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10.1 The emergence and development of the theory of human capital

10.2 The concept of human capital

10.3 Human capital assessment

10.4 Motivation and its impact on the formation of human capital

10.1 The emergence and development of the theory of human capital

Elements of the theory of human capital have existed since ancient times, when the first knowledge and the education system were formed. The first attempt to assess human capital was made by one of the founders of Western political economy W. Petit in his work "Political Arithmetic" (1690). He noted that the wealth of society depends on the nature of people's occupations, distinguishing between useless occupations and occupations that improve the skills of people and dispose them to one or another type of activity, which in itself is of great importance. V. Petty also saw great benefit in public education. His point of view was that “schools and universities should be so organized as to prevent the ambitions of privileged parents from flooding these institutions with dullards, and so that the truly ablest may be chosen as pupils.

A. Smith, in his "Study on the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations" (1776), considered the productive qualities of a worker as the main engine of economic progress before. A. Smith wrote that an increase in the productivity of useful labor depends only on increasing the dexterity and skill of the worker, and then on improving the machines and tools with which he worked. A. Smith believed that fixed capital consists of machines and other tools of labor, buildings, land, and the acquired and useful abilities of all residents and members of society. He drew attention to the fact that the acquisition of such abilities, including the maintenance of their owner during his upbringing, training or apprenticeship, always requires real costs, which are fixed capital, as if realized in his personality. The main idea of ​​his research, which is one of the key ones in the theory of human capital, is that the costs associated with productive investment in people contribute to productivity growth and are recovered along with profits.

At the end of the XIX - XX centuries. such economists as J.McCulloch, J.B.Say, J.Mill, N.Senior, believed that the ability to work acquired by a person should be considered as capital in its “human” form. So, back in 1870, J. R. McCulloch clearly defined a person as capital. In his opinion, instead of understanding capital as a part of the production of industry, alien to man, which could be made applicable to support him and contribute to production, there does not seem to be any reasonable reason why man himself could not be considered as such, and there are so many reasons why it can be considered as a formable part of the national wealth.

An important contribution to understanding this problem was made by Zh.B. Say. He argued that professional skills and abilities acquired through costs lead to an increase in labor productivity and, in this regard, can be considered as capital. Assuming that human abilities can accumulate, J.B. Say called them capital.

John Stuart Mill wrote: “The man himself ... I do not consider as wealth. But his acquired faculties, which exist only as a means and begotten by labor, I believe with good reason, fall into this category. And further: "The skill, energy and perseverance of the workers of the country are considered to be its wealth to the same extent as their tools and machines."

Founder of the neoclassical trend in economic theory A. Marshall (1842-1924) in his scientific work “Principles economics"(1890) drew attention to the fact that "the motives that encourage a person to accumulate personal capital in the form of investments in education are similar to those that encourage the accumulation of material capital."

At the end of the 30s. 20th century Nassau Senior suggested that man could be successfully treated as capital. In most of his discussions on this topic, he took in this capacity the skill and acquired abilities, but not the person himself. Nevertheless, he interpreted the person himself as capital with maintenance costs invested in a person with the expectation of receiving benefits in the future. Except for the terminology used by the author, his reasoning is very closely related to the theory of reproduction of the labor force of K. Marx. The key component of the definition of the concept of "labor force" by Marx and the theorists of human capital is the same component - human abilities. K. Marx repeatedly spoke about their development and cumulative effectiveness, emphasizing the need for the development of the “individual”.

Scientific studies of the classics of world economic thought, the development of the practice of market economy made it possible at the turn of the 50-60s of the XX century to form the theory of human capital into an independent section of economic analysis.

Prerequisites for the emergence of the theory of human capital (Human Capital)

The growing importance of the human factor in production, the current conditions of the globalization of the world economy, the informatization of production processes in the conditions of the scientific and technological revolution contributed to the emergence and expansion at the turn of the 60s of the twentieth century. theory of human capital. The theory of human capital is a theory that combines different views, ideas, provisions on the process of formation, use of knowledge, skills, abilities of a person as a source of future income and appropriation of economic benefits. The theory of human capital is based on the achievements of institutional theory, neoclassical theory, neo-Keynesianism and other particular economic theories.

The emergence of this theory in the late 1950s - early 1960s. was due to the need to provide an adequate understanding of the nature of the unusually high growth of the economies of the developed countries of the world, not explained by the quantitative increase in the factors of production used - labor and capital, as well as the inability to offer a universal interpretation of the phenomenon of income inequality, based on the use of the existing conceptual apparatus. Analysis of real processes of development and growth in modern conditions and led to the establishment of human capital as the main productive and social factor in the development of the modern economy and society.

The very birth of the theory took place in October 1962, when the Journal of Political Economy published a supplementary issue called Investing in People.

The founders of the theory of human capital

The theory of human capital was developed by supporters of free competition and pricing in Western political economy American economists Theodor Schultz and Gary Becker. For creating the foundations of the theory of human capital, they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics - Theodor Schultz in 1979, Gary Becker in 1992. Among the researchers who made the greatest contribution to the development of the theory of human capital are also M. Blaug, M. Grossman, J. Mintzer, M. Pearlman, L. Thurow, F. Welch, B. Chiswick, J. Kendrick, R. Solow, R. Lucas, Z. Griliches, S. Fabrikant, I. Fisher, E. Denison and others. economists, sociologists and historians. A native of Russia, Simon (Semyon) Kuznets, who received the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1971, made a significant contribution to the creation of the theory. Kritsky, S.A. Kurgansky and others.

The concept of "human capital" is based on two independent theories:

1) The theory of "investment in people" was the first of the ideas of Western economists about the reproduction of human productive abilities. Its authors are F. Machlup (Princeton University), B. Weisbrod (University of Wisconsin), R. Wikstra (University of Colorado), S. Bowles (Harvard University), M. Blaug (University of London), B. Fleischer (Ohio State University ), R. Campbell and B. Siegel (University of Oregon) and others. Economists of this movement proceed from the Keynesian postulate of the omnipotence of investments. The subject of the study of the concept under consideration is both the internal structure of the “human capital” itself and the specific processes of its formation and development.

M. Blaug believed that human capital is the present value of past investments in people's skills, and not the value of people in themselves. From the point of view of W. Bowen, human capital consists of the acquired knowledge, skills, motivations and energy that human beings are endowed with and which can be used over a certain period of time in order to produce goods and services. F. Machlup wrote that unimproved labor may differ from improved labor that has become more productive, thanks to investments that increase the physical and mental abilities of a person. Such improvements constitute human capital.

2)Authorstheories of "production of human capital" are Theodor Schultz and Jorem Ben-Poret (University of Chicago), Gary Becker and Jacob Mintzer (Columbia University), L. Thurow (MIT), Richard Pelman (University of Wisconsin), Zvi Griliches (Harvard University) and others. This theory considered fundamental to Western economic thought.

Schultz (Schultz) Theodore-William (1902-1998) - American economist, Nobel Prize winner (1979). Born near Arlington (South Dakota, USA). He studied at the college, graduate school of the University of Wisconsin, where in 1930. received a doctorate in agricultural economics. He began teaching at Iowa State College. Four years later he headed the Department of Economic Sociology. Since 1943 and for nearly forty years he has been a professor of economics at the University of Chicago. He connected the activities of the teacher with active research work. In 1945, he prepared a collection of materials from the conference "Food for the World", which paid special attention to the factors of food supply, the structure and migration of the agricultural labor force, the professional qualifications of farmers, agricultural production technology and the direction of investment in farming. In his work "Agriculture in an Unstable Economy" (1945), he spoke out against the illiterate use of land, as it leads to soil erosion and other negative consequences for the agricultural economy.

In 1949-1967. T.-V. Schultz is a member of the board of directors of the US National Bureau of Economic Research, then - an economic consultant for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), several government departments and organizations.

Among his most famous works - « Agricultural Production and Welfare, Transforming Traditional Agriculture (1964), Investing in People: The Economics of Population Quality (1981) and etc.

The American Economic Association awarded T.-V. Schultz medal named after F. Volker. He is an honorary professor at the University of Chicago; he was awarded honorary degrees Illinois, Wisconsin, Dijon, Michigan, North Carolina Universities and the Catholic University of Chile.

According to the theory of human capital, two factors interact in production - physical capital (means of production) and human capital (acquired knowledge, skills, energy that can be used in the production of goods and services). People spend money not only on fleeting pleasures, but also on monetary and non-monetary income in the future. Investments are made in human capital. These are the costs of maintaining health, getting an education, the costs associated with finding a job, obtaining the necessary information, migration, and vocational training at work. The value of human capital is estimated by the potential income that it is able to provide.

