External consultants are often disparaged because of their language; they just cannot stop using words that do not exist. In fact, consultants regularly use so much jargon in conversation that some people think they are speaking in a foreign tongue.

Purpose – Examines how the British Shoe Corporation eventually failed because, as a result of the strength of its predominant managerial mental model, it fell into a number of exploitative learning‐capability traps. Design/methodology/approach – Considers the core concepts involved before...