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Organizational Design with Portable Skills

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Abstract

Workers can move across firms and carry along portable human capital. I present a model where workers' talent is observable but task allocation is non-contractible. To reduce mobility firms may inefficiently match workers with tasks that reduce their outside option. I show that by organizing the firm as an equity-partnership, the efficient task allocation can be implemented and profits increase. This result is attained by shifting control rights to workers who become partners, decide over task allocation and earn dividends as compensation. This provides a new rationale for the widespread presence of firms organized as partnerships in human-capital intensive industries.

Suggested Citation

  • Luca Picariello, 2019. "Organizational Design with Portable Skills," CSEF Working Papers 546, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    • Handle: RePEc:sef:csefwp:546
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    Cited by:

    1. Steen, Frode & Nguyen-Ones, Mai, 2018. "Measuring Market Power in Gasoline Retailing: A Market- or Station Phenomenon?," CEPR Discussion Papers 12879, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Luca Picariello, 2019. "Promotions and Training: Do Competitive Firms Set the Bar too High?," CSEF Working Papers 552, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    3. Simon Dato & Andreas Grunewald & Matthias Kräkel, 2021. "Worker visibility and firms' retention policies," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 168-202, February.
    4. Heski Bar-Isaac & Raphaël Lévy, 2022. "Motivating Employees through Career Paths," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(1), pages 95-131.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Task Allocation; Retention; Control Rights; Partnerships.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D86 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Economics of Contract Law
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J54 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Producer Cooperatives; Labor Managed Firms
    • M52 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Compensation and Compensation Methods and Their Effects

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