The hold-up problem has played a central role in the study of firm boundaries, which is a fundamental element of the economic study of organizations. We study a previously unexplored mechanism by which integration between two parties could mitigate the problem. Based on the social identity...

We study whether group identity mitigates inefficiencies associated with appropriable quasi-rents, which are often created by relationship-specific investments in bilateral trade relationships. We conjecture that group identity strengthens the effect of an agent’s generous action in increasing...

We explore the managerial implications and economic consequences of platform sharing under models of horizontal and vertical product differentiation. By using a common platform across different products, firms can save on fixed costs for platform development. At the same time, platform sharing...

A new approach to the theory of specific human capital, proposed by Lazear (2009), assumes that all skills are general but that firms use them with different weights attached. In Lazear's analysis, the decision to invest in the worker's acquisition of various skills is assumed to maximize the...

We explore the managerial implications and economic consequences of platform sharing under models of horizontal and vertical product differentiation. By using a common platform across different products, firms can save on fixed costs for platform development. At the same time, platform sharing...

This article explores a new model of firm dynamics that incorporates workers, their accumulation of specific human capital, and their mobility. A firm's production efficiency is determined by the levels of its managerial capability and its workers' firm-specific human capital in the model....