017, India | Tel: +91.44.2434.4519 | Fax: +91.44.2434.2009 Read our Blog Working hours Monday - Friday :: 9.00 am to 5.30 pm Sataurday :: 9.30 am to 1.00 pm Holidays on all sundays and public holidays       Design: LEFT FIELD  |  Copyright © Productivity & Quality Publishing Write to us  |  Refer this page