The Nexus Between Human Capital Efficiency and Financial Performance: A Case of Malaysian Plantation Sector

Authors

  • Abdul Mutalib Azman Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Arau Campus
  • Noor Sharida Badri Shah Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Arau Campus
  • Shaliza Azreen Mohd Zulkifli Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Arau Campus
  • Roslan Ja’afar Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bandar Baru Bangi, Selangor
  • Noor Hafizha Muhamad Yusuf Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Arau Campus
  • Rozihanim Shekh Zain Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Arau Campus

Keywords:

financial performance, human capital efficiency, Malaysian plantation sector

Abstract

This research discusses “The Impacts of Human Capital Efficiency on Financial Performance in the Malaysian Plantation Sector," which seeks to investigate the correlation between human capital efficiency and financial performance within the Malaysian plantation sector. The study employs a sample of twenty (20) Malaysian Plantation companies using STATA 14 for panel data analysis. The results demonstrate a strong correlation between human capital efficiency and financial performance. Companies that have higher human capital efficiency tend to have better financial performance, as indicated by metrics such as return on assets, asset turnover ratio, and leverage. These findings highlight the significance of efficiently overseeing and utilizing human resources to influence financial results in the plantation sector. The study focuses on the importance of investing in the development and optimization of human capital to improve financial performance. Additional research is advised to investigate other factors that may impact on this association and to evaluate the applicability of the findings to different nature of businesses and environments.

References

Abderahmane, D., & Mounir, L. (2023). Effect of Board Diversity on Firm Performance: Evidence from Malaysian non-Financial Listed Companies. Finance and Business Economics Review, 4-22.

Abdullah, D. F., Sofian, S., & And Bajuri, N. H. (2015). Social Sciences & Humanities Intellectual Capital as the Essence of Sustainable Corporate Performance. Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum, 23, 131–144. http://www.pertanika.upm.edu.my/

Abdullah, S. N., & Ku Ismail, K. N. I. (2017). Gender, ethnic and age diversity of the boards of large Malaysian firms and performance. Abdullah, SN, & Ismail, KNIK (2013). Gender, Ethnic and Age Diversity of the Boards of Large Malaysian Firms and Performance. Jurnal Pengurusan, 38, 27-40.

Alarussi, A. S. A. (2021). Financial ratios and efficiency in Malaysian listed companies. Asian Journal of Economics and Banking, 5(2), 116–135

Alarussi, A. S. A., Alhdeede, A. T., & Sarpong, S. (2023), Firm Attributes, Financial Ratios, and Working Capital in Emerging Markets: Evidence from Malaysia.

Amirkadra, M. A. (2023, September 29). Mechanisation Is the Way Forward for The Malaysian Palm Oil Industry. Retrieved from Malaysian Palm Oil Certification Council: Malaysian-palm-oil-industry.

Amran, N. A. (2011). - The Effect of Owner’s Gender and Age to Firm Performance: A Review on Malaysian Public Listed Family Businesses. JOURNAL OF GLOBAL BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS, 108-124.

Arifin, A., Taib, H. M., Rahim, A. R. A., & Aman, Z. (2023), The Importance of the Palm Oil Industry for Malaysian Entrepreneurs.

Audretsch, D. B., & Thurik, R. (2001). Linking entrepreneurship to growth.

Barney, J. (1991). Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of management, 17(1), 99-120.

Becker, G. S. (1993). Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education.

Chowdhury, L. A. M., Rana, T., & Azim, M. I. (2019). Intellectual capital efficiency and organisational performance: In the context of the pharmaceutical industry in Bangladesh. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 20(6), 784–806.

Chu, M. M. (2022). Labour shortages set up Malaysia for third year of palm oil losses.

Department, S. R. (2023, September 21). Total number of workers in palm oil plantations in Malaysia from 2021 to 2022. Retrieved from Statistics

Dey, R. K., Hossain, S. Z., & Rahman, R. A. (2018). Effect of Corporate Financial Leverage on Financial Performance: A Study on Publicly Traded Manufacturing Companies in Bangladesh. Asian Social Science, 14(12), 124.

