In recent years, the way companies communicate their intellectual capital (IC) has literally been revolutionized by the adoption of so-called “Smart Technologies” and digitalization in general. These tools are not only transforming internal processes, with clear benefits for various business sectors, but also the way organizations relate to external stakeholders, such as, for example, investors and customers.
But what exactly is a company’s intellectual capital? It is a set of intangible assets, including employee skills, partner and customer relationships, and technological know-how. Effectively communicating these assets is critical to maintaining a high level of corporate competitiveness and improving transparency to the market. Although the importance of disclosing these aspects is recognized, many companies find it difficult to do so, often due to internal barriers or a lack of understanding of the strategic value of intellectual capital.
Digital technologies, especially social media and online platforms, offer new opportunities to overcome these obstacles. Indeed, in addition to enabling more dynamic and personalized communication, they improve interaction with stakeholders and facilitate access to key information in real or near real time. In addition, digitalization enables companies to collect and analyze large amounts of data, turning it into useful information for making more informed strategic decisions.
Despite the many benefits, however, there are some challenges to be faced, such as staff resistance to change, lack of digital skills, and the need to invest in technology infrastructure. These are just a few of the obstacles that organizations must overcome to fully exploit the potential of “smart” technologies in intellectual capital disclosure.
The study entitled “Intellectual Capital Disclosure and Information Systems, Smart Technologies and Digitalization”, published by Springer Nature Switzerland (Bartolini, Lamboglia, Lardo), analyzes precisely these dynamics, proposing a systematic overview of the enablers and barriers to the digitalization of intellectual capital disclosure. The research highlights how the integration of digital technologies can help not only improve transparency and business efficiency, but also create new opportunities for growth and innovation.
