Hiring by School Tie Happens All the Time, But Is It a Good Idea?

By Jared Sandberg at jared.sandberg@wsj.com.

The Wall Street Journal - New York, NY.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006; Page B1.

School ties are immensely powerful in the business world, providing preexisting networks of relationships and low search costs. But while relying on them often works out just fine, lost in the mix of well-meaning loyalty to educational institutions and nostalgia for the past is the possibility that the ties that bind can also blind, undermining corporate efforts to build meritocracies.

If prestigious academic degrees make job candidates more attractive, it isn't a big leap to suggest that hiring people with shared experiences at particular schools can make sense too. Walter "Woody" Powell, a professor of business and education at Stanford University, argues that the door-opening component of school connections has the advantage of generating mobility for minorities and others who are underrepresented in the business world. But Prof. Powell also notes research that shows that school ties are less likely to produce a diversity of creative solutions to business problems.

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