Velocity

Combining Lean, Six Sigma and the Theory of Constraints to Achieve Breakthrough Performance

By: Dee Jacob, Suzan Bergland, Jeff Cox

Narrated by: Linda Weber

Length: 6 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Millions of readers and listeners remember The Goal, the landmark business novel that sets forth the essential principles of Eliyahu Goldratt's innovative methods of production. Now, from the AGI-Goldratt Institute and Jeff Cox, the same creative writer who co-authored The Goal, comes Velocity the book that reveals how to achieve outstanding bottom-line results by integrating the world's three most powerful continuous improvement disciplines: Lean, Six Sigma, and Goldratt's Theory of Constraints.

Dee Jacob and Suzan Bergland, two principals of AGI, show you how to apply their insights and methods to your organization in order to shorten lead times, slash inventories, reduce production variability, and increase sales. Writer Jeff Cox returns with the vivid, realistic style that made The Goal so entertaining yet so edifying. Thrust into the presidency of the subsidiary company where she has managed sales and marketing, Amy Cieolara is mandated by her corporate superiors to implement Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in order to appease a key customer. But as time goes on, and corporate pressure mounts, Amy arrives at the series of steps that form the core of the Velocity Approach.

Velocity offers keen insight into the human and organizational factors that so often derail growth while teaching you proven, practical techniques for restarting and revving up the internal engines of your company to reach new levels of success.

©2010 The Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute and Jeff Cox (P)2010 Simon & Schuster

An interesting way to hear ideas

Any additional comments?

This is my first “business novel” and while I am not sure this will be the next fad. This is a very interesting way to help you think about the topics at hand. The storyline keeps the content from becoming too dense, and at times keeps it from becoming dense enough. This was a great listen during work outs. The content I wanted to hear; delivered slowly overtime as if I was having a conversation over a dink with a friend.

Not as the goal.. But good

It shows the conflicts in mind set within the fine educated work place minds.. One day someone will write a book on real work place

Uniquely Brilliant

While this is a novel, it IS a business book as well. You will likely learn more about the strategic thinking that goes into running a successful company than just about any pure 'business book'. It's an easy listen and the narrator is superb.

Good but not The Goal

This is a good audiobook but it's not The Goal. This narrator is much better than the sequels to The Goal but not having an ensemble can sometimes be confusing due to the fast paced and sometimes technical issues. I think the plot could be improved to deliver more knowledge with less fat, but overall this is worth listening to if you need this for school or work and don't want to read it.

Good story, but need more details on Lean

If you could sum up Velocity in three words, what would they be?

Entertaining way to understand Lean

Would you recommend Velocity to your friends? Why or why not?

Those interested in learning more about Lean and Six Sigma

Which scene was your favorite?

hard to say

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

not really

toc and lss

ive always looked from a blank sheet trying to implement toc or lss. never from the view of a toc organisation going lss. after this book, i became much more aware of how we are currently living this reality. we have managers strong in lss, the passionate people about toc, and everyone achieving in their own areas and trying to get the other camps to be on their side. the thing is, nobody tells you its lean, or toc!

good read for connecting the dots! love the definition of velocity!

Atrocious Fanfic Self-congratulatory Nonsense

Book: Amateurishly written, reads worse than some fan fiction. The creative writing is atrocious with uneven and bizarre descriptions of people and things, unrealistic dialog and many, many tropes. The business practices they attempt to convey are overly simplified and shamelessly reference the authors' previous work as being the solution to the problems faced in this book. A near complete waste of 6 hours... but at least two "nearly sex" scenes were awkwardly crammed in. Despite haing a female protagonist, it's the boyfriend who actually solves everyone's problems, using tools an undergraduate would learn that nonetheless astound a room full of executives.

The narrator should be legally required to never, ever, attempt a southern or English accent again. she should also learn that the word "resin" is not pronounced RAH-zin...mispronounced at least a dozen times.

Too much novel Not enough nuts and bolts..........

I am afraid the authors fancy themselves as some kind of novelists rather than business writers. Ken Blanchard is a master at this approach; this bunch....not so much. I enjoyed the story, but really did not learn anything about LSS and very little about the TOC of constraints; certainly nothing that was applicable to my field. Well I guess I did learn that LSS is short for Lean Six Sigma and TOC is the abbreviation for the Theory of Constraints.

Disappointing Listening

What disappointed you about Velocity?

This books narrates the day to day problems of a group trying to reach improvements but doesn't describe the tools used. The author's objective is to make you figure out what the tools are. Or at least that is what I think her objective is.
The story is good as describes the issues people has when dealing with new methodologies. I would recommend that the author add, from time to time as the books develops, a brief description of the concepts she wants the reader to grasp

What was most disappointing about the authors’s story?

It was not made clear what was the concept trying to convey

Have you listened to any of Linda Weber’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

her performance is average

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

The story of the human problems around the methodology was interesting

Any additional comments?

See my recommendations
add an index in the books description

Too much fiction

What disappointed you about Velocity?

if you're looking for meat and potatoes about lean/six sigma do not listen to this book. Too much fiction plot development