Managing the architecture of intellectual capital: Implications for strategic human resource management

Competitive advantage increasingly depends on a firm's ability to develop and leverage knowledge-based assets. In contrast to previous work in strategic human resource management (SHRM), we argue that there are important differences among types of intellectual capital and that each type requires a different configuration of HRM practices. We establish a framework of intellectual capital that is composed of three different elements: human capital, social capital, and organizational capital. These three elements of intellectual capital are then positioned within a two dimensional matrix of strategic value and uniqueness. Based on this matrix we develop a classification of four types of intellectual capital: core, compulsory, ancillary, and idiosyncratic intellectual capital. Each is viewed as having a different strategic role in organizations, and each is developed and supported by a different configuration of HR systems.