Customer Reviews

Achieving a Viable Vision: The Theory of Constraints Strategic Approach to Rapid Sustainable Growth

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Don't waste your hard earned money on this one, like I did. It is nothing more than an introductory presentation on TOC. First, it is not a real textbook, but just a copy of a presentation handout, guided by an audio CD. Second, 99,5% of the contents is just a plain repetition of material already presented in true textbooks like Goldratt's "The Haystack Syndrome" or Corbett's "Throughput Accounting", which you can purchase by a fraction of the outrageous price charged for this "book". Third, it does NOT tell you, by any means, how to achieve a Viable Vision, which is what the title promises. Instead, the "book" ends with a sales pitch so that you pay $10,000 bucks to attend a 3-day Viable Vision event with "Dr" Lisa (and people from 4 other companies), which I can almost bet, given the short duration, is just to convince you to sign a contract for a 4-year Viable Vision implementation project with the "Dr"...

It's not a book, it's a copy of a presentation handout, and a pretty simplistic presentation at that. The "Dr." is trying to sell you her "consultant" services,

This workbook and audio CD are meant to be used together. If you just listen to the audio CD or worse, flip through the workbook, you will not like the product.

However, if you set aside 3 hours to go through the workbook and audio CD together you will get the best overview of Theory of Constraints that I've heard. And, I'm not alone. Many TOC experts have even commented that Dr Lisa's presentation of the material is the best they have seen and that they even learned something.

If you purchase this product, then I don't recommend her other workbook and CD (Maximizing Profitability). There is some overlap between the 2 products.

If you're trying to decide which one to buy, buy Maxmizing Profitability if your goal is to learn more about Throughput Accounting. If you're interested in a more holistic overview including mafia offers, then go with Achieving a Viable Vision.

Whichever you choose, if you sit down an go through he workbook and audio CD together, you will get a great overview of TOC.

"Achieving a Viable Vision:" is an excellent review (Workbook & CD) of a four hour presentation called "Maximizing Profitability" by Dr. Lisa Lang. I was so impressed with her presentation that I got the book to ensure that I was focusing on and leveraging my constraints to greater profitability. From Dr. Lisa's presentation and the book I've come to realize that we all should be producing, pricing and selling to our capacity (Throughput Accounting) and not to our costs (Cost Accounting). Focusing on local metrics like resource efficiency, product margin or product costing leads to less profitable or even unprofitable global decisions. If we desire greater profits we must focus on and leverage our constraints and not our costs. There are many other TOC books that dive deeper into the "Theory" of TOC or fully explore the Logical Thinking Processes, but "Achieving a Viable Vision:" cuts right to the chase. Make more money by understanding what your capacity constraints are, price and market your product according to those constraints and sell more of the most profitable and less of the least profitable products or services. Dr. Lisa presents the scientific reality of capacity constraints and how they relate to and control profitability in an easy to understand format. Once you get it (understand TOC) it is easier to apply and implement change in accordance with the Reality of Constraints (ROC) at your enterprise. While this book is expensive, it is worth every dollar. As Dr. Lisa is fond of saying, "Here's to Maximizing Your Profits!"

Dr. Lisa shows how to increase the profits in any company without increasing investment, so ROI is infinite!
She takes us for a walk around main management decisions influencing benefit as Product Mix, work overtime, new products, make or buy, product/service mix, pricing and strategy. Her explanations are supported on clear "case" examples. The base of her reasoning is TOC thinking and more specifically, Truput accounting.
The format is very interesting because you get also a CD so hearing the explanations "directly from her" helps to understand the book.

This is two 'books' in one. It is both a physical book, and an audio CD of Dr Lisa Lang presenting the material. The workbook (spiral binding made it easy to open and flip through) is actually the slides used during the presentation. Dr Lisa is a master of the Viable Vision Offer. How often have you wanted to stop a speaker in mid-sentence, and ask them to repeat a key phrase? Now you can.

The material covered is thorough (apprx 3hours of audio on the CD) and following along in the workbook makes it easy to grasp key concepts. I am considering doing such a version of my book, "Purple Curve Effect." If you are trying to "roll your own" viable vision, this is the one book to own. Great detail on strategy and tactics, like the mafia offer. Some throughput accounting as well.

-ski