The links between the Intellectual Capital Efficiency Ratio (ICER) and the performance of Polish listed companies from the food industry sector

Abstract

Abstract: Currently, intellectual capital (IC) plays an increasing role in value creation for companies. IC‑oriented companies are those which create the greatest value for their shareholders. From this point of view, knowledge on the level of a company’s intellectual capital and its constituents, in addition to standard company analysis based on information from financial statements, is necessary to obtain the full picture of the firm’s standing. Intellectual capital has been a subject of many studies since the first half of 1990s. Initially, the bulk of these studies were related to methods for intellectual capital measurement. Later, interest shifted to the examination of the relationship between the level of a company’s intellectual capital and different measures of a firm’s performance and its other characteristics. Within the last two decades, the members of the intellectual capital community have proposed a number of methods to measure intellectual capital and its constituents. Alas, none of these methods have been commonly accepted. The problem behind the difficulties in IC measurement results from the fact that it relates to intangibles which are largely not recognized by accounting rules and therefore are not captured in financial statements. The main aim of this article is to present a new method for IC measurement – the Intellectual Capital Efficiency Ratio (ICER). The article also examines the links between the ICER and its constituents and other measures of a firm’s performance. This article contributes to the development of intellectual capital theory, but also to the theory of Value‑Based Management. Research was conducted based on an unbalanced panel time‑series sample of 19 companies and a 72‑year observation of companies from the food industry sector listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange between 2011‑2014. This study reveals a strong, significant and positive relationship between the ICER ratio and its constituents with return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) company performance measures and a significant and positive relationship between the ICER ratio and its components and shareholder value measure – price to book value (P/BV) ratio.