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Critical chain theory

There is currently a strong pushback against agile. I believe this has much to do with agile’s focus on the team level in conjunction with a neglect of broader organizational constraints. Empowering teams to self-organize is great, but not when it leads to inefficiencies because those teams are failing to align with larger company goals or resource limitations.  Agile can struggle with long-term planning and strategic alignment, as its iterative nature tends to prioritize short-term results over sustained vision. Agile’s promise of speed and adaptability often falls short when it clashes with rigid corporate cultures or regulatory environments, making it hard to achieve the expected benefits. The agile at scale frameworks attempt to address this, however, an imposed framework is a hinderance to the experience gained through strategic trial and error. Controlled experiments at the team level, where hypotheses are linked to overarching organizational goals, without a rigid framework and/or ceremonies to follow, are the path to follow. How to organize teams within the organization? There is no need to reinvent the wheel here. Traditional project management has ways to deal with this. Following critical paths is one of them.

Critical Chain Theory (CCT), developed by Eliyahu Goldratt, offers a robust framework for maximizing flow in a multi-project environment. By focusing on minimizing bottlenecks and staggering project schedules, CCT enables organizations to optimize resource allocation and improve overall throughput. Instead of merely focusing on individual project efficiency, CCT ensures the alignment of all projects to prevent conflicts and delays that commonly arise in traditional project management methods.

At the core of CCT is a scheduling method that incorporates resource dependencies to create realistic timelines, which are further protected by buffers that absorb variability. The theory emphasizes the importance of identifying the critical chain—the longest path through a project constrained by both task dependencies and resource availability. Teams are encouraged to prioritize tasks on the critical chain while avoiding multitasking, which can lead to inefficiencies. Buffer management becomes crucial in execution, as it serves to signal when deviations occur and resources need to be shifted. Collaboration across teams and transparent communication are essential behaviors for maintaining the integrity of the critical chain, ensuring that resources are allocated dynamically across projects to prevent bottlenecks.

In summary, Critical Chain Theory offers a structured approach to scheduling and execution in multi-project environments, reducing delays, maximizing resource utilization, and ensuring projects are completed more predictably and efficiently.