Development of methodological support for the functioning of the intellectual capital of a telecommunications enterprise

The aim of this study was to improve existing methods for assessing the intellectual capital of telecommunications companies and to analyse the relationship between intellectual capital and corporate financial performance. The research employed several methodological approaches to evaluating intellectual capital, including the Balanced Scorecard, the Intellectual Capital Index method, and the Value-Added Intellectual Coefficient (VAIC) model. Statistical analysis of financial and intellectual capital indicators was carried out using data from 40 international telecommunications companies, as well as key players in the Ukrainian market: Kyivstar, Vodafone, and Lifecell. The study assessed the relationship between components of intellectual capital and indicators of financial performance, such as return on assets, return on equity, and the debt-to-equity ratio. Correlation and regression analyses confirmed a significant impact of intellectual capital on financial indicators, in particular a positive correlation between the P/B ratio, ROE, and Debt/Eq. The findings showed that Kyivstar demonstrated the highest overall VAIC score (13.59), Lifecell had a high human capital efficiency index (10.61) but relatively low material capital efficiency (0.71), while Vodafone, despite the lowest VAIC (9.25), showed the highest efficiency in physical capital utilisation (1.80), indicating a strategic focus on the optimisation of tangible assets. The study also introduced an original approach to calculating the weighted VAIC (wVAIC), resulting in the following scores: Kyivstar – 5.27; Lifecell – 2.1; Vodafone – 5.38. The research demonstrated how a deeper understanding of a company’s use of intellectual capital can be achieved. The study also highlighted issues in intellectual capital management within Ukraine’s telecommunications sector, including labour migration, insufficient funding for R&D, and the need to align educational programmes with industry demands. The importance of strategic intellectual capital management for maintaining competitive advantages in the telecommunications market was emphasised. This research offers valuable insights for policymakers, industry leaders, and researchers interested in optimising the use of intellectual capital in the telecommunications sector