The value of intangibles and diversity on boards looking towards economic future returns: Evidence from non-financial Iberian business organisations

This research aims to identify the impact of intellectual resources in business organisations and to examine how diversity on boards, as an embodiment of expertise and knowledge, affects performance. Using information from 125 businesses listed on an Iberian stock exchange, two complimentary models are regressed with the objective of identifying to what extent intangible assets and diversity on boards are sources of effective future economic benefit. The salient conclusions are that intangibles are immaterial factors that drive businesses towards future economic benefits; that focus on intangibles has the potential to drive companies towards a sustainable financial and strategic positioning and enhance economic growth. Thus, from a pure accounting perspective, identification and measurement of intangibles can contribute to better decision-making. The empirical results provide both an understanding of how internal governance mechanisms tested in aggregate positively affect business performance and offer some explanation as to the relationship between internal governance mechanisms and performance.