Who Gets to the Top? Generalists Versus Specialists in Managerial Organizations
33 Pages Posted: 31 Mar 2009 Last revised: 27 Jul 2012
Date Written: July 27, 2012
Abstract
We study organizations with individuals whose expertise differ in content and breadth. For example, specialists have deeper expertise than generalists, but in fewer areas. Difficulties in communication depend on who communicates with whom. Our analysis, which is consistent with several empirical findings, shows that: (i) an organization is more valuable and its leader has broader expertise if it is more complex, or faces more unpredictability, or if communication technologies improve; (ii) those higher in multi-layered hierarchies have broader expertise; and (iii) any one-dimensional concept (e.g., talent) cannot explain the assignment of different individuals to different levels in hierarchies.
Keywords: Organizations, decision-making, communication, hierarchies
JEL Classification: D21, D23
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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