Publications
Publications
- 2011
- HBS Working Paper Series
Inside the Black Box of the Corporate Staff: An Exploratory Analysis Through the Lens of E-Mail Networks
By: Toby E. Stuart
Abstract
The corporate staff is central in theories of the multi-business firm, but empirical evidence on its function is limited. In this paper, we examine the high-level role of two units of a corporate staff through analysis of electronic communications. We find sharp cross-sectional differences in communication patterns: relative to people in the line organization, staff members are more central in the corporate e-mail network and possess broader networks. However, much of this difference is attributed to who sorts into jobs in the corporate staff, rather than being caused by employment in the corporate staff per se. Results suggest that once people receive the "corporate imprimatur" on their network structures, they retain it even when they move back to the line organization.
Keywords
Citation
Kleinbaum, Adam M., and Toby Stuart. "Inside the Black Box of the Corporate Staff: An Exploratory Analysis Through the Lens of E-Mail Networks." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 12-051, December 2011.