Identify and classify concepts and components of intellectual capital in the organizations

Measurement and evaluation of intellectual capital which aimed to improve management and increase competitive advantage requires a comprehensive review of concepts and providing components and dimensions that will cover all aspects of intellectual capital. The aim of the study is to identify, and classify concepts and components of intellectual capital in organizations in the literature.
In this review study, articles which were published between the years of 1991 and 2015 were reviewed. PubMed, Scopus, Sciences Direct, and Google Scholar English data bases as well as SID and Magian among the Persian databases were searched. In both databases, keywords such as intellectual capital, components of intellectual capital, concept of intellectual capital and organization were used (in Persian database keywords were translated to the respected language). In the initial stage, a total number of 383 articles were found and irrelevant articles were eliminated. This resulted in, 86 final articles which were consistent with the objectives of the research and included in the research.
Findings: The review indicate that, there is no single precise agreed definition for intellectual capital and its dimensions. Most scholars defined three or four dimensions of the concept and named them differently. The most common popular names for dimensions were “human capital”, “structural capital”, and “relational capital”. In each dimension several components were named. The main components of the human capital skills, experience and knowledge, the most important structural capital components were organizational culture, processes and information systems and the most important relational capital component were customer relationship, customer loyalty and customer satisfaction.
Gathering existing definitions of intellectual capital, and suggestions on its components and dimensions in this study creates a more holistic view of this concept and thus more efficient use of intellectual capital in organizations. Using these components to develop an instrument is suggested.