T.-V. Schulz claimed thathuman capital It is a form of capital because it is a source of future earnings or future satisfactions, or both. And he becomes human because he is an integral part of man.

According to the scientist, human resources are similar, on the one hand, to natural resources, and on the other hand, to material capital. Immediately after birth, a person, like natural resources, does not bring any effect. Only after appropriate "processing" does a person acquire the qualities of capital. That is, with the growth of costs for improving the quality of the labor force, labor as a primary factor is gradually transformed into human capital. T.-V. Schultz is convinced that, given the contribution of labor to output, human productive capacity is superior to all other forms of wealth combined. The peculiarity of this capital, according to the scientist, is that, regardless of the sources of formation (own, public or private), its use is controlled by the owners themselves.

The microeconomic foundation of the theory of human capital was laid by G.-S. Becker.

Becker (Becker) Harry-Stanley (born 1930) - American economist, Nobel Prize winner (1992). Born in Potsville (Pennsylvania, USA). In 1948 he studied at the J. Madison High School in New York. In 1951 he graduated from Princeton University. His scientific career is associated with Columbia (1957-1969) and Chicago Universities. In 1957 he defended his doctoral dissertation and became a professor.

Since 1970 G.-S. Becker served as chair of the social sciences and sociology department at the University of Chicago. He taught at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. Collaborated with the weekly "Business Week".

He is an active supporter of the market economy. His legacy includes many works: "The Economic Theory of Discrimination" (1957), "Treatise on the Family" (1985), "The Theory of Rational Expectations" (1988), "Human Capital" (1990), "Rational Expectations and the Effect of the Price of Consumption" ( 1991), Fertility and Economics (1992), Training, Labor, Labor Quality and Economics (1992), etc.

The cross-cutting idea of ​​the scientist's works is that, when making decisions in his daily life, a person is guided by economic reasoning, although he is not always aware of this. He argues that the market of ideas and motives operates according to the same patterns as the market for goods: supply and demand, competition. This also applies to issues such as marriage, family, education, choice of profession. In his opinion, many psychological phenomena are also amenable to economic evaluation and measurement, such as, for example, satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the financial situation, the manifestation of envy, altruism, egoism, etc.

Opponents G.-S. Becker argue that by focusing on economic calculations, he downplays the importance of moral factors. However, the scientist has an answer to this: moral values ​​are different for different people, and it will take a long time until they become the same, if this is ever possible. A person with any morality and intellectual level seeks to receive personal economic benefits.

In 1987 G.-S. Becker was elected president of the American Economic Association. He is a member of the American Academy of Sciences and Arts, the US National Academy of Sciences, the US National Academy of Education, national and international societies, editor of economic journals, and honorary doctorates from Stanford, Chicago, Illinois, Hebrew Universities.

The starting point for G.-S. Becker had the idea that when investing in training and education, students and their parents act rationally, taking into account all the benefits and costs. Like "ordinary" entrepreneurs, they compare the expected marginal rate of return on such investments with the return on alternative investments (interest on bank deposits, dividends from securities). Depending on what is more economically feasible, they decide whether to continue education or stop it. Rates of return regulate the distribution of investment between different types and levels of education, as well as between the education system and the rest of the economy. High rates of return indicate underinvestment, low rates indicate overinvestment.

G.-S. Becker carried out a practical calculation of the economic efficiency of education. For example, higher education income is defined as the difference in lifetime earnings between those who graduated from college and those who did not. high school. Among the costs of education, the main element was recognized as "lost earnings", that is, earnings that students did not receive during the years of study. (Essentially, lost earnings measure the value of students' time spent building their human capital.) Comparing the benefits and costs of education made it possible to determine the return on investment in a person.

G.-S. Becker believed that a low-skilled worker does not become a capitalist due to the diffusion (dispersal) of ownership of corporate shares (although this point of view is popular). This happens through the acquisition of knowledge and skills that have economic value. The scientist was convinced thatlack of education is the most serious factor holding back economic growth.

The scientist insists on the difference between special and general investments in a person (and, more broadly, between general and specific resources in general). Special training gives the employee knowledge and skills that increase the future productivity of its recipient only in the firm that trains him (various forms of rotation programs, familiarizing newcomers with the structure and internal routine of the enterprise). In the process general training the employee acquires knowledge and skills that increase the productivity of its recipient, regardless of the firm in which he works (learning to work on a personal computer).

According to G.-S. Becker, investments in the education of citizens, in medical care, in particular in children's, in social programs aimed at maintaining, supporting, replenishing personnel, are tantamount to investing in the creation or acquisition of new equipment or technologies, which in the future returns with the same profits. So, according to his theory, the support of schools and universities by entrepreneurs is not charity, but concern for the future of the state.

According to G.-S. Becker, general training is paid in a certain way by the workers themselves. In an effort to improve their skills, they agree to a lower one during the training period wages and later have income from general training. After all, if firms financed training, then every time such workers were fired, they would get rid of their investments in them. Conversely, special training is paid for by firms, and they also receive income from it. In case of dismissal at the initiative of the company, the costs would be borne by employees. As a result, the general human capital, as a rule, is developed by special “firms” (schools, colleges), and the special one is formed directly at the workplace.

The term “special human capital” has helped explain why long-serving workers change jobs less often, and why firms tend to fill vacancies through internal job travel rather than through external recruitment.

Having studied the problems of human capital, G.-S. Becker became one of the founders of new sections of economic theory - the economics of discrimination, the economics of foreign economics, the economics of crime, etc. He threw a "bridge" from economics to sociology, demography, criminalistics; he was the first to introduce the principle of rational and optimal behavior in those industries where, as researchers previously believed, habits and irrationality dominated.

Criticism of human capital theory

The Ukrainian scientist S. Mocherny considers the main shortcomings of the theory of human capital to be an amorphous interpretation of the essence of capital, which includes not only everything that surrounds a person, but also individual features of the person himself; ignoring the fact that the costs of developing education, acquiring qualifications form only the ability to work, a labor force of appropriate quality, and not capital itself; the fallacy of the opinion that such capital is inseparable from man himself; a number of provisions of the theory on the structure of human capital are not weighed, in particular, the assignment to the elements of this category of the search for the necessary information on the value of prices and incomes is not correct, since such a search is not always successful, as evidenced by significant unemployment in most countries; the position that in order to transform the acquired knowledge, experience, creative abilities and other elements of a human worker into future income and the appropriation of economic benefits, an employee must constantly work, which means that the source of such income is not the level of education, qualifications in itself, but human labor. The biggest shortcoming of the theory of human capital, according to opponents, is its ideological orientation.

Although the theory is better suited to analyze some aspects of the labor market than neoclassical economics, both are initially based on the assumption that there is “ideal” information about investment opportunities in human capital both at a given moment and in the future. The theory assumes that the individual correctly estimates the investment costs and the expected return in the form of future earnings. This assumption does not take into account the many economic and even political factors that can affect the possibility of earning money with certain skills and professions.

Another question is related to the empirical significance of the theory of human capital. Some studies have shown that investments in human capital, such as education, account for only a small part of the fluctuations in people's earnings. If factors such as background and motivation are not taken into account, this can lead to an overestimation of future self-sufficiency when investing in human capital.

A relevant question is whether such forms of investment, such as education and training in particular, can really increase productivity. In this regard, Michael Spence's remark that training does not increase a person's productivity is of interest, it only reveals his innate abilities and indicates his potential performance to a potential employer.

Significance of Human Capital Theory

Despite the fact that for a long time many scientists and even supporters of the theory of human capital considered it unsuitable for practical use, in recent years scientists and managers in many countries have made attempts to implement its provisions. Several aspects contribute to this:

1.G.-S. Becker obtained quantitative estimates of the return on investment in people and compared them with the actual profitability of most US firms, which helped to concretize and expand the understanding of the economic efficiency of investment in human capital. The emergence of a large number of private educational institutions, the revitalization of consulting firms conducting short-term seminars and specialized courses, indicate that profitability in the private sector of educational activities is not at all lower than in other areas of entrepreneurship. For example, in the USA in the 60s of the XX century. the profitability of educational activities was 10-15% higher than the profitability of other types of commercial activities.

2. The theory of human capital explained the structure of the distribution of personal income, the age-old dynamics of earnings, and the inequality in pay for male and female labor. Thanks to her, the attitude of politicians to the costs of education has also changed. Educational investment has come to be seen as a source of economic growth, as important as "ordinary" capital investment.

The concept of national wealth acquires a broader interpretation. Today, it embraces, together with the material elements of capital (valuation of land, buildings, structures, equipment, inventory items), financial assets and materialized knowledge and people's ability to work productively. The accumulated scientific knowledge, in particular, materialized in new technologies, investments in human health began to be taken into account in macroeconomic statistics as elements of national wealth that have an intangible form.

