Beyond automation: The multifaceted impact of advanced digital technologies on employment dynamics

초록

This study investigates the employment effects of the firm-level adoption of advanced digital technologies (ADTs), such as artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, and Internet of Things. In contrast to previous research that focuses on individual ADTs, we highlight the role of the simultaneous adoption of multiple ADTs and the motivations underlying this adoption. By integrating matched employer-employee data on job flows with firm-level ADT adoption records, we find that ADT adoption increases net job growth primarily by boosting new hires. This hiring-margin-driven employment effect remains consistent when ADTs are adopted in bundles or used for market creation (i.e., product and service development, sales, and marketing). Consequently, a positive employment effect is found only in the service sector, where multiple ADTs are more actively leveraged for market creation than in the manufacturing sector. Our results suggest that the reasons behind the contrasting empirical findings can be better understood by examining how firms practically utilize ADTs to enhance complementarities.

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