Abstract
The effects of climate change are regarded as one of the most significant threats to humanity, affecting livelihoods at many levels across the globe. Organisations are called to respond to the climate-related risks and opportunities to make a societal impact while still remaining competitive in a volatile environment. Empirical evidence suggests that intellectual capital (IC) is a key component of organisations and drives financial and environmental performance at an organisational level; however, a need exists to focus more on qualitative studies that are rooted in practice to support quantitative findings, while focusing on value creation beyond the boundary of organisations. The purpose of the thesis was to develop a value-creation framework for IC, together with 4IR technologies, to respond to climate-related risks and opportunities to create value beyond the boundaries of organisations.
The thesis applied a two-phase research method. The first phase applied a thematic content analysis of the integrated reports and climate reports of the top six listed banks on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in order to obtain a deeper understanding of climate action practices. The second phase of the methodology was to evaluate the indicators derived from the first phase of the research and supporting literature to arrive at a consensus of important indicators for the value-creation framework by using a real-time Delphi method.
The findings indicate that all the indicators were essential to respond to climate-related risks and opportunities. Interestingly, significant interrelation was observed between the three dimensions of IC, namely structural, human and relational capital. This finding supports the need for integrated thinking, which was considered an important part of the results of the real-time Delphi. Another key finding is the important mediating role that human capital plays in climate action, including the importance of acquiring climate-related skills and using these skills to innovate and connect with the other dimensions to create value.
The thesis contributes from a theoretical perspective by adding new knowledge regarding the use of IC to respond to climate-related risks and opportunities, supporting the value creation theory and findings from the resource-based view and knowledge-based view. The thesis serves management of organisations, regulators and policymakers with a unique framework to incorporate IC in the business models of organisations by responding to climate change to create value for society and support a sustainable ecosystem. The importance of 4IR technologies for managing climate data is highlighted, which flows into risk management and strategic decision-making of organisations.
The developed framework is intended to be applied by organisations in their climate strategies by highlighting the importance of integrating SC, HC and RC as key drivers to respond to climate-related risks and opportunities in order to create value beyond organisational boundaries. The framework...