A new study suggests that losing an employee, at least in a high-tech field, is not necessarily as bad as it seems. "Firms can wind up learning when employees leave their firm, which is contrary to the conventional wisdom -- that firms learn by hiring away employees," says Wharton management professor Lori Rosenkopf. Why? Because, according to Rosenkopf, there are social networks that transcend companies and allow the employees left behind to gain access to the knowledge being generated at their colleague's new place of business. She is not talking about corporate spying, but rather the flow of ideas and information among professionals who work in the same field. In this sense, workers aren't just silos of knowledge and skill unto themselves, but rather are part of a larger social network with broader benefits.
