An intellectual capital ontology in an integrated reporting context

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riccardo Stacchezzini ◽  
Cristina Florio ◽  
Alice Francesca Sproviero ◽  
Silvano Corbella
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Value Creation ◽  
Social Ontology ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Core Element ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Creation Story ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
The Empirical Analysis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the intellectual capital (IC) ontology in an integrated reporting context to explore the function that integrated report (IR) preparers assign to IC elements and the role of integrated thinking in this process. Design/methodology/approach Social ontology theory helps elucidate how an energy-sector company socially constructed an IC ontology in which IC is a core element of the value creation story told in the IR. The empirical analysis benefited from in-depth interviews with the corporate staff. Findings The subjective nature of IC ontology emerges, in that IC’s function is defined during the very process of IR preparation. The intangible elements drive sustainability-oriented financial value creation according to the sustainability approach embraced by the company’s business model. Integrated thinking both facilitates this perspective on IC is shared among various departments of the company and provides a procedure for scrutinising what counts as IC in this integrated reporting context. Research limitations/implications The research scope is limited to the IR preparation process. Further research could explore IC ontologies beyond this process. Originality/value This study is the first to explore IC ontology empirically within an innovative integrated reporting context. It opens paths to further research on the relationships between IC and integrated thinking.

Drivers for voluntary intellectual capital reporting based on agency theory

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 264-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoria Goebel
Keyword(s):  
Propensity Score ◽  
Agency Theory ◽  
Propensity Score Matching ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Management Report

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the drivers for voluntary intellectual capital (IC) reporting based on agency theory. This study responds to calls for critical investigations of IC reporting utilising Goebel’s (2015a) IC measuring approach to investigate the role of IC value and mispricing for IC reporting.Design/methodology/approachA mandatory management report offers a unique research setting in Germany. The content analysis results of 428 German management reports are used in a regression analysis with leverage, ownership diffusion, IC value and mispricing. Additionally, a propensity score matching approach examines the relationship between IC reporting and IC value.FindingsThe regression results show that companies use voluntary IC reporting to encounter mispricing. IC reporting is negatively associated with leverage, whereas ownership diffusion and IC value show no significant results. The propensity score matching approach is also not significant.Research limitations/implicationsThis study contributes to strengthening and testing agency theory for IC reporting. As mispricing is identified to play an important role for IC reporting, IC research should account for mispricing.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest to reopen a discussion on the declared aims of the German management report and the international integrated reporting model to provide information on value creation, as IC value shows no link to IC reporting.Originality/valueThis study innovatively links IC reporting to IC value and mispricing to investigate drivers for voluntary IC reporting.

The role of audit committee attributes in intellectual capital disclosures

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 756-784 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdifatah Ahmed Haji
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Audit Committee ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Reporting ◽  
Reporting Process

Purpose – This study aims to examine the role of audit committee attributes in non-financial information releases, with a focus on intellectual capital (IC) disclosures, following significant policy changes, mandating the audit committee function in Malaysia. The study argues that, given the changing informational needs of stakeholders and the ongoing discussion on integrated reporting, the role of the audit committee should extend to ensuring the overall quality of corporate reporting. Design/methodology/approach – The study draws evidence from a sample of leading Malaysian companies based on their market capitalisation over a three-year period (2008-2010), a period subsequent to the recent policy changes. The extent and quality of IC information, as a surrogate of non-financial information, was measured and regressed against several audit committee attributes, such as audit committee size, independence, financial expertise and meetings, controlling the overall governance and firm-specific variables. Findings – The findings show a strong positive role of the audit committee function in the overall amount of IC information as well as all three subcomponents of IC information (internal, external and human capital). The results are robust to controls for the overall governance and firm-specific attributes as well as different measures of IC information. Practical implications – The results suggest that the role of the audit committee function extends to non-financial information communication such as IC. Policymakers in Malaysia should, therefore, build on the recent regulatory changes and encourage audit committees to ensure that the overall quality of corporate reporting processes include social, environmental, intellectual as well as financial capital of a firm. Originality/value – This study considers the role of the audit committee in the wider corporate reporting process – drawing attention to its potential role in the espoused integrated business reporting. It also challenges the taken-for-granted assumption that restricts the role of the audit committee function to the traditional financial reporting process.