A new interpretation of "human" investment in ensuring socio-economic development and social progress has been recognized by international organizations. The situation in the spheres of education, healthcare and other factors characterizing the level of development of human resources and the quality of life of the population have become the main objects of attention of international statistics. As integral indicators social development societies and the state of human resources use, in particular, the human development index (social development index); index of intellectual potential of the society; an indicator of the value of human capital per capita; coefficient of vitality of the population, etc.

Since 1995, human development reports have been prepared in Ukraine. Thus, the reports for 1995-1999 published by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) became the basis for substantiating human development as a means and goal of national development. Based on these reports, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine reviewed and adopted the Human Development Index developed by UNDP. Today, this index has become an important indicator of human development, which is monitored by the State Statistics Committee on a regular basis.

3.Theory G.-S. Becker substantiated the economic need for large investments (public and private) in the "human factor". This approach is implemented in practice. In particular, the human capital index per capita (expresses the level of spending by the state, firms and citizens on education, health care and other sectors social sphere per capita) used by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics increased by 0.25% per year in the post-war years. In the 60s, growth stopped, which was primarily due to the demographic characteristics of the period, and in the 80s it accelerated - by almost 0.5% annually.

4. The theory of human capital offered a single analytical framework to explain such seemingly diverse phenomena as the contribution of education to economic growth, the demand for educational and medical services, age dynamics of earnings, differences in pay between men and women, the transmission of economic inequality from generation to generation, and much more.

5. The ideas embodied in the theory of human capital have had a serious impact on the economic policy of the state. Thanks to it, the attitude of society towards investments in a person has changed. They learned to see investments that provide a production, and long-term in nature, effect. This provided a theoretical basis for the accelerated development of the education and training system in many countries of the world.

6. Under the influence of the theory of human capital, in which education is assigned the role of the “great equalizer”, there has been a certain reorientation of social policy. In particular, training programs have come to be seen as an effective anti-poverty tool, perhaps preferable to direct income redistribution.

7. The theory of human capital has created a unified analytical structure to examine the funds invested in education and training, and also explained differences between countries in terms of the composition of those employed in the economy. After all, the differences in the supply of human capital in different countries are more significant than the differences in the supply of real capital. Among the problems in the solution of which the theory of human capital by T.-V. Schultz called the phenomenon when countries rich in capital, in particular created material funds, export mainly labor-intensive, rather than capital-intensive products.

The main social conclusion of the theory of human capital is that in modern conditions, improving the quality of the labor force is more important than the growth of the capital provision of labor. Control over production passes from the hands of the owners of monopolies on material capital to those who own knowledge. This theory opens up the possibility of assessing the contribution to the economic growth of the educational fund (by analogy with the assessment of the contribution of fixed property funds), as well as the possibility of managing investment processes based on a comparison of the return on investment in property funds and the educational fund.

Figure - the impact of human capital on economic development

In modern theory, there are three main elements in the human factor:

1) human capital, which corresponds to the income on this capital;

2) natural abilities, to which the rent on these abilities corresponds;

3) pure labor.

All elements together characterize labor in the generally accepted sense, and the first two - human capital.

The economic category "human capital" was formed gradually, and at the first stage it was limited by the knowledge and ability of a person to work. Moreover, for a long time, human capital was considered only a social factor of development, that is, a costly factor, from the point of view of economic theory. It was believed that investments in upbringing, in education, are unproductive and costly. In the second half of the 20th century, the attitude towards human capital and education gradually changed dramatically.

The economic literature provides the following definitions of human capital:

According to G. Becker, “ human capital" is a set of innate abilities and acquired knowledge, skills and motivations, the appropriate use of which contributes to an increase in income (at the level of an individual, enterprise or society).

S. Fischer gave the following definition: “ Human capital is a measure of the ability to generate income embodied in a person. HC includes innate ability and talent, as well as education and acquired qualifications».

M. Blaug believed that human capital is the present value of past investment in people's skills, not the value of people per se.

From the point of view of W. Bowen, human capital consists of acquired knowledge, skills, motivations and energy that human beings are endowed with and that can be used over a period of time to produce goods and services. F. Machlup wrote that unimproved labor may differ from improved, which has become more productive, thanks to investments that increase the physical and mental capacity of a person. Such improvements constitute human capital.

B.M. Genkin considers human capital as a set of qualities that determine productivity and can become sources of income for a person, family, enterprise and society. As a rule, such qualities are usually considered health, natural abilities, education, professionalism, mobility.

From the point of view of A.N. Dobrynina and S.A. Dyatlov, " Human capital is a form of manifestation of the productive forces of a person in a market economy ..., an adequate form of organization of the productive forces of a person included in the system of a socially oriented market economy as a leading, creative factor in social reproduction". Analysis of the content and conditions of capitalization of human capital allows A.N. Dobrynin and S.A. Dyatlov to develop a generalized definition of human capital as an economic category of the modern information and innovation society. Human capital is a certain stock of health, knowledge, skills, abilities, motivations formed as a result of investments and accumulated by a person, which are expediently used in the labor process, contributing to the growth of its productivity and earnings..

T.G. Myasoedova presents human capital as a combination of natural abilities, health, acquired knowledge, professional skills, motivations for work and continuous development, a common culture, which includes knowledge and observance of norms, rules, laws of human communication, moral values.

The relationship between human potential and human capital is shown in Figure 10.1

Figure 10.1 - Relationship between human potential and human capital

Features of human capital

    Unlike physical capital, human capital is not transferred, it is directly related to the person - its carrier. The owner of human capital in a free society can only be the person himself.

    This form of capital can also depreciate in a special way if, for example, its owner falls ill, and completely disappears when the owner dies. This makes investing in human capital much riskier than investing in physical capital.

    The impossibility of "transferring" it is also associated with the inherent dependence of human capital on the desires of its owner. Based on their tastes, life values ​​or preferences, a person can use the capital contained in it with varying degrees of productivity. The productivity of the amount of human capital available (if it can be measured at all) will vary depending on the propensity of the individual to use it. In reality, there may be a large discrepancy between the stock of human capital that the population has and its amount used in the labor market.

    The size of investment in human capital is very difficult, if not impossible, to estimate. Unlike physical capital, the value of which can be calculated directly, human capital is estimated indirectly - by the value of future income. How to estimate these future returns and, accordingly, calculate the real cost of investing in human capital is a serious empirical problem. It is also difficult, almost impossible, to determine the exact amount of human capital.

    Unlike physical capital, which is usually invested only for the development of production, funds invested in human capital can be partially used unproductively. Thus, the cost of it cannot be fully attributed to investments. For example, most students studying history, fine arts and literature do this not only and not so much in order to increase the productivity of their work. All this makes it difficult to calculate the cost and return on investment in human capital.

Features of human capital can be represented in Figure 10.2

Figure 10.2 - Features of human capital

The similarities and differences between human and physical capital can be summarized in a table

Table 10.1 - Similarities and differences between human and physical capital

similarity

Differences

    are factors of social reproduction

    included in total capital

    have the ability to accumulate

    have the ability to generate income

    the result of use can have both monetary and non-monetary value

    susceptibility to physical wear

    ch.k. intangible in nature

    the value of the c.c. and its changes cannot be accurately measured

    ch.k. not subject to wear and tear

    ch.k. cannot be transferred

Types of human capital presented in table 10.2

Table 10.2 - Types of human capital

Type of human capital

Characteristic

biological capital

The value level of physical abilities to perform labor operations, the level of public health. Physical strength, endurance, performance, immunity to disease, a long period of employment. It consists of two parts: one part is hereditary, the other is acquired

Labor capital

Knowledge, professional ability of a person to perform a specific job. The more difficult the work, the higher the requirements for qualifications, skills and experience of the employee

intellectual capital

Products of creative activity, inventions, utility models used for a long time can serve as a source of income.

Organizational and entrepreneurial capital

Ability to develop fruitful business ideas, entrepreneurial spirit, determination, organizational talent, possession of trade secrets

Cultural and moral capital

It is important both for the individual himself and for any company and society as a whole. Everyone is interested in the formation and enhancement of human capital; spend resources both on maintaining health, and on the development of culture, and on promoting entrepreneurship

The most important component of human capital is labor, its quality and productivity. The quality of labor, in turn, is determined by the mentality of the population and the quality of life.

Human capital according to the degree of efficiency, as a productive factor, can be divided negative (destructive) and positive (creative) human capital. Between these extreme states and the components of total human capital, there are states and components of capital that are intermediate in efficiency.

