Sociology Seminar 
Time: 12:00 pm – 13:30 pm
Date: 5th of february
Room : 3049

Olivier GODECHOT  (Sciences Po) – “Return on Team Moves”

Abstract : 

Labor market mobility is often viewed as an individual phenomenon, driven by a worker’s essential productivity—an outcome of innate talent and accumulated human capital prior to entering the labor market. In the classical framework, the exit option reveals a worker’s market value and, by extension, their individual productivity. But what if mobility is not only individual, but also collective? This occurs when a firm hires an already-formed team from another firm. In such cases, the output of the group exceeds the sum of its members’ individual human capital. Team moves, therefore, challenge the classical individualistic and essentialist view of labor markets. Previous research (Lazega 2001; Groysberg 2010; Godechot 2017) has shown that team moves play a key role in high-end professions such as law and finance. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork and interviews in these sectors, I document how team moves facilitate the transfer of business activity—especially clients—from one firm to another. To test whether workers are compensated for this transfer, I analyze the French administrative wage dataset (BTS) for managers and professionals in the Paris region. I identify team moves as instances where three to fifteen individuals simultaneously move between firms within the same industry. Using LP-DID staggered difference-in-differences methods, I find that team moves lead to substantial wage gains. Two years post-move, team movers earn 10–12% more than stayers and 3–5% more than solo movers. In finance, the premium is even higher: 20% over stayers and 10% over solo movers. More broadly, team moves are more lucrative than solo moves in sectors where clients are the primary assets, as opposed to those where knowledge and expertise dominate. This suggests that team mobility is an effective mechanism for transferring clients between firms. Ultimately, team moves contribute to the reconfiguration of capitalism by enabling groups of highly skilled workers to leverage their collective power, challenge firm boundaries, and reallocate key assets—especially clients—in pursuit of their own interests.

Zoom link : https://zoom.us/j/96164989399?pwd=AYqhb23SGkaVKS6WaMrkL6jJCOK4bw.1

Organizers:
Paola TUBARO (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Nicolas JULIA (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Patrick PRÄG (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Sponsors:
CREST