INASHI – Information frictions in hiring decisions
Over the last decades, internet has sped up and increased interactions between employers and workers, but aggregate unemployment does not seem to have been much impacted by this revolution. This could be because information frictions are not a first-order contributor of unemployment, or because current tools and institutions do not enable truthful and effective communication between firms and workers.
Employers, who are often on the short side of the market, find it difficult and costly to screen potential employees. INASHI aims to provide theoretical frameworks and new empirical evidence about what the remaining information imperfections on the labour market are, how important they are to aggregate unemployment and unemployment of the most vulnerable segments of the labour market, and what solutions can be put in place to improve the recruiting process.
INASHI will combine novel data on how firms search for workers on large online job boards with administrative data on vacancies, and matched employer-employee data.
It will also leverage a series of randomised controlled trials to test how the provision of new information to employers, whether about candidates or about features of the market, help them make better hiring decisions, leading ultimately to higher aggregate hiring, and higher-quality matches.
Three countries will be studies, Austria, France and Sweden, so that INASHI will provide evidence valid in a variety of contexts.
Funded by the European Union (ERC, INASHI, 101087581). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Roland Rathelot – Principal investigator
Roland Rathelot is a professor at ENSAE Paris and at the Institut Polytechnique de Paris, researcher at the Centre de Recherche en Économie et STatistique (CREST) and researcher associate at Hi! PARIS.
Previously, Roland was an Assistant then Associate Professor at tWarwick University. He obtained his PhD in Economics from Paris School of Economics.
His fields of research are Labour economics and econometrics.
Marion Brouard – PhD student (2020-2024) and Post-doctoral Researcher (2024-2028)
Marion Brouard is a postdoctoral researcher at ifo-LMU, after completing her PhD in Economics at CREST-Institut Polytechnique de Paris. Her research lies in the field of public economics and labor economics, with a focus on social insurance programs and labor market inequalities.
Within INASHI, she takes part in the project aiming at understanding how employers react to information about candidates’ skills.
Louise Demoury – Research engineer (2024-2025) and Economist (2025-2028)
Louise Demoury is an Economist at Institut des Politiques Publiques. Until August 2025, she was a Research Engineer at CREST. She hold a Master’s degree in Economics from Institut Polytechnique de Paris.
Within INASHI, she takes part in the project aiming at understanding how decisions made by employers when posting jobs impact job seekers’ applications decisions.
Adelaide Fabbi – PhD student (2023-2026)
Adelaide Fabbi is a PhD student in Economics at CREST-Institut Polytechnique de Paris. She completed the PhD track at the same institution and holds a Master’s degree with honors from the University of Bologna.
Her current research interests focus on empirical studies, policy evaluation, and micro-econometric analysis in labor economics, specifically related to monopsony power and job search dynamics.
Within INASHI, she takes part in the project aiming at understanding how decisions made by employers when posting jobs impact job seekers’ applications decisions.
Jeremias Klaeui – Postdoctoral Researcher (2024-2026)
Jeremias Klaeui is a Postdoctoral Researcher at CREST. He obtained his PhD in Economics at University of Lausanne (HEC Lausanne) in 2024. His research interests are in the field of labor economics, with a focus on workers’ search for jobs and firms’ search for employees.
Within INASHI, he takes part in the project aiming at understanding how public employment services can best support employers facing hiring difficulties.
Pierre Rousseaux – PhD student (2023 – 2026)
Pierre Rousseaux is a PhD student at CREST-Institut Polytechnique de Paris, under the supervision of Prof. Roland Rathelot and Prof. Arne Uhlendorff. His research focuses on labor economics, econometrics, policy evaluation, and trade economics.
Within INASHI, he takes part in the project aiming at understanding how to support employers during the hiring process.
The INASHI ERC project team also works with collaborators who are not funded by the project.
Claire Alais – INSEE Research Associate – Collaborator
Claire works in the Department of Economic Studies at INSEE, investigating questions on French firms’ productivity and the functioning of the labor market. She is also a PhD candidate at CREST-Institut Polytechnique de Paris, interested in studying determinants of professional mobilities.
Within INASHI, she takes part in the project aiming at understanding how decisions made by employers when posting jobs impact job seekers’ applications decisions.
Mattis Gilbert – PhD student (2022-2025) – Collaborator
Mitia Oberti – PhD student (2024-2027) – Collaborator
Mitia Oberti is a PhD candidate at CREST-Institut Polytechnique de Paris under the supervision of Prof. Bruno Crépon and Prof. Roland Rathelot since June 2024. His main research interests lie in labor economics and public policies evaluation, focusing on how information frictions affect the job matching process, labor market integration of foreign workers.
Within INASHI, he takes part in the project aiming at understanding how to support employers during the hiring process.
Project A – Improving Employers’ Access to Job Seekers’ Skills Information
- Innovative approach: INASHI is developing and testing new ways to provide employers with reliable information about job seekers’ skills, in collaboration with France Travail.
- Pilot phase: A proof-of-concept evaluation is underway to assess the effectiveness of an incentivised résumé rating system.
Project B – Informing Employers About Labour Market Conditions
- Large-scale experiment: A randomised controlled trial was launched in France (October 2025) to provide firms with data on wage distributions in their labour market. Initial results are expected in early 2026.
- International collaboration: A complementary experiment is being prepared in Austria, focusing on informing employers before they post job vacancies. This will include a survey to better understand the impact of wage information on hiring decisions.
Project C – Employer Preferences for Vocationally Trained Job Seekers
- Key findings from correspondence study:
- Employers value degrees from vocational training nearly as much as those from traditional education.
- Short training programmes do not significantly increase callback rates for job seekers.
- Next steps: An incentivised résumé rating system is in development, with a planned launch in early 2026.
Recent Milestones
- Launch of French experiment: A major randomised controlled trial, in partnership with France Travail, is now underway to test the impact of wage information on employer behaviour.
- Upcoming publication: A working paper summarising the findings from the correspondence study (Project C) will be released soon.
Collaborations and Partnerships
- Expanding research team: The project has attracted researchers from leading institutions in France and Austria, strengthening its interdisciplinary approach.
- Institutional support: Ongoing collaboration with public employment services in France and Austria, ensuring that research insights are grounded in real-world labour market challenges.
What’s Next in 2026
- Data analysis: The first results from the French wage information experiment will be analysed and shared.
- New interventions: The incentivised résumé rating system (Project C) will be launched, offering further insights into employer decision-making.
- Scientific dissemination: Findings from all projects will be presented at conferences and in academic publications.