Throughput

The rate at which a system achieves its goal. In The Goal it is the rate at which an organization generates money through sales, measured at the point of delivered value, not the rate at which any single part produces output.

Why it Matters

Local output and utilization can rise while throughput stays flat or falls. Measuring the system by throughput, against inventory and operating expense, keeps attention on the goal rather than on busy parts.

Signals

• Parts reporting high efficiency while the system delivers no more.
• Inventory or work-in-progress growing without more delivered value.
• Activity mistaken for results.

Benefits

A measure tied to the actual goal that exposes local optimizations which don't help and aligns effort with delivered value.

Risks

Optimizing the producing-rate of a part instead of delivery of the whole; counting work-in-progress as achievement.

Tensions

Maximizing throughput can conflict with keeping every resource fully utilized; building inventory raises local efficiency but ties up money and hides problems.

Examples

A factory measured by units sold and shipped, not parts machined; a team measured by features delivered to users, not tickets closed in one stage.