Constraint Theory

Constraint Theory, developed by Eliyahu Goldratt, is a management approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the most limiting factor—or bottleneck—that prevents a system from achieving its full potential. By improving or removing this constraint, overall performance or throughput can be increased efficiently. The theory emphasizes continuous improvement, encouraging managers to systematically analyze their processes, find the bottleneck, and optimize it to enhance the entire system’s productivity, rather than optimizing every part individually. It’s a practical way to prioritize efforts for maximum impact in complex operations.