I write down the three measurements which Lou and I agreed are central to knowing if the company is making money: net profit, ROI and cash flow. - Eliyahu M. Goldratt

What you’re saying is that making an employee work and profiting from that work are two different things.

We need financial measurements for sure — but we don’t need them for their own sake. We need them for two different reasons. One is control; knowing to what extent a company is achieving its goal of making money. The other reason is probably even more important; measurements should induce the parts to do what’s good for the organization as a whole.

You’re right,” I say. And then, “It’s a little odd to call the market or the system of material release a bottleneck. Why don’t we change the word, to . . .” “Constraint?” Stacey suggests. We correct it on the board. Then we just sit there admiring our work.