Negative human capital- this is a part of the accumulated human capital, which does not give any useful return on investment in it for society, the economy and hinders the growth of the quality of life of the population, the development of society and the individual. Not every investment in upbringing and education is useful and increases HC. An incorrigible criminal, a hired killer is an investment in them lost for society and family. A significant contribution to the accumulated negative HC is made by corrupt officials, criminals, drug addicts, and excessive drinkers. And just loafers, loafers and thieving people. And, on the contrary, a significant share of the positive part of the Cheka is made by workaholics, professionals, world-class specialists. The negative accumulated human capital is formed on the basis of the negative aspects of the nation's mentality, on the low culture of the population, including its market components (in particular, the ethics of work and entrepreneurship). Contribute to it are the negative traditions of the state structure and the functioning of state institutions on the basis of lack of freedom and underdevelopment of civil society, on the basis of investments in pseudo-education, pseudo-education and pseudo-knowledge, in pseudo-science and pseudo-culture. A particularly significant contribution to the negative accumulated human capital can be made by the active part of the nation - its elite, since it is she who determines the policy and strategy of the country's development, leads the nation along the path of either progress, or stagnation (stagnation) or even regression. Negative human capital requires additional investment in human capital to change the essence of knowledge and experience. To change the educational process, to change the innovation and investment potential, to change in better side the mentality of the population and improve its culture. In this case, additional investments are required to compensate for the negative capital accumulated in the past.

Positive human capital(creative or innovative) are defined as the accumulated human capital that provides a useful return on investment in it in the development and growth processes. In particular, from investments in improving and maintaining the quality of life of the population, in the growth of innovative potential and institutional capacity. In the development of the education system, the growth of knowledge, the development of science, the improvement of public health. To improve the quality and availability of information. Cheka is an inertial productive factor. Investments in it give a return only after a while. The value and quality of human capital depend primarily on the mentality, education, knowledge and health of the population. In a historically short period of time, one can get a significant return on investment in education, knowledge, health, but not in the mentality that has been formed over the centuries. At the same time, the mentality of the population can significantly reduce the transformation coefficients of investments in HC and even make investments in HC completely inefficient.

Passive human capital- human capital, which does not contribute to the country's development processes, to the innovative economy, aimed mainly at its own consumption of material goods.

The elements of human capital are shown in Figure 10.3

Forms of investment in human capital

Typical forms of investment in human capital are the following activities:

    Education. It may consist of obtaining a formal higher education, and in its subsequent continuation, and attending evening courses to improve, for example, computer literacy. Education in its various forms is the main activity for investing in human capital, since it requires a significant investment of time and money. Education increases the level of human knowledge, and, consequently, increases the volume and quality of human capital. The education level index is a characterizing indicator for the level of investment in educational training. Accumulation occurs in the process of consuming knowledge, as well as acquiring skills and experience in the process of labor activity. Reflects the level of education of individuals throughout their lives, their qualifications, professional experience, achievements and growth.

    Education. It can be professional, that is, aimed at acquiring knowledge and skills in the field of professional activity, or special, aimed at acquiring special skills. It can be carried out both in the process of work (apprenticeship), and in isolation from it - in special courses. Training can also be divided into general (literacy) and special (skills for a specific job or institution). Training also makes up a large part of the investment in human capital.

    Culture. The importance of the cultural and moral qualities of the population for normal economic activity was repeatedly emphasized by the classics of science. The accumulation of characteristic qualities occurs in the process of education, consumption of knowledge, services of institutions of the socio-cultural sphere.

    Sport. Accumulation occurs in the process of education of physical culture. It is characterized by the potential for future activity of life, a healthy lifestyle, personal sports achievements, including those at championships and the Olympic Games.

    Migration and job search. Labor migration is seen as an investment in human capital, since moving from a place with low wages to an area where they are high leads not only to higher wages, but also to a better use of human skills. Finding a job is considered an investment because it requires significant effort and certain costs to collect information about the labor market.

    Health and nutrition. Health and nutrition services of various kinds are also an investment because they increase the return on work by reducing morbidity and mortality and help maintain health.

There are six main stages life cycle human capital:

    Origin (the period from the birth of a child to kindergarten).

    Elementary development (kindergarten).

    Basic development (school).

    Professionalization of knowledge (university).

    Practical activity (work).

    Aging (retirement).

The theory of human capital began to be dealt with in the 19th century. Then it became one of the promising directions in the development of economic science. The economic category "human capital" was formed gradually, and at the first stage it was limited by the knowledge and ability of a person to work. Moreover, for a long time, human capital was considered only a social factor of development, that is, from the point of view of economic theory, a costly factor. It was believed that investments in upbringing, in education, are costly. Since the second half of the twentieth century. attitudes towards human capital and education have gradually and radically changed, and this economic category became the main achievement, first of all, of the economics of education and labor. Initially, human capital was understood only as a set of investments in a person that increases his ability to work - education and professional skills. In the future, the concept of human capital has expanded significantly. The latest calculations made by the World Bank experts include consumer spending - the cost of families for food, clothing, housing, education, health care, culture, as well as government spending for these purposes.

The term "human capital" first appeared in the works of American economists Theodore Schultz and Gary Becker.

G. Becker considered human capital as a set of skills, knowledge and skills of a person, and according to T. Schultz, human capital is a valuable quality acquired by a person that can be enhanced by appropriate investments. However, T. Schultz and G. Becker paid more attention to explaining and defending the idea of ​​equal rights with material resources the role of human capital in creating the total social product.

For the creation of the “foundations of the theory of human capital”, American scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics - Theodore Schultz in 1979, Gary Becker in 1992. The founders of the theory of human capital gave its narrow definition, which over time has expanded and continues to expand, including all new components of human capital.

In later works, there is no consensus among scientists on the definition and content of "human capital", which can be explained by the complexity and versatility of this phenomenon. That is why there are a large number of definitions of this concept:

  • - according to W. Bowen, human capital consists of the acquired knowledge, skills, motivations and energy that a person is endowed with and which can be used over a certain period of time in order to produce goods and services;
  • - according to Edwin J. Dolan, human capital is capital in the form of mental abilities obtained through training or education or through practical experience;
  • - according to M.M. Cretan human capital is a universal specific form of life activity, assimilating previous forms and being realized as a result of the historical movement of human society to its current state;
  • - B.M. Genkin and B.G. Yudin believe that human capital characterizes the components of a person's potential, which can become a source of income for household, enterprises and countries. Such components can be the physical and creative abilities of a person, his knowledge, skills, activity;
  • - according to A.I. Dobrynina, S.A. Dyatlova, E.D. Tsyrenova, human capital is a stock of health, knowledge, skills, abilities, motivations formed as a result of investments and accumulated by a person, which are expediently used in a particular area of ​​social reproduction, contribute to the growth of labor productivity and production, thereby affecting the growth of income of a given person. ;
  • - V.S. Efimov considers human capital as a universal, independent component of the "production process" that provides additional value for the product. He also identifies three aspects of human capital:
    • a) the biological aspect - the preservation of human capital: demography + health + activity;
    • b) the social aspect - the development of human capital: education + qualifications + social organization + initiative;
    • c) economic aspect - capitalization of human capital: production systems + social institutions + infrastructure of opportunities.

Summarizing the above definitions of human capital, several main approaches can be distinguished: most scientists understand human capital as a set of skills, abilities and abilities of a person, others - only those that were obtained through training, others define it through investments and investments in a person that provide savings certain abilities and qualities. Some researchers also include in it the social, psychological, worldview, cultural characteristics of people.

The very concept of human capital was introduced to explain why education and experience affect wages, as well as to understand what determines the level of education people receive.

Since each person, one way or another, in his life is faced with such concepts as the need for education, lack of experience when applying for a job, the level of remuneration, then everyone is able to subjectively define the concept of human capital.

Human capital is often defined as creativity, physical, moral-psychological and social health, spiritual qualities, the ability to human mobility. In addition, human capital implies the accumulated stock of health, knowledge, abilities, culture, experience, expediently used for productive activities to create products and services, which increases the income of a person, enterprise, society.

For a more complete definition of human capital, the following features should be taken into account:

  • - nowadays human capital is the main value of society and the main factor of economic growth;
  • - the formation of human capital requires high costs both from society and from the person himself;
  • - human capital can be accumulated (in terms of knowledge, skills, abilities, experience);
  • - human capital can physically wear out, economically change its value and depreciate;
  • - investments in human capital in the future bring its owner a higher income;
  • - human capital is inseparable from its carrier - a person;
  • - regardless of what sources form human capital (state, family, honest), the receipt of income and the use of human capital is controlled by a person;
  • - the functioning of human capital is due to the free will of a person, depending on his preferences, worldview and culture.

