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The making of a manager: evidence from military officer training

Author

Listed:
  • Grönqvist, Erik

    (IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy)

  • Lindqvist, Erik

    (Department of Economics, Stockholm School of Economics)

Abstract

We show that officer training during the Swedish military service has a strong positive effect on the probability to attain a managerial position later in life. The most intense type of officer training increases the probability of becoming a civilian manager by about 5 percentage points, or 75 percent. Officer training also increases educational attainment post-military service. We argue that the effect on civilian leadership could be due to acquisition of leadership specific skills during the military service, and present suggestive evidence related to alternative mechanisms, such as signalling, networks, and training unrelated to leadership.

Suggested Citation

  • Grönqvist, Erik & Lindqvist, Erik, 2015. "The making of a manager: evidence from military officer training," Working Paper Series 2015:7, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2015_007
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    Cited by:

    1. Mieke Rahayu & Fahmi Rasid & Hendy Tannady, 2019. "The Effect of Career Training and Development on Job Satisfaction and its Implications for the Organizational Commitment of Regional Secretariat (SETDA) Employees of Jambi Provincial Government," International Review of Management and Marketing, Econjournals, vol. 9(1), pages 79-89.
    2. Matz Dahlberg & Linna Martén & Björn Öckert, 2024. "Coping with job loss: evidence from military base closures," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 126(3), pages 440-464, July.
    3. Hjalmarsson, Randi & Lindquist, Matthew, 2016. "The Causal Effect of Military Conscription on Crime and the Labor Market," CEPR Discussion Papers 11110, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. John Eric Humphries & Juanna Schrøter Joensen & Gregory F. Veramendi, 2024. "The Gender Wage Gap: Skills, Sorting, and Returns," AEA Papers and Proceedings, American Economic Association, vol. 114, pages 259-264, May.
    5. Sandra E. Black & Erik Grönqvist & Björn Öckert, 2018. "Born to Lead? The Effect of Birth Order on Noncognitive Abilities," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 100(2), pages 274-286, May.
    6. Deng, Lanfang & Tong, Tingting, 2020. "Parenting style and the development of noncognitive ability in children," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    7. Bäckström, Peter & Hanes, Niklas, 2023. "The Impact of Peacekeeping on Post-Deployment Earnings for Swedish Veterans," Umeå Economic Studies 1010, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
    8. Liu, Xianda & Hou, Wenxuan & Main, Brian G.M., 2024. "Military experience and subsequent effectiveness as a director," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 144-176.
    9. Manuel Bagues & Christopher Roth, 2023. "Interregional Contact and the Formation of a Shared Identity," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 15(3), pages 322-350, August.
    10. Wazah Pello-Esso & Ulf Gerdtham & Sara Larsson Lönn & Jan Sundquist & Kristina Sundquist, 2025. "Immigrant-Native Wage Gap in Sweden: Do Personality Traits Matter?," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 26(1), pages 467-489, March.
    11. Christina Håkanson & Erik Lindqvist & Jonas Vlachos, 2021. "Firms and Skills: The Evolution of Worker Sorting," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 56(2), pages 512-538.
    12. Martin Lundin & Oskar Nordström Skans & Pär Zetterberg, 2021. "Leadership Experiences, Labor Market Entry, and Early Career Trajectories," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 56(2), pages 480-511.
    13. Bagues, Manuel & Roth, Christopher, 2020. "Interregional Contact and National Identity," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 526, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    14. Lyk-Jensen, Stéphanie Vincent, 2018. "Does peacetime military service affect crime? New evidence from Denmark’s conscription lotteries," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 245-262.
    15. Savčić, Ružica & Theodoropoulos, Nikolaos & Xefteris, Dimitrios, 2020. "Conscription and Educational Outcomes: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from the Republic of Cyprus," GLO Discussion Paper Series 628, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    16. Ruzica Savcic & Nikolaos Theodoropoulos & Dimitrios Xefteris, 2023. "Conscription and educational outcomes," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 36(4), pages 2799-2824, October.
    17. John Eric Humphries & Juanna Schr¿ter Joensen & Gregory F. Veramendi, 2025. "Complementarities in High School and College Investments," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2446, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University.
    18. Lindquist, Matthew J. & Vladasel, Theodor, 2025. "Are entrepreneurs more upwardly mobile?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 40(4).
    19. Böhm, Michael & Metzger, Daniel & Strömberg, Per, 2015. "Since you’re so rich, you must be really smart”: Talent and the Finance Wage Premium," Working Paper Series 313, Sveriges Riksbank (Central Bank of Sweden).
    20. Bäckström, Peter, 2023. "Empirical Essays on Military Service and the Labour Market," Umeå Economic Studies 1012, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
    21. Luisa Gagliardi & Myriam Mariani, 2022. "Trained to lead: Evidence from industrial research," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(4), pages 847-871, April.
    22. Tasawar Nawaz & Roszaini Haniffa & Mohammad Hudaib, 2023. "From boots to suits: do military directors protect shareholders’ wealth?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 61(4), pages 1479-1511, November.

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    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • M51 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Firm Employment Decisions; Promotions

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