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Managing Skills in Organizations - Evidence from a Field Experiment

Author

Listed:
  • Grabe, Leonhard

    (University of Cologne)

  • Sliwka, Dirk

    (University of Cologne)

Abstract

We study the value of skill management in organizations. In a natural field experiment with 2,582 service technicians, we vary managers' ability to monitor and manage employee skills. We find that removing managers' access to hard information on employee skills reduced training intensity, work performance, and job satisfaction. Combining detailed personnel records and survey data, we show that the intervention lowered employee efforts to identify training needs and managerial attention to employee development. In particular, high-skill employees received less training to broaden their skill set and, in turn, performance losses are driven by higher completion times for complex work assignments.

Suggested Citation

  • Grabe, Leonhard & Sliwka, Dirk, 2025. "Managing Skills in Organizations - Evidence from a Field Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 17727, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17727
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    skill management; training; performance; field experiment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy
    • M12 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Personnel Management; Executives; Executive Compensation
    • M53 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Training

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