Intellectual Capital Performance in Higher Education Institutions: Evidence from Public Universities

Research has proven that success at universities depends on their intellectual capital.Intellectual capital is an intangible asset that supports an organization's growth and advancement.The research aims to investigate the role and relationship of intellectual capital on the performance and efficiency of Malaysian public universities.The education sector, particularly public universities, was chosen due to its roles in building society and the development of human capital in the knowledge-intensive economy.The current study applies three components of intellectual capital, namely human capital, structural capital, and relational capital as the independent variables, while university performance is the dependent variable.Structured questionnaires were distributed to management teams of public universities in Malaysia.With the application of SPSS, the results demonstrate that all three components have a significant effect on the university's performance.Among the four perspectives of the balanced scorecard which is the measurement of performance, intellectual capital was found to be most significant to the internal processes at the university.In dealing with the crucial issues faced in the current era, it is recommended that the university strategize its investment in intellectual capital to strengthen its performance.A model to measure intellectual capital in universities is crucial to ensure quality services are provided to the various stakeholders inclusive of the students, policymakers, and the taxpayers.