Advances in the identification and measurement of Intellectual Capital and future developments in the Intellectual Capital research agenda: experience of the Intellectus Model and proposal of a synthetic index

Abstract

Nowadays knowledge has become a key asset for firms in order to build a sustainable competitive advantage. The environment changes quickly and knowledge, and therefore the management of the Intellectual Capital (IC) of the firm, is a critical factor to take advantage of the opportunities. Despite relevant efforts in the field, the emphasis on its study is relatively new. The work is challenging because of the nature of intangible assets based on knowledge and the derived problems involved in their identification and strategic assessment. This paper focuses on experience of the Intellectus Model, analysing the main results obtained during the past 9 years and related to more than 50 applications in different kinds of organization. As a result, a gap between theory and practice is identified and discussed, as well as the main guidelines for the presentation of IC reporting and the proposal of a synthetic index that summarize the main variables which compose different forms of capital.

Keywords:

• Intellectual Capital
• intangible assets
• Intellectual Capital models
• knowledge management tools

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Eduardo Bueno

About the authors

Eduardo Bueno is Professor of Business Administration and the VicePresident of Research & Director of Doctorate Programm at Universidad a Distancia de Madrid (Open University of Madrid): UDIMA (Spain). He received his Ph.D from Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Spain) in Economy (1971). His current research focuses on knowledge and strategic management, complexity theory, intellectual capital and innovation management.

M Paz Salmador

M. Paz Salmador is Professor of Strategic Management at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain). Previously, she was Visiting Researcher at the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Ishikawa, Japan), and at the National North-Western University (Resistencia, Argentina), and Senior Fulbright Scholar at Texas A&M University.

Mónica Longo-Somoza

Mónica Longo-Somoza received her Phd in Accounting and Business Organization from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and she is Full Professor at Autonomous Community of Madrid, Spain, in Economy and Business Administration. Also, she was Adjunct Professor of Business Organization and, Financial Economy and Accounting at Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Her current research interests include organizational identity, knowledge management and strategic management.