Abstract

How does access to public equity markets affect real outcomes? We examine the human capital of IPO-filing firms and how going public affects their labor force. While IPO-filing ?rms have high average wages and limited industrial diversification, a successful IPO increases departures of high-wage employees to startups and triggers industrial diversification through employment growth in non-core industries. Surprisingly, IPOs do not significantly affect earnings growth of pre-IPO workers. Instead, post-IPO hires receive larger earnings increases upon joining. Overall, going public has significant implications for the workers, the firm, and labor reallocation across firms.

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Citation

Babina, Tania, Paige Ouimet, and Rebecca Zarutskie. "IPOs, Human Capital, and Labor Reallocation." Columbia Business School, June 1, 2020.

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