The 2014 Intellectual Capital Report

The expansion of the knowledge industry, services sector, deregulation and the emergence of new information and communication technologies have brought to the fore the issue of how knowledge is created, disseminated, retained and used to obtain economic returns.

In Northern Ireland, this development is associated with a structural change from traditional industries to more new innovation-intensive activities, which rely heavily on intellectual capital. In fact these assets have become strategic factors for value creation for companies and as such are central to the economy’s growth and competiveness. The NI landscape is dominated by indigenous small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). If innovation is to be a central driver of economic growth in NI, it is crucial for SMEs to utilise knowledge efficiently and exploit their intellectual capital.

The main objectives of this study are to gain an insight of the level of awareness amongst indigenous MATRIX industry-based Northern Irish businesses of their Intellectual Capital and examine the processes that may be employed to drive and support economic growth by exploiting intellectual capital and local innovation. Surveys were conducted with a number of SMEs and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) in Northern Ireland.