No abstract

Research background: Intellectual capital and its elements, such as reputation, customer relationships, staff competence, are an essential part of a company’s value. However, the issues regarding its recording in company’s accounting books have not been solved. Proper disclosure of an intellectual capital in financial re-ports will increase the transparency of company-related information, thus improving the quality of reporting. Purpose of the article: The paper aims to investigate the opportunities of intellectual capital disclosure in company’s financial reports from the viewpoint of accounting experts. Methods: Financial and accounting managers, board members of accounting services, companies and auditors were surveyed, using the authors’ developed questionnaire. The statements regarding the awareness of the intellectual capital and its disclosure-related questions, as well as a respondent profile section were offered to respondents for evaluation. Data was processed in SPSS, applying the method of frequency analysis and categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA). Findings & Value added: The research results indicate the problem of inconsistency between understanding of intellectual capital and its elements in management theory and accounting practice. The existing accounting standards and regulations do not allow for making a full disclosure of all companies’ assets. Thus, a reliable information about company’s value is not available for shareholders, executives and other stakeholders. The authors suggest using a non-financial reporting practice to reflect the real situation in all companies, irrespective to their status within the meaning of the European Directive on non-financial information disclosure. Current research results will be used for future research and elaboration of recommendations to companies for better disclosure of their assets. Besides, there is a potential for future studies regarding non-financial reporting practice and disclosure of intellectual capital in neighboring countries.

Research purpose. Currently, higher education institutions (HEIs) are faced with new challenges. They have to compete globally and take into account modern trends in education and science. Human capital becomes one of the most significant resources for HEI performance. The purpose of the study is to determine which factors influence human capital development at HEI. Design / Methodology / Approach. Selected human capital development factors were analyzed at Latvian HEIs. Factors including existing laws and conformity assessment procedures and requirements were considered. A survey was utilized to determine the most influential factors in human capital development at Latvian HEIs. The survey results were analyzed by implementing CATPCA to identify the most critical factors. Findings. The results show that essential elements of human capital at HEI are the pedagogical competence of the academic staff, their scientific competence, and the number of professionals from industry that are part of the academic staff. The CATPCA results revealed four main factors influencing human capital development at HEI, which could be divided into 1) staff competence and motivation; 2) legislation and development strategy; 3) availability of resources; 3) cooperation. Originality / Value / Practical implications. Human capital is one of the key factors for the sustainability of HEIs in Latvia. By accounting for the factors that influence the development of human capital in HEIs, institutions can more effectively and proactively develop human capital management strategies, which allow the institutions to achieve performance in the long term.

Abstract. Investments in intellectual capital