Older bosses reflect orderly internal succession in organized protection markets.

Evidence

The age difference might be accounted for by cultural differences; that is, Sicilians may be more loyal to their elders and more susceptible to discipline. They would therefore be less tempted to advance their careers at an early age. A better explanation (entirely compatible with cultural differences) assumes simply that in Sicily (and in the United States) the bosses are older because protection firms are more organized, and the top positions are therefore attained through an orderly process which discourages young people from challenging the establishment. — Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Business of…, 269

Categorization

• XREF: Internal labor market promotion maps cleanly onto the career-path distinction in coordination-heavy firms (Doeringer-Piore internal labor markets) and onto the orderly succession logic of long-lived cartels.