We propose a theory that emphasizes the role of managers for the production and allocation of human capital in firms. Managers invest time to train junior employees, and acquire information about the juniors' abilities that is valuable for job assignments. This dual role of managers matters...

Managers ("bosses") are central to the development and allocation of human capital in firms ("talent management") because they both train junior employees and acquire private information about the juniors' abilities. While a multi-divisional firm would want to allocate workers to jobs wherever...

This paper compares employment with spot trade of labor, formalizing arguments by Coase, Simon, and Williamson. With spot trade, an entrepreneur and a wealth-constrained worker bargain over different actions, and without agreement there is no trade. Employment is a relational contract that gives...

In a field experiment, a large retail chain's CEO asked managers of treated stores “to do what they can” to reduce personnel turnover. Turnover decreases by a quarter for nine months; a reminder treatment triggers a similar decrease for a shorter period. Treated managers report shifting...