Pin stripes, power ties, and personal relationships: the economics of career strategy

The study of careers is an important component of microeconomic theory. Careers, after all, are closely linked to the structure and function of labor markets, and labor markets constitute a major factor of production considered in virtually all microeconomic theories of the firm (Bain, 1956; Chamberlin, 1933; Hirschleifer, 1980). Although considerable economic research focuses on careers, relatively little of this work provides insights for individual employees. When an employee wishes to be successful by organizational criteria, what should he or she do? This chapter develops a model of individual career strategy based on modern microeconomic theory, discusses the individual and organizational implications of this model, and proposes research questions for further study.