Alison Bass

Readers who flipped through the November 2000 issue of The Linux Journal, which bills itself as the premier journal for Linux software, couldn't miss the ad for Qsol.com Inc.'s new servers. Centred on the face of a beautiful woman, her full red lips parted invitingly, the ad read: "Don't feel bad. Our servers won't ngo down on you either."

Gary Hamel and his consulting company, Strategos, make a lot of money telling companies how to transform...