Intellectual assets and public policy

Purpose – The key purpose of this article is to provide an understanding of the rationale for, and an assessment of, public policy intervention to alleviate a perceived market failure in the area of intellectual asset management by firms. Design/methodology/approach – Utilising secondary data, the article initially constructs an Intellectual Asset Index for UK regions. This is followed by an assessment of public policy intervention, mainly reliant on data captured through semi-structured interviews. Findings – Whilst public policy appears to be relatively successful in facilitating firms to develop a greater knowledge and understanding of the role of intangibles in maintaining and improving organisational competitiveness, it faces far greater challenges in attempting to convert increased awareness and understanding into the proactive management and exploitation of these intangibles by firms. Research limitations/implications – The research was undertaken relatively soon after the policy intervention it assesses was implemented. Therefore, the full impact of such public policy was unlikely to be realised at this stage. Practical implications – The article provides a range of findings and implications that can be utilised by policymakers considering or already intervening in the provision of support to help firms better manage their intellectual assets. Originality/value – Both the construction of the regional Intellectual Asset Index and the assessment of public policy attempt to provide an understanding of the link between the performance of firms and the competitiveness of the locations in which they are based