THE HUMAN CAPITAL OF AN ENTERPRISE: THEORY AND ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY

Abstract

At the present stage of social development, there is a transformation of the persistent views on the place and human role in the economic system. Human capital assets as a set of productive abilities, personal traits, and employee motivation developed as a result of investment become a key factor in the production process, without which any prospects of economic growth are neutralized. The purpose of the article is to provide a theoretical substantiation and systematization of existing methods for assessing human capital, to identify the advantages and disadvantages of their practical application in the enterprise activity, and to develop recommendations aimed at improving the human capital assessment methodology in order to further reflect information on the cost of human capital assets in accounting and reporting of enterprises Methodology. The methodological basis of the study is the historical and logical method used in the study of the economic essence of human capital assets and the evolution of human capital assessment methodology. Dialectical method and comparative analysis have been used to determine the differences between existing human capital assessment methods and to identify positive and negative aspects of their practical application. The methods of scientific abstraction, induction and deduction, analysis and synthesis have been used in developing the methodology for assessing human capital assets and justifying the opportunities for its integration into the accounting and reporting system of the enterprise. Results. It has been established that in international practice, there is a cost-based, profitable, and expert methodology for assessing human capital assets. Based on the analysis of positive and negative aspects of the application of these methods, it is substantiated that from the standpoint of accounting the most cost-based model of human capital assets is the most optimal since it is based on the principle of actual cost peculiar to accounting practice. Taking this into consideration, a cost-based methodology for assessing human capital assets of the enterprise has been suggested, according to which the cost of human capital assets is calculated by capitalizing the costs borne by the employee and the enterprise at all stages of the formation and development of human capital assets, namely, the costs of developing the employee’s physical abilities (the cost of developing his/her physical abilities), the cost of training (tuition fee in educational institutions), the cost of obtaining professional experience (the cost of professional experience), and the costs of its professional training (the cost of vocational training in the process of his/her employment). Practical meaning. The introduction of the suggested methodology for assessing human capital assets creates the prerequisites for the subsequent display of information in business accounting and reporting, which in its turn increases the level of informativity of accounting data, promoting to meet the growing needs of external and internal users of information, provides an opportunity to consider the value of human capital in determining the market value of the company. Besides, the suggested assessment methodology enables to produce information about the cost of human capital assets of the enterprise, which is the basis for determining the effectiveness of its use. Value/originality. The suggested methodology for assessing human capital assets creates prerequisites for its implementation in the accounting system of the enterprise, which will create the basis for displaying information about the cost of human capital assets in the enterprise’s reporting, which corresponds to the objectives of value-oriented enterprise management.