Many influential investors, seeking improved ways of detecting
undervalued companies, have identified intangible assets as the
ultimate creators of future value. New tools have emerged for
quantifying these alternative capitals. Think about the increase in
companies incorporating corporate social responsibility (CSR) metrics
into their public communications. Natural and social catastrophes will
be in the forefront of driving stronger alternative capitals. As we
become more aware of the increasing uncertainty and vulnerability of
the following years, we will look at intellectual and/or social capital
as drivers for protecting our surroundings.
Managing risk and mitigating uncertainty will become more necessary
as we transition to new capital-based institutions. Just as the
Internet followed a path from obscurity to hype to bubble and crash and
then towards integration and true institutional innovation, so will
new-risk management and services. The path for mitigating uncertainty
will be an increasing transparency of capital flows—whether traditional
capitals, alternative capitals, or a mix of both.
New measurement tools and new ways of signaling value will emerge.
At an individual level, these shifts will ultimately lead to the
concept of a “personal capital ecology” as a replacement for narrow
concepts of financial planning. A personal capital ecology will
incorporate concepts such as personal carbon credits and
social-reputation accounts. New institutions will grow as a need to
support these new measurement tools.
