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Cognitive Ability and Employee Mobility: Evidence from Swedish Microdata

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  • Kretschmer, Tobias
  • Khashabi, Pooyan
  • Mohammadi, Ali
  • Raffiee, Joseph

Abstract

Cognitive ability and intelligence have been highlighted as the primary personnel measures used for hiring decisions, and gurus and popular business outlets consistently recommend that managers hire people smarter than themselves. However, the sustainability of such hiring strategies with respect to employee retention has not been fully investigated, largely due to data constraints. In this research note, we examine the relationship between cognitive ability and employee mobility, taking advantage of unique microdata from Sweden. Our empirical results show that higher cognitive ability is negatively associated with turnover, implying that cognitively-gifted employees settle with better employment options internally, compared to the external labor market. Nevertheless, when the employee has a significantly higher cognitive ability than their manager , employees are more likely to the firm. The results shed light on the relationship between cognitive ability and mobility, and highlight the role of managers for the success of hiring strategies based on cognitive ability.

Suggested Citation

  • Kretschmer, Tobias & Khashabi, Pooyan & Mohammadi, Ali & Raffiee, Joseph, 2020. "Cognitive Ability and Employee Mobility: Evidence from Swedish Microdata," CEPR Discussion Papers 15265, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:15265
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

    Cognitive ability; Employee mobility; Cognitive distance; Managers; Retention;
    All these keywords.

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