The role of controlling shareholders in determining investments of intellectual capital among Taiwanese semiconductor companies

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chin-Hsien Hsieh ◽  
Irene Wei Kiong Ting ◽  
Jawad Asif ◽  
Hanh Thi My Le
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Reporting Standard ◽  
International Financial Reporting Standard ◽  
Optimal Point ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Controlling Shareholders

Purpose Although intellectual capital (IC) has been proven to be value-added for companies, the drivers of IC performance remain an under-researched area. From the perspective of corporate governance, the purpose of this paper is to examine how controlling the ownership of shareholders would influence IC performance. Design/methodology/approach This study utilized value-added intellectual capital (VAICTM) and its subcomponents, namely human capital, structural capital and capital employed efficiencies, to proxy for IC performance and regression analyses to assess the association between controlling the ownership of shareholders and the IC performance of Taiwanese listed semiconductor firms for the years 2009–2017. Findings Results show that controlling the ownership of shareholders is nonlinearly related to IC performance. Specifically, controlling their ownership positively affects the level of IC performance up to an optimal point before it turns to be a negative relationship thereafter. Practical implications The results of this study can help policy makers and other stakeholders understand the role of controlling shareholders in determining IC performance. The findings of this study suggest a nonlinear relationship between controlling the ownership of shareholders and IC. Originality/value This study provides an extended perspective in studies related to the determinants of IC by considering the resources provided by controlling shareholders. The definitions of controlling interests and IC applied in this study are compared and aligned with those found in the International Financial Reporting Standard 10 – Consolidated Financial Statements and the International Integrated Reporting Council, respectively.

scholarly journals Intellectual capital reporting, leadership and strategic change

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Slack ◽  
Matthias Munz
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Value Creation ◽  
Corporate Strategy ◽  
Annual Report ◽  
Strategic Change ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Leadership Change ◽  
Content Type

Purpose – A change in leadership can signal a shift in corporate strategy to drive future value creation. To help achieve this, a different emphasis may be placed upon the intellectual capital (IC) resources within the organisation. The purpose of this paper is to examine the changes in volume, composition and emphasis of IC disclosure in annual reports mapped against the re-orientation of corporate strategy and associated leadership change. Design/methodology/approach – A longitudinal period of over three decades (1979-2010) is examined. Adopting a case-based approach, Daimler AG is purposively selected for this research having a number of distinct changes in strategy over the period, reflective of leadership change. Using content analysis, annual report IC-related disclosures (structural, relational and human capital) by Daimler AG are examined, by category and more detailed sub-categories, against corporate strategy. Findings – The composition and emphasis of IC disclosures found in the annual reports changes over the longitudinal period and is reflective of the prevailing corporate strategy at that time. There were four identified periods of strategy, each associated with leadership change. The prevalence and qualitative focus of IC disclosures relevant to each period reflects the importance of respective IC components in corporate value creation. Research limitations/implications – The research is based on annual report IC disclosures within one case company and hence reflect the messages conveyed by that company over the longitudinal period. Additionally, the authors recognise that the annual report is only one source of corporate information, but as a historic record it serves to consistently capture management disclosure over a long-time period. Future research, adopting an econometric approach, could further test the linkages between leadership change, strategic shift and IC-related disclosure. Practical implications – The research reveals how IC-related disclosure shifts to reflect leadership and strategic change within a case company. Through such disclosure, the authors are able to gain greater insight into how a specific business seeks to create value drawing on the components of IC underpinning corporate strategy. Originality/value – The research provides new insights into IC disclosure by mapping its content and emphasis against changes in corporate strategy. This has contemporary significance due to the wider disclosure debate concerning strategy and value creation in the annual report, for instance through integrated reporting. Further, the research shows the value of annual reports for longitudinal disclosure research.

scholarly journals Integrated reporting and narrative accountability: the role of preparers

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (5) ◽  
pp. 1381-1405 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Lai ◽  
Gaia Melloni ◽  
Riccardo Stacchezzini
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Accountability ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Reporting ◽  
International Integrated Reporting Council ◽  
Narrative Mode ◽  
Functionalist Approach ◽  
The Empirical Analysis ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose The International Integrated Reporting Council claims that integrated reporting (IR) can enhance corporate accountability, yet critical and interpretative studies have contested this outcome. Insufficient empirical research details how preparers experience accountability while constructing IR; to fill this gap, the purpose of this paper is to analyse how the preparers’ mode of cognition influences the patterns of accountability associated with IR. Design/methodology/approach A functionalist approach to narratives helps elucidate the role that the IR preparers’ narrative mode of cognition plays on accountability towards stakeholders. The empirical analysis particularly benefits from in-depth interviews with the IR preparers of a global insurer that has used IR since 2013. Findings The preparers’ narrative mode of cognition facilitates dialogue with IR users. It addresses accountability tensions by revealing the company’s value creation process. Preparers’ efforts to establish a meaningful dialogue with a growing variety of stakeholders through broader and plainer messages reveals the potential of IR as a narrative source of a socializing form of accountability. However, financial stakeholders remain the primary addressees of the reports. Research limitations/implications This paper focusses on preparers’ views; further research should integrate users’ accountability expectations. Originality/value This paper offers new insights for dealing with corporate reporting and accountability in a novel IR setting.

