Abstract
Watson, Blackstone, and Gardiner trace the theory of constraints from its popular exposition into a management philosophy: find the bottleneck, subordinate the system to it, elevate it, and expect the next constraint to appear.
Watson, K. J., Blackstone, J. H., & Gardiner, S. C. (2006). Journal of Operations Management, 25(2), 387–402. DOI
Key findings
- Novel to method — The paper follows the idea out of a business novel into an operations research trail, without treating the novel as clinical evidence.
- Constraint migrates — Elevating one bottleneck reveals the next. A solved constraint is not a finished system.
Limits
Cite-anchor shelf. Crossref issued date is 12 June 2006 for Journal of Operations Management 25(2), 387–402 (some print citations say 2007). This is a history of a management philosophy, not an effect size for personal behaviour.
Application
When you have moved the link that was stopping the chain, look for the next one instead of freezing the first diagnosis (Theory of constraints).