As a result, we can say that human capital is everything that concerns people, their intelligence, knowledge and experience, and includes other qualities, such as loyalty, motivation and the ability to work in a team. Despite the wide range of definitions of the concept of human capital, its essence is clear: human capital is defined as a measure of the ability to generate income embodied in a person, which includes innate abilities and talent, as well as education and acquired qualifications.

In the economic literature, there are several approaches to the classification of types of human capital. Economists classify the types of human capital according to the elements of costs, investments in human capital.

From the point of view of the nature of promoting the economic well-being of society, there are:

  • - Consumer capital - creates a flow of services consumed directly. It can be creative and educational activity. The result of such activities is expressed in the provision to the consumer of such consumer services that lead to the emergence of new ways to meet needs or increase the effectiveness of existing ways to meet them;
  • - Productive capital - creates a flow of services, the consumption of which contributes to social utility. In this case, we mean scientific and educational activities that have practical application in production (creation of means of production, technologies, production services and products).

The next criterion for classifying the types of human capital is the difference between the forms in which it is embodied:

  • - Living capital - includes knowledge embodied in a person;
  • - Non-living capital - is created when knowledge is embodied in physical, material forms;
  • - Institutional capital - consists of living and non-living capital associated with the production of services that meet the collective needs of society. It includes all governmental and non-governmental institutions that promote efficient use two types of capital (educational and financial institutions).

According to the form of employee training in the workplace, we can distinguish:

  • - special human capital;
  • - total human capital.

Special human capital includes skills and knowledge acquired as a result of special training and of interest only to the firm where they were obtained.

Unlike special human capital, general human capital is knowledge that can be in demand in various areas of human activity.

As a productive factor, human capital can be divided according to the degree of efficiency into negative (destructive) human capital and positive (creative) human capital.

Negative human capital is a part of accumulated human capital that does not give any useful return on investment in it for society, the economy and hinders the growth of the quality of life of the population, the development of society and the individual. Not every investment in upbringing and education is useful and increases human capital. Corrupt officials, criminals, drug addicts, excessive drinkers and just idlers are investments lost for society and family. A particularly significant contribution to the negative accumulated human capital can be made by the active part of the nation - its elite, since it is she who determines the policy and strategy of the country's development, leads the nation along the path of either progress, or stagnation or even regression.

Negative human capital requires additional investment to compensate for negative capital accumulated in the past.

Positive human capital (creative) - is defined as the accumulated human capital that provides a useful return on investment in it in the development and growth processes. In particular, in the development of the education system, the growth of knowledge, the development of science, the improvement of public health, and the improvement of the quality and availability of information.

Thus, in the presence of a large number of definitions and types of human capital, this concept, like many terms, is a "metaphor, transfers the properties of one phenomenon to another according to their common feature."

The development of human capital is perhaps the most important task of the company. Moreover, this question has recently been raised on a scale whole country as an indispensable condition for its development and prosperity in the world economic arena.

You will learn:

  • What is the basis for the formation and development of human capital.
  • What can be investment in the development of human capital.
  • How can human capital affect innovative development enterprises.
  • Why manage the development of human capital.
  • How to assess the level of development of human capital in an organization.
  • What are the problems in the development of human capital in Russia.

How do companies properly develop human capital?

The more mental baggage a company has, the higher its competitive advantages, the better and more efficiently it can organize its production process, ensuring the optimal transformation of intangible resources into tangible capital.

Highly qualified specialists are able to raise the attractiveness of the brand and influence the profitability of the organization. To a large extent, the value of an enterprise is determined by innovations, it is easy to increase it by financially motivating employees.

Today, more and more companies are coming to the realization that not only financial capital determines the actual value of the business. Intellectual capital is the main strategic element of the industry. In the figure, you can see the relationship between intellectual capital and the actual cost of an organization:

Financial capital of the organization- this is not only cash, but also shares and other securities.

Intellectual capital of the organization is the mental baggage of the staff. Knowledge is the basis of the wealth of the enterprise, intangible assets that improve quality production processes. They create added value for the enterprise.

Business improvement with the help of intellectual capital is not a theoretical research, but a real-life practice. Through this asset, you can successfully manage profits, create new products and attract customers.

Intellectual capital should be understood as all those informational resources that are in the possession of the company. Intellectual capital is a combination of human, structural and relational capital. Intellectual capital also includes information capital, intellectual property, customer capital, brand awareness and training capital.

The knowledge that forms intellectual capital can be explicit or implicit, but it always has a useful function.

Organization human capital comes from the availability of staff. It is formed at the expense of knowledge, talents, abilities and competence of employees. This process is long-term and goes through several stages.

  • Initially, there is a search and selection of candidates who will later form human capital, then the relationship is formalized.
  • In the future, the employer is interested and motivates employees for more active and fruitful work.
  • In the process of cooperation, investments are made in human capital through the development and training of employees.
  • And finally, there is a merger and (or) absorption.

In general, the human capital of a company consists of several elements that can be reflected in the form of formula (1):

The share of the influence of human capital on the value of a business ranges from 30 to 80%, depending on the sector of the economy. But one way or another, the contribution of people to the profitability of the organization is a determining factor. Human capital increases competitiveness. And capital is directly formed from the skills and abilities of employees, whose efforts produce goods and services.

Some people confuse the concepts of human capital and human potential. The main difference between these interchangeable terms is that capital forms the market value of the company through the participation of employees in building success. This is a very important factor in the development of an organization. It is the employees who create the added value of the enterprise.

What determines the formation and development of human capital

Due to the fact that the development and economic prosperity of the country directly depends on the specialists who inhabit it, the priority concern of the state can be called ensuring the improvement of the capabilities of citizens (intellectual, physical and spiritual). This task is solved within the framework of achieving the goal of human capital development, which will inevitably lead to an increase in the potential of the whole society, as well as an increase in the resource of the country as a whole. High opportunities of society depend on the dynamics of economic growth. So, the development of human capital is one of the key tasks of our time. What is needed to solve it?

  • First of all, in order to develop the abilities of each member of society, an employee of the company, it is necessary to create the most favorable environment which is practically unattainable without improving living conditions in general.
  • Secondly, it is necessary to increase the competitiveness of not only human capital itself, but also those sectors of the economy that provide it in social terms.

Specialists who are working on solving the problem of improving the human resource are sociologists, economists and psychologists. Their tasks include the development of human capital development issues at three levels:

  • development of an individual (micro level);
  • development of the state as a whole (macro level);
  • enterprise development, commercial companies(meso level).

At the state level, human capital is collected by the efforts of all members of society, it is a national wealth and asset. Within each region, its own similar resource is formed, and then it is aggregated across the country.

In order to ensure the development of human capital at the regional level, it is necessary to improve the economic activity of economic entities in the area. Further, the human resource is summarized according to the results of each enterprise in the region. Accumulated human capital ultimately determines the level of socio-economic development of the territory.

To measure human capital, adding up the number of employees is not enough. It is necessary to calculate all their abilities, knowledge, the amount of information available. After all, it is this potential that activates production at one level or another and determines the degree of effectiveness of the company.

Each person has a personal capital, within social group all individual developments are collected in subsystems with a hierarchical structure. Connecting with each other, personal capitals form the public. If human capital for one individual plays important role in terms of opportunities to achieve a certain quality of life, then on the scale of the entire region or country as a whole, this resource can serve as a means to achieve more global goals.

A person exists in the labor market with his abilities, skills, abilities. He brings income to his family and the company where he works. But within the whole region, it also acts as a social link. It can be called a building cell of the economy of the region and the country as a whole.

An individual worker gives his abilities to that commercial or state enterprise(municipal) where he works. And such an enterprise, together with many others, creates a social or economic basis for the life of society.

Those talents and abilities that a person has are partly innate, partly acquired by him throughout his life. The task of the enterprise is to create such socio-economic conditions for its employees in which it will be easiest to increase human capital. Ultimately, all acquired knowledge will be spent for the benefit of society and will go into the environment where the most high quality life and the most comfortable conditions for work, development and intellectual activity.

The development of human capital is a long process, it can take a variety of forms and types, passing through all stages of the life cycle and being influenced by various social circumstances. All these factors can be conditionally divided into groups: economic, industrial, demographic, as well as socio-demographic, socio-economic, environmental, and many others.

Human capital is formed and improved in the process social production. The optimal environment for its development is comfortable living conditions. If a person has an increase in income, affordable and high-quality medical and educational services, a wonderful cultural environment and comfortable living conditions, then the development of human capital will take place in the best possible way. Such conditions can be achieved with the help of appropriate state policy in the field of education, culture, health care, improvement, infrastructure, etc.

