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DO DIFFERENCES MAKE A DIFFERENCE? THE IMPACT OF HUMAN CAPITAL DIVERSITY AND SPECIFICITY ON FIRM PERFORMANCE IN ENGINEERING CONSULTING Theme D: Absorptive Capacity and Learning Strategies

Differences in competences are widely believed to be an important source of enduring competitive advantage. However empirical studies investigating the sources of firm differences in terms of both human resource types, levels and degrees of heterogeneity remain sparse to date. Because firm competence rest on human resources and their relation, this study demonstrates with a uniquely comprehensive data set that human resource types, levels, and heterogeneity in engineering consulting firms are empirically separable constructs that have significant and yet different influences on firm performance in terms of productivity and profitability. Our results indicate that educational diversity matters more for explaining performance differences than levels of experience and tenure of human resources.