I enjoy reading business novels and fondly remember my first read of “The Goal” by Eliyahu Goldratt. I also had the pleasure of reading another book titled “Velocity: Combining Lean, Six Sigma, and the Theory of Constraints to Achieve Breakthrough Performance – A Business Novel” by Dee Jacob, Suzan Bergland, and Jeff Cox. This book is a natural extension of “The Goal” and offers a very realistic perspective of what it takes to turn a company around.
Rife with the typical political rhetoric that accompanies any change process, you will find a truly intriguing story that discusses how to overcome these challenges and what it can mean to set aside personal agendas and theories for the greater good of the company. Velocity also demonstrates how prescriptive strategies can become an impediment to finding new solutions to solve the problem at hand.
Business novels provide a unique self-paced learning opportunity by teaching new concepts that otherwise may be difficult to explain or appreciate in a formal classroom setting. The story line helps to deepen our understanding and expectations of the concepts all the while improving our ability to retain the information.
Velocity is a great read and, like The Goal, should be mandatory reading for every one involved in manufacturing.
Enjoy and thank you for your continued support!
Until Next Time – STAY Lean!
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