Strategic information disclosure, integrated reporting and the role of intellectual capital

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renato Camodeca ◽  
Alex Almici ◽  
Umberto Sagliaschi
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Voluntary Disclosure ◽  
Value Relevance ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to use a theoretical and empirical model to investigate the adoption of the integrated reporting (IR) framework as a strategic choice to signal intellectual capital (IC) to equity investors, with specific reference to the pharmaceutical industry.Design/methodology/approachThe choice of drafting an integrated report is modelled as a means for managers to strategically disclose price-relevant information related to IC. The voluntary disclosure model developed by Verrecchia (1983) is used, also introducing the role of financial analysts to derive a directly reproducible empirical equation.FindingsTheoretically, as IR requires managers to exert an effort in reporting activity, this work shows that in equilibrium, only firms with sufficient IC have decided to adopt IR, resulting in rational investors’ willingness to pay more only for the forecasted earnings of integrated reporters. This theory is tested in the pharmaceutical sector, where the modelling choice is probably more valid, with mixed results.Research limitations/implicationsWhen compliant with the International Integrated Reporting Council’s (IIRC) standards, IR provides the means to disclose IC in a perfectly verifiable way. Furthermore, since the IIRC has only recently been established, the conclusions have only been tested on a limited data set.Originality/valueThis work connects the value relevance of IR to IC by adopting an equilibrium approach, which, in turn, provides specific indications of how to build a consistent empirical test of the theory.

Practitioners’ views on intellectual capital and sustainability

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 367-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maurizio Massaro ◽  
John Dumay ◽  
Andrea Garlatti ◽  
Francesca Dal Mas
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Managerial Practices ◽  
Sustainability Research ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between intellectual capital (IC) and sustainability using practitioners’ perspectives and by developing an analysis of comments and practices published in 1,651 blog posts in one of the leading sources of sustainability research: CSRwire.com. Design/methodology/approach A total of 1,651 posts, containing more than 1.5 million words, published by experts in the field of sustainability are analysed using Leximancer and content analysis. Findings The results reveal IC and sustainability to be complex topics under active discussion by practitioners, and several links to the IC literature are identified and compared. The findings focus on the managerial practices applied by leading companies, as discussed by practitioners, that show IC and sustainability influence each other in answering a plurality of demands or logics. Research limitations/implications First, the authors identify the need to study the managerial practices proposed by practitioners, rather than their company reports. Second, the authors propose developing a trading zone for IC researchers and practitioners. Third, the authors reflect on the role of new communication tools, such as integrated reporting, to connect IC and sustainability. Finally, the authors conclude that the relationship between IC and sustainability could benefit from a fifth stage of IC research that considers justifications of the worth of IC and sustainability practices. Originality/value The paper is novel because it addresses concerns about the relationship between IC and sustainability by examining messages posted by practitioners, rather than examining company disclosures. This leads to an understanding of the impact of practices rather than the desires motivating practice. The results support the view that it is time to remove the boundaries of IC research and work towards reconciling the worth of IC to different people in different contexts. The authors argue that practitioners require scholars to reduce the ambiguity between IC and its expected results. This would open the door to a potentially productive way of understanding IC and the complexity of economic, social, and environmental value. In short, researchers should change their research questions from, “What is IC worth to investors, customers, society, and the environment?” to “Is managing IC a worthwhile endeavour?”

The role of board of directors in intellectual capital disclosure after the advent of integrated reporting

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 2188-2200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filippo Vitolla ◽  
Nicola Raimo ◽  
Arcangelo Marrone ◽  
Michele Rubino
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Integrated Reporting

The impact of intellectual capital on firm performance: a study of Indian firms listed in COSPI

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 935-964 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neha Smriti ◽  
Niladri Das
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Value Creation ◽  
Generalized Method Of Moments ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Share Price ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of intellectual capital (IC) on financial performance (FP) for Indian companies listed on the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Overall Share Price Index (COSPI). Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses were developed according to theories and literature review. Secondary data were collected from Indian companies listed on the COSPI between 2001 and 2016, and the value-added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) of Pulic (2000) was used to measure IC and its components. A dynamic system generalized method of moments (SGMM) estimator was employed to identify the variables that significantly contribute to firm performance. Findings Indian listed firms appear to be performing well and efficiently utilizing their IC. Overall, human capital had a major impact on firm productivity during the study period. Furthermore, the empirical analysis showed that structural capital efficiency and capital employed efficiency were equally important contributors to firm’s sales growth and market value. The growing importance of the contribution of IC to value creation was consistently reflected in the FP of these Indian companies. Practical implications This study has robust theoretical grounds and employs a validated methodology. The present study extends knowledge of IC among academicians and managers and highlights its contribution to value creation. The findings may help stakeholders and policymakers in developing countries properly reallocate intellectual resources. Originality/value This study is the first study to evaluate IC and its relationship with traditional measures of firm performance among Indian listed firms using dynamic SGMM and VAIC models.

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