NON-FINANCIAL INDICATORS FOR EVALUATION OF BUSINESS ACTIVITY

Abstract

It is well-known that financial reports are the main source of information about company performance, and basing on them the business activities and financial position of a company are evaluated. However, under conditions of contemporary economic development company management cannot rely only on the evaluation system of financial indicators in order to manage the company successfully. The main indicators of business activity are not found only in financial data. Such indicators as quality, clients’ satisfaction, innovations, market share quite often reveal the economic position of a company and opportunities for growth better than the financial indicators of company performance reflected in reports.

The balanced scorecard indicators, which include the financial perspective, clients’ perspective, internal processes perspective and innovations and learning perspective, can be considered as the origin of non-financial indicators. The balanced scorecard indicators developed strategy maps were designed to trace and develop cause-effect links between long-term aims and implemented short-term activities. Initially the growth and learning perspective of the balanced scorecard indicators included employees’ skills, opportunities of the information system, and such behavioral factors as motivation and powers; however, some changes were introduced into the balanced scorecard indicators and the growth and learning perspective is characterized now as intangible assets which are divided into three groups: human capital, information capital and organizational capital. Researches prove that the results of non-financial activity positively influence the results of financial activity and an increasing number of company managers transform the evaluation system of their company performance to trace non-financial evaluation indicators and thus use their new strategies in competition.

Despite the fact that in scientific literature the number of publication on this topic increases, researchers have not come to agreement about the content and structure of non-financial indicators as well as about the methods for their measurement and evaluation. The article reveals various theoretical approaches to understanding the nature, classification and measurement on non-financial indicators, which are in scientific literature, are considered as the indicators for measurement and evaluation of intellectual capital.

The aim of the paper is to provide recommendations on the development of non-financial indicators system and its practical implementation in Latvian companies on the basis of the study, analysis and generalization of the scientific economic publications in the field of company performance.

The research is based on the analysis and evaluation of special literature and scientific publications on the non-financial indicators of business activity and their role in the evaluation of company performance. General logical analysis and synthesis methods as well as content analysis and monographic analysis are used in the research.

The article is focused on the analysis and evaluation of previous researches on the non-financial indicators of business activity, overview and systematization of non-financial indicators used in the evaluation of business activity, including small enterprises performance.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.eis.0.5.1099