The increasing level of mobility confirms the internationalization of professional labor market. The article investigates different approaches to migration of high-quality specialists with main goal to present an overview of its main topics. As a particular case the situation in the Russian IT sphere is considered. It is shown how it is embedded in the whole picture and reflects main tendencies in this field. We discuss different theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches applied to the study of migration of high-quality specialists starting from brain drain/brain gain paradigm and proceeding to network approach, diaspora studies and transnationalism. The latter have significantly changed analytical perspective allowing for conceptual and empirical discoveries in migration studies and research of technological innovations.