Human Capital information: generating intangibles and social responsibility

Abstract

Intangible resources have become the most important in the process of generating business' wealth in a sustainable way, namely the Human Capital. However, the success and survival of the companies is subject to the approval of its stakeholders. This means that companies take steps to ensure that their actions are perceived as legitimate, and one way is by providing voluntary information. Therefore, under the framework of the Theory of Legitimacy and Stakeholders, our goal is to analyze how Spanish companies are voluntarily reporting on its Human Capital in annual reports, information about the generation of intangibles (knowledge) and social responsibility. Thus, using the methodology of content analysis, the empirical evidence shows that companies are reporting relatively little information on topics related to Human Capital being the topics related to training and development of employees the most disclosure. However, with regard to social responsibility, there is a rising trend to provide information concerning the policy of equality and diversity, risk prevention and the relationship between employers and employees.