Learning the Theory of Constraints with a Simulation Game

Abstract

This article describes the theory of constraints, an approach for enacting a process of continuous improvement that focuses on the factors that limit a system's performance. A user-friendly simulation game to teach the theory of constraints is discussed. The authors think that practicing managers as well as students of management can benefit from the theory as a useful conceptual framework for improving business performance and can benefit from interaction with the simulation game to reinforce the theory's principles. The game has been played by practitioners and academics at conferences sponsored by the Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute and has served as an active learning tool for students in graduate and undergraduate operations management classes.