4 February 2010

By Eliyahu Goldratt,
North River Press, $14.95

If, like me, you enjoyed Eli Goldratt’s previous business novel The Goal, then his latest book incorporating his “theory of constraints” will not disappoint you. It contains a similar plot and characters including a procurement officer.

The main character this time is a retail store manager who struggles to match his 20-day inventory targets to customers’ needs. He is supported by his wife, the current head of purchasing, who provides him with helpful insights into the benefits of just-in-time strategy.

Goldratt describes her character as fitting her profession like a glove as she squeezes deals from suppliers. He goes on to describe her “smiling like a tigress” as she closes a deal.

I would have preferred her character to be less tactical and to consider the implications of her actions on the total cost of ownership as she negotiates an extra 2 per cent. Only in the last chapter does she become aware that a risk and reward strategy might bring improved results.

Experienced professionals won’t discover any surprising insights into procurement. And if you are looking for something new then the book’s title should remind you that you won’t find it here, as you begin to realise how obvious the solution to many of the issues really is. At times the inclusion of neat conclusions within the novel is clumsy and – along with the abundance of American clichés – a minor distraction.

This is, however, a light and enjoyable read. While procurement continues to search for a role model, Isn’t it obvious? at least provides our profession with a useful, albeit fictitious, reference point in the procurement officer character.

Stephen Wills

Group procurement director,
AXA UK