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The Reconnection Process: Mobilizing the Social Capital of Dormant Ties

Author

Listed:
  • Emanuela Rondi

    (Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Bergamo 24127, Italy)

  • Daniel Z. Levin

    (Management and Global Business Department, Rutgers Business School – Newark and New Brunswick, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey 07102)

  • Alfredo De Massis

    (Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, 39100 Bolzano, Italy; IMD Business School, CH-1001 Lausanne, Switzerland; Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster LA1 4YX, United Kingdom)

Abstract

Prior research has identified the value of reconnecting dormant ties (i.e., people you used to know), allowing individuals to refresh relationships and mobilize the value inherent in a tie (i.e., its social capital). However, less well understood is how this reconnection process occurs, including how it can be done well or poorly. To address this lack of knowledge, we conducted multi-organizational research combining an inductive, qualitative field study of professional reconnections by individuals in the North Italian textile district (Study 1) and, to validate our findings, a vignette-based experiment with U.S. workers (Study 2). We find that the process of reconnecting dormant ties can and does fail, sometimes dramatically, when people do not refresh the tie and, as a result, do not trust where they stand with each other. Specifically, we find that three elements—remembering, catching up, and perceiving the tie similarly—are key to successfully mobilizing the value of a dormant tie.

Suggested Citation

  • Emanuela Rondi & Daniel Z. Levin & Alfredo De Massis, 2024. "The Reconnection Process: Mobilizing the Social Capital of Dormant Ties," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 35(2), pages 573-600, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:35:y:2024:i:2:p:573-600
    DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2023.1685
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