Towards reporting human capital

It is commonly acknowledged that “what gets measured gets done”. There is some debate on how to include human capital on the balance sheet, but it is arguably more important that investors become aware of how human capital contributes to the success of a business. This is an exploratory study into the reporting of human capital. Annual reports from 20 companies in three different industries were examined for two years to document the human capital reporting that is done. The data were categorised into functional areas, and linkages were constructed with strategic frameworks as well as with operational results. The results showed little evidence that managements report on human capital in a manner suggesting it is an area of strategic importance. A review of the lessons learned from this exploration provides strong guidance for future research.