The numerical expression of the total resource can be viewed in terms of the human capital development index. These values ​​are directly related to the level of education, the availability of quality food, and healthcare. They reflect:

  • the percentage of the population deprived of the opportunity to eat enough;
  • percentage of child mortality (under 5 years of age);
  • the percentage of children receiving secondary education;
  • adult literacy rate.

To ensure the formation and development of human capital, the state must take measures to:

  • increasing the affordability of housing, creating favorable conditions for mortgage lending, the use of such financial instruments that will contribute to the development of the housing market;
  • increasing the availability of the consumer lending sector, increasing information openness;
  • increasing opportunities for citizens in terms of using educational loans;
  • ensuring a high level of welfare of citizens, personal security, development of life and property insurance programs;
  • improving conditions for supplementary pension insurance.

A person achieves his highest potential by overcoming a long continuous process of formation and development of human capital, which involves such factors as education, employment, the presence of favorable conditions for improving skills and becoming an individual.

On average, the period of development of human capital takes from 15 to 25 years. For the initial level, we take the zero mark. Each member of society begins to form their knowledge, skills, skills from scratch.

The beginning of the process of human capital development goes back to childhood, at the age of three or four. The child is provided with information, with the help of which he gets the opportunity to develop his talents, improve and increase his knowledge and skills. On how successfully he studies, his self-determination and the ability to fulfill himself in the future, to find an application for his abilities in the employment market, depend in the future. But the potential given to a person from birth still plays a huge role.

The most significant period in the development of human capital is the period of adolescence (13–23 years). It is impossible to form and develop human capital without regular replenishment of the arsenal of skills and abilities. If a person is not engaged vocational training if he did not devote time and effort to his education, it is not necessary to talk about the development of human capital. The higher the level of knowledge of a person, the more he can improve the life of society. It turns out a continuous process. Highly qualified professionals create comfortable living conditions for mankind, contribute to the growth of production and the promotion of the economy, enrich the national culture, thereby creating the prerequisites for the formation of even more highly developed personalities.

The development of human capital is a task that directly contributes to the growth of investments, the introduction of new technologies and increases the return on employees from such investments.

  • Investments in business: step-by-step instructions for finding and attracting investors

Practitioner tells

Creation of conditions for self-development of personnel is a solid foundation for the formation of the human capital of the organization

Marat Nagumanov,

director of research and production company "Paker", Oktyabrsky (Bashkortostan)

We have set ourselves the goal of achieving a leading position in the sector of self-learning companies. My firm position is that without the development of a production culture and the creation of comfortable working conditions for people, it is impossible to demand self-improvement from them. And comfort at work means not only the presence of comfortable furniture, a modern computer, the creation of a sufficient level of lighting, the provision of clean and comfortable uniforms. For favorable working conditions, it is important to achieve a number of other factors.

We need a leader whose example will captivate employees. In order for the employee to receive more, it is necessary to increase the return on capital. It's not just about wages. The total income also includes social benefits. In our case, these are paid sessions in the pool, fitness classes, vouchers to a sanatorium, lunches at the expense of the enterprise, high-quality medical services on the job. The more comfortable the employer creates conditions at the workplace, the more willingly people give their strength, capabilities, abilities for the benefit of the enterprise. Moreover, they strive to improve their level in order to become more indispensable and in demand in their work. But here the figure of the leader is also of great importance. The most visible and respected worker in the team is an example and an incentive for colleagues. Frankly, I try to be such a leader myself. Employees see my purposefulness: I often attend various lectures and conferences, thematic events, trying to improve my own competence. Following me, many employees express a desire to participate in seminars and study modern equipment in different cities and countries.

The system of motivation should be aimed at advanced training. It is very important to create a holistic remuneration mechanism that will be transparent to the entire team. If employees understand how to increase their salary, they are more likely to work in this direction. At the moment, our company is planning to introduce job descriptions, which will include information about the scope of issues for which the employee is responsible, about the skills that he should have and which he should develop, about the projects in which the employee should take part, and about the indicators that must be achieved them as a result labor activity. Each instruction will be valid for a year. The increase in the employee's salary will directly depend on compliance with its points. For example, under an employment contract, a person has a salary of 10 thousand rubles. To increase it, you will have to acquire new skills, which will be listed in detail in the instructions. At the end of the year, management will check the level of achievement of new knowledge and skills. With a positive outcome, the employee's salary will be increased.

But leaders should remember that any innovation brings results after a certain period of time. AT this moment we are building a new system, but we expect the result not earlier than in a year of its implementation. We can feel the initial dynamics already at the start. So, we see that the efficiency of an employee directly depends on the level of his satisfaction with the working conditions.

Investments in the development of human capital

The development of human capital, like any other asset, requires investment. Investments that are made for the development of human capital are certain actions carried out with one goal - to increase labor productivity. We can refer to such events:

  • organization of ways to maintain health;
  • incurring expenses associated with education;
  • organization of vocational training at work;
  • the cost of finding a job, collecting information on prices and wages;
  • costs associated with migration, as well as with the birth and upbringing of children.

All investments in the development of human capital are usually divided by specialists into:

  • investments in education (special or vocational training, retraining at the place of work, self-education);
  • investments in health care activities, including disease prevention, organization of special nutrition, improvement of living and working conditions, as well as improving the quality of medical care;
  • investments in the migration of workers to places with more favorable working conditions.

Investments in education can be divided into formal and informal. The first kind means different kinds educational services offered by the state or organizations with the issuance of final documents confirming the completion of training. This includes secondary school education, special, higher education, including a second higher education, postgraduate studies, doctoral studies, on-the-job training, as well as advanced training courses.

Informal training is called, which does not have supporting documents, but is also able to enrich a person with knowledge and increase human capital. This is reading literature, independent development of any sciences, sports and art.

Equally important to improving productivity are health-related costs. By reducing the number of diseases and mortality, we increase the duration of the period of work, the term of a person's working life. Thus, we prolong the action of human capital.

Each of us understands that it is possible to improve health to a certain extent, but in many respects its quality depends on hereditary characteristics. It is very important for a person, as well as for society as a whole, to invest in the acquisition of health throughout life. Human health is an asset that is subject to wear and tear. Investing in health can slow down the aging and fading process.

Features of investments in the development of human capital are as follows:

  • Their effectiveness is directly related to the lifespan of the wearer. How more investments, the longer the working period of a person's life. And the sooner investments begin to be made, the sooner the return will be visible.
  • The ability to multiply and accumulate, despite the gradual tendency to moral and physical wear and tear.
  • As human capital accumulates, it brings more and more profit, but the margin of profitability is still limited by the end of working age. As soon as a person retires or stops working for other reasons, the effectiveness of his human capital drops sharply.
  • Not all investments in the enhancement of human well-being can be recognized as expenditures on the development of human capital. For example, if the costs are associated with criminal and illegal activities, they are difficult to attribute to investments in the development of human capital because of their social harmfulness and even danger.
  • The nature of investments is determined by the characteristics of the culture, nationality and historical development of the society in which they are carried out.
  • If we compare investments in the development of human capital with other types of investments, it turns out that the former are more beneficial both for the holders of capital themselves and for society as a whole.

Sources that can carry out investment activities can be:

  • state;
  • funds of state and non-state significance, public organizations;
  • regional associations;
  • organizations, legal entities;
  • individual entrepreneurs;
  • supranational organizations and foundations;
  • educational institutions, etc.

The state among all types of sources plays the most significant role.

But do not underestimate the importance of individual companies, organizations, entrepreneurs. It is the enterprises that are employers that have all the opportunities and conditions to engage in the training and development of personnel. Moreover, organizations have an information base that allows them to form the right idea about the most promising areas for investment in education and training. An important factor in business investment is net income which brings this type of placement of funds. As soon as there is no profit, funding will also stop.

In the end, what is all this investment in personnel for? To strengthen the company's competitiveness. Therefore, the employer seeks to use working time and human capital in general is the most rational.

Practitioner tells

Self-training of personnel as a contribution to the development of the human capital of the organization

Sergei Kapustin,

CEO and co-owner of the STA Logistic group of companies, Moscow

I know from experience that allowing subordinates to control their own work is simply unacceptable. Each of them, knowing that no one checks their work, will try to rest more and work less. Many have the same attitude to learning: if the management does not force you to learn, it is better to save your strength.

As the ancient Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu said: "Hold with harm, move with profit." In other words, I must interest the employee so that he actively engages in self-learning.

Of course, the education of employees is associated with additional costs. The first two months of training the company only spends on scholarships in the amount of wages. Following the example of successful enterprises in other countries, we compose employment contracts with a clause that allows us to require an employee who has not passed the test for employment to be reimbursed for the cost of training. This approach makes people feel the value of education, we get employees who are interested in self-development. It is easy for us at the initial stage to determine who is most responsible for learning.

