“Competency has to do with mental fitness,” I pressed. “What could happen that would put your perfect workflow into utter disarray?”

Naomi stopped to think. Instinctively, she knew this was a legitimate question. “Our market could double?” she floated.

I nodded. “Yes, but markets don’t double that fast, at least organically. Your volume might double if you had a competitor go out of business, but competitors don’t go out of business that fast either. And, don’t think I am expecting something far fetched with a low probability to reality. What could happen that would put your workflow in disarray?”

“Okay, I think I have one,” she finally responded. “We could get one large order from a customer that we have to expedite. Maybe a customer we have been courting for a while, and we finally get a chance, but it’s large with a short time frame. That could stress test our perfect workflow.”

“So, your team is currently competent at routine efficiency within normal parameters. But, if we get one disruptive order inserted into the workflow, with a tight timeframe, things might get wonky?”

Naomi’s turn to nod. “Yes. It wouldn’t be the end of the world, but it might take as long as two weeks to stabilize the line back to normal turnaround. And, we would appear to be incompetent to everyone, especially the sales department.”

“And, I am not trying to be critical. It is normal to reach a level of competence, only to be challenged with increased volume and tighter deadlines. Competence requires continuous improvement. What scenarios could you see that would stress test your system, stress test your team, that you could prepare for?”