The Goal (Drum-Buffer-Rope)

Biological Parallel

Circadian rhythms coordinate millions of cellular processes using a central pacemaker (the suprachiasmatic nucleus) that sets the drum beat, protective redundancy that buffers against disruption, and hormonal signals that rope downstream processes to the master clock. The heart's sinoatrial node operates similarly: a central drummer sets pace, the cardiac cycle provides buffering capacity, and electrical conduction ropes all chambers into synchronized contraction. Goldratt's Drum-Buffer-Rope is biological coordination made operational.