Newly hired employees are forced to undergo basic training. The learning process is not based on printed lecture material. We decided that it would be much more interesting to arrange training in the form of watching video lectures. In total, we have about 20 courses on the portal. Training involves initiation into the values ​​of the company, explanation of the technology of work, rules of workflow, familiarization with the regulations. Courses are divided into basic, suitable for everyone, and special - for individual professionals (accountants, marketers, etc.). Each newcomer studies 10 to 15 courses within a month and a half. At the end of the training, the employee takes an examination in electronic form. Such an exam resembles the one adopted by the traffic police.

Human capital development management

We observe a number of unfavorable factors that make us more reverent about the development of human capital. These factors are:

  • decrease in the number of employees due to mortality in working age;
  • an increase in the number of diseases due to healthy lifestyle life (drug addiction, smoking, alcoholism, gambling);
  • progressive rates of disability;
  • loss of moral values ​​and ethical standards in labor relations;
  • reduction of the role of education or its moral obsolescence;
  • inability to get modern education(lack of funds, time and effort, declining quality of education, etc.).

The development of human capital is important for solving many problems of an organization. Human capital needs to be managed, but it itself subsequently acts as a means of managing the profitability of a business. With its help, you can stimulate the scientific and technological progress of the enterprise, the use of new technologies, and increase efficiency. The main approaches to the use of human capital today are competent systems of motivation, leadership, the right style of management, organization of activities and prioritization. When using such approaches, human capital turns into a real tool for influencing socio-economic processes.

The possibility of a chaotic formation of human capital cannot be denied. But if we expect from this phenomenon the development of all its positive characteristics, then the process of formation and development of human capital must be managed consciously. All over the world there is a departure from the paradigm of personnel management, more and more enterprises are moving directly to the administration of human capital development.

Prioritization is a key moment in the management of human capital (diagrams 1, 2). Despite the fact that the desire to maximize human life is bearing fruit, it has not yet become a priority in management. But the formation of human capital is based precisely on this desire. In order for the priority to be realized, knowledge of the interests of people, the construction of a system of values, the establishment of social responsibility and the availability of appropriate resources. It is important to pay enough attention to work with the staff. Look at how job search ads are most often worded today: “employees with work experience are required” or “qualified, responsible and communicative specialists are required.” The set of requirements is very limited. Of course experience is important, but gaining experience alone is not enough to bring out the full benefits of human capital.

Scheme 1. The art of management.

Scheme 2. Typological features of personality in integration intelligence.

Many personnel specialists now use psychological tests when applying for a job. They are also very helpful in personnel research. But not always the tests correspond to their purpose. They are not able to properly influence the formation and development of human capital.

For example, a large bank uses a 60-question test to find an employee. Vacant position- referent. And questions allow you to evaluate general erudition and partially knowledge accounting. Such a test does not reveal the ability of an applicant for a position to review materials, it does not even make it possible to determine the type of thinking and independence in decision-making in complex and contradictory situations. Consequently, tests are not able to fulfill the tasks of forming and developing human capital.

The creation of this asset occurs not only during the selection of personnel, even in the normal daily work of a manager, this process also takes place. The effectiveness of the formation is determined the right choice means and methods used by the employer.

Scheme 3. The mechanism of human capital management.

The most important means of formation and development of human capital:

  1. investment;
  2. stimulating the disclosure of human qualities that contribute to an increase in human capital, they are associated with education, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and developing intellectual potential;
  3. creation of a motivating system of remuneration, involving the establishment of wages in accordance with experience and length of service;
  4. establishment of values ​​implemented in management processes;
  5. assignment of qualifications in accordance with the level of professionalism and ability to work effectively;
  6. manifestation of human capital in the information environment; the factor of competence directly depends on the provision of information, the functional content of the activity, and also directly on the education of the employee;
  7. development of all levels of culture: general, organizational, corporate and others;
  8. proper organization of activities, contributing to the implementation creativity, stimulating educational activities, encouraging self-development.

What are the indicators for assessing the development of human capital in an organization

The factors that we have considered in this article affect the development of human capital in a complex. They are all interconnected and form a single system. It is possible to facilitate the process of formation and development of human capital by organizing a monitoring system for this asset, which is created in accordance with the management priorities used in the enterprise, as well as methods for assessing employees.

In most cases, enterprises use the method of calculating direct personnel costs. Direct costs include wages, employee taxes, labor protection and improvement costs, and staff development and training costs. It is easy to guess that the sum of all these costs is not an indicator of the accumulated value of human capital, because, in addition to all the above activities, capital can also be formed by its carriers themselves through self-education and creativity.

Another method used is competitive valuation. The company creates optimal conditions for employees. People should strive to get hired by a company that offers more amenities and employee benefits than any other competing organization. With this technique, it is important to assess the costs and expected damage to the company when an employee leaves. It is undesirable that with such investments there is a turnover. It is especially important that people stay at the enterprise during the crisis period, because a way out of a difficult situation is possible with the presence of human capital and even its increase, which does not at all imply the recruitment of new employees.

A number of enterprises use the method of prospective assessment of the value of human capital. Its essence lies in the fact that the dynamics of value is taken into account in the perspective of five, ten or even twenty years. The method is quite effective, it is especially suitable for long-term large projects related to innovation. As development progresses, the value of individual employees changes. Sometimes people achieve particularly high results, and sometimes they leave, which turns into a big loss for the organization. These factors also need to be taken into account.

Strategic Human Resource Management:

  • SWOT analysis;
  • an action plan to realize opportunities and neutralize threats to business;
  • personnel policy;
  • personnel management models;
  • personnel indicators in the balanced scorecard.

SWOT analysis of human resources: an example

Strengths

Weak sides

  • Capabilities career development employees as a result of company development.
  • The desire of employees to develop.
  • Positive image of the company in the market.
  • High turnover of core staff.
  • Lack of unified policies, procedures and rules in the field of personnel management.
  • Weak communication in the company between brands; brands and UK.

Capabilities

Threats

  • Attracting highly qualified personnel.
  • Working with educational institutions (business schools, universities, colleges).
  • Formation of uniform policies, procedures and rules in the field of personnel management.
  • Reducing staff turnover through the introduction of systems of adaptation, mentoring, apprenticeship, prevention of layoffs.
  • Creation of a learning center and the foundations of a self-learning organization.
  • An increase in the number of potential employers - an outflow of qualified personnel (including to competitors).
  • Increased demand and limited supply in the market for qualified personnel (demographic situation).
  • Growth in market wages – increase in personnel costs.

How effectively an organization uses human resources can be judged by the following key indicators:

  1. the contribution of the employee to the performance of the organization (in making a profit per employee, in achieving a certain share of sales, the level of gross margin);
  2. employee costs; for evaluation, the ratio of human resource costs to the total amount of costs, as well as costs per employee are calculated;
  3. state of human resources (level of education, competence, as well as an indicator of the level of staff turnover, etc.);
  4. personnel involvement (it reflects the degree of satisfaction of employees with the conditions provided).
  • How to earn authority in the team as a leader: 9 qualities

Problems of human capital development in Russia

If we consider human capital in general, then we can consider it the engine of the economy, a factor in the development of the institution of the family and society as a whole. It consists of able-bodied people with education, as well as tools of intellectual and managerial work, located in a certain environment and implementation labor function. With the presence of human capital, a country can maintain a certain level in the global economy, ensuring competitiveness in the markets. This is of particular importance in the context of globalization, and is also an indicator of the performance government agencies authorities.

Human capital has value in itself, but its quality is becoming increasingly important in a competitive environment. How to evaluate quality? To do this, it is necessary to determine the level of literacy and education, as well as the life expectancy of the population, the standard of living and the state of medical care. Added to this is the GDP per capita. All these elements are combined into a formula for calculating the Human Capital Development Index (HDI). Approximately 25 years ago, out of 187 countries of the world, Russia ranked 23rd in the list, and according to the results of a study for 2013, our country was in 55th place. This is an inevitable regression, which can be explained by a decrease in investment in such areas as education, culture, science and human health.

It is important not only to earn professional quality specialists. In the development of human capital, it is necessary to engage in the formation of a new culture of behavior of citizens, and this process should start from the very beginning. early years. The development of culture continues throughout life, no matter where a person works - in the civil service or in the private sector of the economy. These tasks were formulated for themselves by the participants of the session of the Open Government "Human capital - the main asset of the economy", held in the framework of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

Minister Russian Federation on the issues of the Open Government, Mikhail Abyzov said that today in our country there is no personality development system that meets modern requirements, and without it, one cannot talk about more or less high positions in the list of economically successful states. There was such a system in the Soviet Union, but it no longer corresponds to reality. We need to look to the future and develop new mechanisms. Nowadays, everything is not as good with school education as we would like, children do not develop the qualities of leaders. According to statistics, 70% of schools in the Russian Federation are rural, they employ more than 40% of teachers and at least 25% of them do not have a higher education. And we simply do not have the tools for leadership development.

