@article{74e328e50cbe41db9c892231dff8fccd,
title = "Using worker flows to measure firm dynamics",
abstract = "Information on firm dynamics is critical to understanding economic activity, yet is fundamentally difficult to measure. In this article we introduce a new way of capturing dynamics: following clusters of workers as they move across administrative entities. We show that a worker flow approach improves linkages across firms in longitudinal business databases. The approach also provides conceptual insights into the changing structure of businesses and employer-employee relationships. Many worker-cluster flows involve changes in industry particularly movements into and out of personnel supply firms. Another finding, that a non-trivial fraction of firm entry is associated with such flows, suggests that a path for firm entry is a group of workers at an existing firm starting a new firm.",
keywords = "Firm dynamics, Firm linkage, Matched employer/employee data, Personnel supply firms, Successor/predecessor firm",
author = "Gary Benedetto and John Haltiwanger and Julia Lane and Kevin McKinney",
note = "Funding Information: This document reports the results of research and analysis undertaken by the U.S. Census Bureau staff. It has undergone a Census Bureau review more limited in scope than that given to official Census Bureau publications and is released to inform interested parties of ongoing research and to encourage discussion of work in progress. The work was directly funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation by a grant to the Urban Institute titled “From Workshop Floor to Workforce Clusters: A New View of the Firm.” The research is also a part of the U.S. Census Bureau{\textquoteright}s Longitudinal Employer–Household Dynamics Program (LEHD), which is supported in part by National Science Foundation grant SES-9978093 to Cornell University (Cornell Institute for Social and Economic Research), the National Institute on Aging, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The views expressed herein are attributable only to the authors and do not represent the views of the U.S. Census Bureau, its program sponsors, or data providers. Some or all of the data used in this article are confidential data from the LEHD Program. The U.S. Census Bureau is preparing to support external researchers{\textquoteright} use of these data; please contact U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Program, FB 2138-3, 4700 Silver Hill Rd., Suit-land, MD 20233. The authors appreciate the useful comments of Katherine Abraham, Fredrik Andersson, and Jim Spletzer. John Abowd provided valuable guidance in structuring the approach. They also benefited from the comments of three unusually thoughtful referees.",
year = "2007",
month = jul,
doi = "10.1198/073500106000000620",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "25",
pages = "299--313",
journal = "Journal of Business and Economic Statistics",
issn = "0735-0015",
publisher = "Taylor and Francis Ltd.",
number = "3",
}