Before, the value of companies was given by the material assets that it had. The company was worth in direct proportion to the harmonious sum of sweat with financial capital, since this sum was perceptible and tangible to the human eye. According to Joel Barker of Infinity Limited, "In the 21st century, corporate intellectual property will be more valuable than all its physical assets."
Today, in society and in the markets that we are immersed in, a radical change is evident in the perception that one has of a company. A company is worth based on what it gives more than based on what it has. Microsoft, for example, has less physical structure and employees than IBM, however the value of the former is greater than that of the latter. The most important asset that Microsoft has is the human mind. The power of imagination makes it the highest value company on the market ($ 318 million in 1998).
Measuring the degree of knowledge that a company has is not as simple as taking a balance sheet, but it can be easier than it seems when there are huge gaps between the knowledge that one company has in relation to another. If we ask ourselves who has more value in the market, a Mc Donald`s employee or a Mc Kinsey consultant? Surely the answer will jump immediately in an intangible form, but don't worry, we are in the era where "soft" has more value than "hard".
Knowledge is an intangible asset that cannot be seen, but is perceived. In fact, the most valuable companies in the market have employees with superior knowledge to those of the competition and invest money in increasing it. Although we cannot touch it, we should not slow down our path in order to achieve it, perhaps if we could have it and easily touch it, it would not have the value it has today.
"The problem with intellectual capital, human capital or whatever you want to call it is that it is eternal and difficult to learn. There is even a lack of appropriate language to describe knowledge. Lists and diagrams are not capable of calculating the power of the brains gathered in one room, leaving the entire company apart, which is practically impossible. However, we must persevere in our search for knowledge, in reality love is also difficult and yet we do not cease in our efforts to achieve it »according to Riddestràle and Nordstròn.
We must actively adapt to the reality that touches us and coexist in this era of intangibles caused by the knowledge revolution. Actively adapting to reality means not standing still looking to understand the situation and putando against the market, the competition and oneself, but rather it is about adapting to the trend seeking to obtain the maximum benefit that can be obtained.
Various companies are already coupled with this trend, for example Dow Chemical Company has developed an intellectual management model, Hughes Space & Communications Company is managing a knowledge database containing all past project experiences, including customer feedback before the product. Chevron created a team to uncover best practices to uncover hidden knowledge repositories within the company. This resulted in Chevron, a resource map with best practices.
There are many companies that are aware that the knowledge revolution will blur the painting painted by the past eras where everything was tangible color. It happens that we face and we must live with that part of management has not yet changed color to paint the new picture of the economy.
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