I am a PhD student in the Rome Economics Doctorate (RED), a new PhD program jointly run by EIEF, LUISS, La Sapienza University of Rome, and Tor Vergata University of Rome. I am an applied economist who works on topics related to innovation and labour markets.
Before starting my PhD, I have received an MPhil in Economic Research from the University of Cambridge and a BSc in International Economic Relations from the La Sapienza University of Rome.
From September 2024 to December 2024, I visited the Economics Department of UCLA under the supervision of Professor Michela Giorcelli.
CV | Email: maliberti@redphd.it
Skills acquired on the job, whether general or industry-specific, significantly influence workers' labor market outcomes. Workers with general skills tend to have higher re-employment prospects and greater resilience to economic shocks. Using novel data from a recent policy intervention in the Italian labor market, we develop a new measure that captures the tasks taught in firm-provided training for individual workers. This measure enables us to examine the relationship between labor market competition and firms' decision to invest in general versus industry-specific skills. Our findings indicate that, as theory predicts, workers in more competitive labor markets receive less general training.
The Effects of PhD Programs on Innovation: Evidence from the 1983 Introduction of PhDs in Italy [Job Market Paper]
The Impact of Technology Adoption on Firm Performance and Worker Composition
with N. Dalvit, S. De Santis, L. Iacovone, S. Lombardi, G. Perani, F. Schivardi
This study examines the impact of digital technology adoption on Italian firms’ performance and workforce composition. Analyzing 2011–2020 data, we focus on six technologies categorized as “information” (e.g., Big Data, Cloud Computing) and “operation” (e.g., Robots, IoT). Employing synthetic difference-in-differences methods, we find that adoption increases sales by 5% and employment by 1% for both technologies. Workforce composition effects vary: information technologies raise the share of older graduates and younger non-graduates, while operation technologies increase young, non-graduate workers without significantly altering the overall educational mix. These findings suggest that digital technology adoption enhances firm productivity but may reinforce existing skill polarization, offering limited benefits to highly educated young workers and potentially reducing opportunities for older, less-educated employees, while operation technology adoption has more muted effects on the skill composition.