Patricia Ordóñez de Pablos

Evidence of intellectual capital measurement from Asia, Europe and the Middle East

The purpose of this empirical study is to investigate the current state of best practices in the trans‐disciplinary field of intellectual capital (IC) management and measurement. First, this paper is intended to provide a conceptual framework for IC analysis. Second, it explores interesting factors regarding the dynamics of measuring and reporting IC in pioneer firms in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. After an in‐depth case analysis of leading firms in this field, a holistic IC model is discussed, which involves managing, measuring and reporting on IC. Finally, avenues for further research are suggested.

Intellectual capital reporting in Spain: a comparative view

In the knowledge economy, caracterized by complex and dynamic competitive environments, knowledge‐based resources represent the true source of sustained competitive advantage for the firm. However, most of these intangible resources are not reported on the traditional annual report. As “what is measured is managed”, firms increasingly need to measure and report these resources. Thus, the intellectual capital report offers a holistic view of the organizations roots of value. There are three main parts to this paper. First, the growing importance of organizational knowledge‐based resources is addressed. Second, a concise review of the most significant on intellectual capital is summarized. Third, an image is shown of what Spanish firms are doing in terms of knowledge management and intellectual capital measuring and reporting. This situation is compared with intellectual capital reports of firms from Asia, the Middle East and other European countries.

Knowledge management and organizational competitiveness: a framework for human capital analysis

Knowledge management literature highlights the fact that, in the new economy, the achievement of a sustained competitive advantage depends on firm’s capacity to develop and deploy its knowledge‐based resources. However, not all resources are equally important for the achievement of this competitive edge. In this sense, this paper proposes an integrative framework for the analysis of human capital combining the advances from three different areas of research: knowledge management, intellectual capital, and strategic human resource management. Juxtaposing two dimensions – value and uniqueness – it analyzes the different forms of firm’s human capital. These are the following: idiosyncratic, ancillary, core and compulsory. Furthermore different human resources practices that should be used to manage such specific forms of human capital are described.

Knowledge management and organizational learning: typologies of knowledge strategies in the Spanish manufacturing industry from 1995 to 1999

Investigates organizational knowledge strategies in Spanish industry; using survey questionnaire covering: organizational knowledge management, organizational learning and performance. Applies Bierly and Chakrabarty’s typology of generic knowledge strategies to perform cluster analysis and classify firms. Implications for strategy emerge: each firm owns a specific bundle of resources forming organizational capabilities; uniqueness nature is outcome of different organizational decisions. Knowledge strategies determine stocks and flows of organizational knowledge and competitive advantage of firms. Decisions involving trade‐offs between knowledge exploitation or exploration, internal or external knowledge, breadth of knowledge base, etc. should be made to configure the best strategy. Results show organizational performance varies across clusters. Knowledge strategy should be integrated among strategic decisions to get good organizational fit.

Measuring and reporting structural capital

This paper is structured into four sections. The first section proposes a conceptual framework to analyze organizational learning and its outcomes. It focuses on the strategy perspective of organizational learning – with special attention to the resource and capabilities theory of the firm – addressing its ontology, contributions and problematic. The second section is focused on a particular type of knowledge – the structural capital – that is institutionalized knowledge in the form of organizational processes, structures, technologies, policies and culture. In sum, it represents all forms of knowledge deposits that are not supported by the human being such as organizational routines, strategies and processes and is the result of learning at organizational level. This section studies the map of different types of organizational structural capital of companies: idiosyncratic, core, ancillary and compulsory. Section three shows the results of a case study done in pioneer learning organizations in Europe regarding knowledge measuring and reporting. It analyzes the main indicators used for quantifying the knowledge embedded in the organization and its processes. Finally, the last section explores the main results and implications for knowledge management drawn from this paper.

Competencies and human resource management: implications for organizational competitive advantage

Purpose – The paper seeks to analyze in depth the organizational requirements for the exploitation of human resource management towards increased organizational performance, and to provide a conceptual framework for the analysis of human resource management in learning organizations.Design/methodology/approach – The paper takes the form of an extensive literature review on human resource management (HRM), organizational learning and human capital.Findings – The major contribution is the Requirements Framework for the Adoption of Technology Enhanced Learning and Semantic Web Technologies, which can guide strategies of effective competencies management in modern organizations. This framework initiates an interesting discussion of technological issues that go beyond the scope of this paper.Research limitations/implications – The Requirements Framework provides the basis for an extensive specification of knowledge management strategies. A follow‐up publication will present the practical implications of the “t...

Intellectual capital reports in India: lessons from a case study

Purpose – In 1994 the Swedish insurance company Skandia published the first intellectual capital report. Following these steps, other European companies decided to report on intangible resources. The Indian company, Reliance Industries Limited, published the first Indian intellectual capital report in 1997. Later other Indian companies also started to build and publish this new type of corporate report. Now the question is: are there any differences between Indian intellectual capital reports and European intellectual capital reports? If so, what ideas can be derived from these differences?Design/methodology/approach – A case study was carried out to analyse how Indian firms build the intellectual capital report. In particular three leading Indian firms were selected: Reliance Industries Limited, Balrampur Chini Mills, and Shree Cement Limited.Findings – The paper offers insights into how leading Indian firms measure and report knowledge‐based resources. The Indian intellectual capital report does not foc...

The importance of relational capital in service industry: the case of the Spanish banking sector

This paper is structured into three basic sections. The first section proposes a conceptual framework to analyse the importance of strategic knowledge-based resources for the achievement of a sustained competitive advantage. In particular, the components of intellectual capital (human capital, relational capital and structural capital) are described as well as their importance for organisational performance in the current competitive environment. The second section is focussed on a particular type of knowledge – the relational capital – that is, institutionalised knowledge in the form of business connections with customers, suppliers, shareholders, alliance partners and other agents. This section studies the map of different types of organisational relational capital of companies: idiosyncratic, core, ancillary and compulsory. Section three shows the results of a case study done in pioneer service firms in Spain regarding knowledge measuring and reporting. It analyses the main indicators used for quantifying knowledge embedded in the firms relations with customers, suppliers, stakeholders and other agents. Finally, the last section explores the main results and implications for knowledge management drawn from this paper.

Implicit feedback techniques on recommender systems applied to electronic books

The goal of this research is to define and capture a series of parameters that allowed us to perform a comparative analysis and find correlations between explicit and implicit feedback on recommender systems. Most of these systems require explicit actions from the users, such as rating, and commenting. In the context of electronic books this interaction may alter the patterns of reading and understanding of the users, as they are asked to stop reading and rate the content. By simulating the behavior of an electronic book reader we have improved the feedback process, by implicitly capturing, measuring, and classifying the information needed to discover user interests. In these times of information overload, we can now develop recommender systems that are mostly based on the users behavior, by relying on the obtained results.

Western and Eastern Views on Social Networks

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to examine social networks from a Western and Eastern view.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses case study methodology to gather evidence of how world pioneering firms from Asia and Europe measure and report their social connections from a Western perspective.Findings – It is examined the basic indicators firms use to measure these networks and the major issues managers should consider when measuring and reporting these knowledge‐based resources. These indicators can be classified into four categories: customer description, customer portfolio, stakeholder capital and social networks. In total the study finds 29 relevant indicators for organizational social connections.Originality/value – The paper provides great value both for academics and executives interested in the analysis of social networks both from a Western and Eastern view.