Two core concepts in systems thinking are stocks and flows:
The problem is that there is a lag between the flow doing its work and the stock actually reflecting the work. As an example: even if you launch a training program, you can’t really expect to build expertise overnight.
If you don’t understand this dynamic, you’re prone to overshooting, i.e., applying an overly dramatic correction to a system, which then causes it to oscillate violently in the wrong direction.
At the same time, this lag is also what creates resiliency in a system: a perturbation will not disrupt it immediately, which gives experienced practitioners time to course-correct. In this way, stocks act as dampers.
However, it also means that practitioners need to be capable of noticing small perturbations before they disrupt the system. Otherwise, by the time the problem becomes evident, it will be too late to do anything about it.