SMU Assistant Professor of Strategic Management Gokhan Ertug is studying the role of intangible assets such as status, reputation and trust in business relationships. Human beings are social animals and Assistant Prof Ertug is intrigued by how social networks within a company can affect the productivity of employees. He explained that social capital is the expected benefits that arise from co-operative relationships between people. Together with colleagues at INSEAD, Assistant Prof Ertug wanted to find out whether there were any positive externalities of social capital; that is, whether a leader’s social capital might help not only that leader’s own career but also the work of their subordinates, or even the work of those who depend on their subordinates.