
Risk, Boundaries, and System Resilience: Integrating Lean Thinking, Theory of Constraints, and Rasmussen’s Model
This article synthesises multiple perspectives concerning risk (and reward) to illustrate the importance of balancing efficiency with resilience, ensuring that organisations do not inadvertently push themselves toward failure by eroding essential buffers. Always running at full capacity creates fragility. Slack is essential for absorbing shocks and maintaining control.Rasmussen’s model warns against boundary erosion. Small rule violations accumulate and push organisations toward failure.Risk is the product of threats and vulnerabilities. Even small external shocks can be devastating if internal weaknesses are ignored.Boundaries and processes are not bureaucratic obstacles, they are safety mechanisms that enable sustainable performance.