The chaotic development of human capital does not imply a qualitative result. This system requires adjustment and management so that human skills are adequate to the requirements of the modern world. In our country, the ability to organize the development of human capital has been lost. If earlier we had a planned economy, it had its own tuning principles - they were based on a system of priorities for economic growth. Man was seen as a means for the development of the economy. But in the new reality, the system does not exist at all.

Instead of developing human capital, there is an increase in ambition. What do we see today? People with higher education work in unskilled positions (salespeople, secretaries). More and more young professionals are experiencing problems when applying for a job. Moving to other regions is also difficult.

Planned development electronic system allowing an employer to select a graduate educational institution, which meets the parameters that are necessary for occupying a particular position. You won’t have to select by resume, you will only need to assess the student’s progress and his scientific and social activities.

In the development of human capital, basic education is of great importance, but now it is not uncommon or scarce. Nowadays, the presence of leadership qualities in a person is much more important. Not just performers, but leaders help to achieve the success of the company. That is why the focus now is on developing leaders. In particular, the Open Government holds training seminars for members of the Government of the Russian Federation at the Corporate University of Sberbank.

The development of science and technology shows that the main engine of the economy is human capital. GDP growth should be invested in human development, in improving the quality of life, in caring for health, and then we can hope for a transition to an innovative economy and a knowledge economy.

Let us recall the words of the Nobel Prize winner in economics Simon Kuznets, written in 1934: “For a scientific and technological breakthrough in the country, the necessary start-up human capital must be created (accumulated). Otherwise, a false start occurs.

State funds should be directed not only to the fight against corruption, but also to finance science, healthcare, education, as well as the protection of motherhood and childhood.

Table 1. Age structure of the population and dependency burden

Age groups of the population, thousand people

2002 (census)

2007

2010

2020***

2030***

Younger than able-bodied

in able-bodied

Older than able-bodied

All population

Younger than able-bodied

in able-bodied

Older than able-bodied

All population

*Men aged 16-59 + Women aged 16-54

** Disabled persons (children + pensioners) per 1000 people of working age

*** 2020 and 2030 – Rosstat forecast.

Information about experts

Marat Nagumanov, director of the research and production company "Paker", Oktyabrsky (Bashkortostan). LLC NPF Packer. Field of activity: design, manufacture and maintenance of packer and anchor equipment and well assemblies for the operation, intensification and workover of oil and gas wells. Territory: head office - in Oktyabrsky (Bashkortostan); service centres and representative offices - in Muravlenko (YNAO), Nizhnevartovsk and Nyagan (KhMAO - Yugra), Ufa, Buzuluk (Orenburg region), Almetyevsk and Leninogorsk (Tatarstan), Izhevsk. Number of employees: more than 700. Subscriber of the magazine "General Director": since 2007.

Sergei Kapustin graduated from the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (now the Belarusian National Technical University). Since 1995 - co-owner and CEO logistics company AsstrA. Since 2003 - in the current position. STA Logistic Group of Companies. Field of activity: transport logistics. Territory: Russian head office - in Moscow, branch - in St. Petersburg; representations - in Minsk and Vilnius. Number of employees: 165. Annual turnover: 32 million euros (in 2012).

Human capital- assessment of the potential ability embodied in the individual to bring income. Includes innate abilities and talents, as well as education and acquired qualifications. The concept of human capital was developed by American scientists, Nobel Prize winners in economics Gary Becker and Theodor Schultz. They showed that investing in human capital can give a high economical effect and that in recent decades they have increasingly determined the development of the economy, especially in industrialized countries.

Human capital- a set of knowledge, abilities, skills used to meet the diverse needs of a person and society as a whole. The term was first used by Theodor Schultz, and his follower, Gary Becker, developed this idea by substantiating the effectiveness of investments in human capital and formulating economic approach to human behavior.

Initially, human capital was understood only as a set of investments in a person that increases his ability to work - education and professional skills. In the future, the concept of human capital has expanded significantly. The latest calculations made by the World Bank experts include consumer spending - the cost of families for food, clothing, housing, education, health care, culture, as well as government spending for these purposes.

Human capital in a broad sense, it is an intensive productive factor of economic development, the development of society and the family, including the educated part labor resources, knowledge, tools of intellectual and managerial work, habitat and labor activity, ensuring the effective and rational functioning of human capital as a productive development factor.

Briefly: Human capital- this is intelligence, health, knowledge, high-quality and productive work and quality of life.

Human capital- the main factor in the formation and development of the innovation economy and the knowledge economy, as the next highest stage of development.

One of the conditions for the development and improvement of the quality of human capital is a high index of economic freedom.

The classification of human capital is used:

1. Individual human capital.

2. The human capital of the firm.

3. National human capital.

In the national wealth, human capital in developed countries is from 70 to 80%. In Russia, about 50%.

The concept of human capital is a natural development and generalization of the concepts of the human factor and human resource, however, human capital is a broader economic category. The founders of the theory of human capital (HC) gave it a narrow definition, which has expanded over time and continues to expand, including all new components of HC. As a result, human capital has become a complex intensive factor in the development of the modern economy - the knowledge economy.

Currently, on the basis of the theory and practice of human capital, a successful paradigm for the development of the United States and leading European countries is being formed and improved. Based on the theory of the Cheka, which was lagging behind, Sweden modernized its economy and returned its leadership position in the world economy in the 2000s. Finland, in a historically short period of time, has managed to move from a predominantly resource-based economy to an innovative economy. And to create their own competitive high technologies, without giving up the deepest processing of their main natural wealth - the forest. Managed to reach the first place in the world in terms of the competitiveness of the economy as a whole. Moreover, the Finns created their innovative technologies and products.

All this took place not because the theory and practice of human capital realized a kind of magic wand, but because it became the answer of economic theory and practice to the challenges of the time, to the challenges of the innovative economy (knowledge economy) emerging in the second half of the 20th century and venture science. -technical business.

The development of science, the formation of the information society to the fore as components of a complex intensive development factor - human capital - have brought forward knowledge, education, health, the quality of life of the population and the leading specialists themselves, who determine the creativity and innovation of national economies.

In the context of the globalization of the world economy, in the conditions of free flow of any capital, including the Cheka, from country to country, from region to region, from city to city in the conditions of intense international competition, the accelerated development of high technologies.

And huge advantages in creating stable conditions for the growth of the quality of life, the creation and development of the knowledge economy, the information society, the development of civil society have countries with accumulated high-quality human capital. That is, countries with an educated, healthy and optimistic population, competitive world-class professionals in all types of economic activity, in education, science, management and other areas.

Understanding and choosing human capital as the main development factor literally dictates a systematic and integrated approach in developing a development concept or strategy and linking all other private strategies and programs with them. This dictate follows from the essence of the national Cheka as a multicomponent development factor. Moreover, this diktat emphasizes the conditions of life, work and the quality of the tools of specialists that determine the creativity and creative energy of the country.

The core of the Cheka, of course, was and remains a man, but now he is an educated, creative and initiative man, possessing high level professionalism. Human capital itself determines in modern economy the main share of the national wealth of countries, regions, municipalities and organizations. At the same time, the share of unskilled labor in the GDP of developed and developing countries, including Russia, is getting smaller, and in technologically advanced countries it is already vanishingly small.

Therefore, the division of labor into unskilled labor and labor requiring education, special skills and knowledge is gradually losing its original meaning and economic content when defining human capital, which the founders of the human capital theory identified with educated people and their accumulated knowledge and experience. The concept of human capital as an economic category is constantly expanding along with the development of the global information community and the knowledge economy.

Human capital, broadly defined, is the intensive productiveeconomic development factor, society and family, including the educated part of the labor force, knowledge, tools for intellectual and managerial work, the environment and labor activity that ensure the effective and rational functioning of the human capital as a productive development factor.

Human capital is formed through investments in improving the level and quality of life of the population, in intellectual activity. Including - in upbringing, education, health, knowledge (science), entrepreneurial ability and climate, in the information support of labor, in the formation of an effective elite, in the security of citizens and business and economic freedom, as well as in culture, art and other components. The Cheka is also formed due to the influx from other countries. Or it decreases due to its outflow, which is observed so far in Russia.

AT composition of human capital includes investments and returns from them in the tools of intellectual and managerial work, as well as investments in the environment for the functioning of the human capital, ensuring its effectiveness.

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