Fahy, J. (2000). The resource‐based view of the firm: some stumbling‐blocks on the road to understanding sustainable competitive advantage. Journal of European industrial training, 24(2/3/4), 94-104.

Grant, R. M. (1996). Toward a knowledge‐based theory of the firm. Strategic management journal, 17(S2), 109-122.

Gunawan, R., Widiyanti, M., Malinda, S., & Adam, M. (2022). The Effect of Current Ratio Total Asset Turnover, Debt to Asset Ratio, And Debt to Equity Ratio on Return on Assets in Plantation Sub-Sector Companies Listed on The Indonesia Stock Exchange. International Journal of Economic, Business, Accounting, Agriculture Management and Sharia Administration (IJEBAS), 2(1), 19–28.

Hsu, L. C., & Wang, C. H. (2012). Clarifying the Effect of Intellectual Capital on Performance: The Mediating Role of Dynamic Capability. British Journal of Management, 23(2), 179–205.

Ibrahim, D. D. (2023, June 14). Focus on diversification, innovation, and sustainable growth. Retrieved from New Straits Times:https://www.nst.com.my

Ibrahim, H., & Lau, T.-C. (2019). The Determinants of Financial Leverage for Surviving Listed Companies in Malaysia. In International Journal of Business and Society 20(1).

Ismail, R. (2009). The impact of human capital attainment on output and labor productivity of Malay firms. The Journal of International Management Studies, 4(1), 221-230.

Joshi, M., Cahill, D., Sidhu, J., & Kansal, M. (2013). Intellectual capital and financial performance: an evaluation of the Australian financial sector. Journal of intellectual capital, 14(2), 264-285.

Khan, Ruhma & Chaudhry, Imran & Farooq, Fatima. (2019). Impact of Human Capital on Employment and Economic Growth in Developing Countries. Review of Economics and Development Studies. 5. 10.26710/reads.v5i3.701.

Matlay, H. (2005). The impact of resource on SMEs: Critical perspective (Vol. 12, No. 2). Emerald Group Publishing.

Mohammad, H. S., & Bujang, I. (2019). Does Intellectual Capital Influence Firms’ financial Performance? A Comparative Analysis into Three Malaysian Industries. International Journal of Business and Society, 20(1), 260-276.

Mohammad, H. S., & Shairi, S. A. (2023). Is intellectual capital measurement matters in the profitability of technology firms in Malaysia? Investigating the moderating effect of human capital efficiency. Journal of Emerging Economies and Islamic Research, 11(1),15-40.

Mondal, A., & Ghosh, S. K. (2012). Intellectual capital and financial performance of Indian banks. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 13(4), 515–530.

Munawar, A. (2019). The Effect of Liquidity, Leverage and Total Aset Turnover on Profitability; Empirical Study of Manufacturing Companies in Indonesia Stock Exchange 2012 – 2017. International Journal of Economics and Management Studies, 6(9), 126–131. https://doi.org/10.14445/23939125/ijems-v6i9p116

Omondi, M. M., Muturi, W., & Kenyatta, J. (2013). Factors Affecting the Financial Performance of Listed Companies at the Nairobi Securities Exchange in Kenya. In Research Journal of Finance and Accounting www.iiste.org ISSN (Vol. 4, Issue 15).

Oppong, G. K., Pattanayak, J. K., & Irfan, M. (2019). Impact of intellectual capital on productivity of insurance companies in Ghana: A panel data analysis with System GMM estimation. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 20(6), 763–783.

Ozkan, N., Cakan, S., & Kayacan, M. (2017). Intellectual capital and financial performance: A study of the Turkish Banking Sector. Borsa Istanbul Review, 17(3), 190–198.

Parham, S. ;, & Heling, G. W. J. (2015). The Relationship between Human Capital Efficiency and Financial Performance of Dutch Production Companies. In Research Journal of Finance and Accounting www.iiste.org ISSN (Vol. 6, Issue 8).

Poh, L. T., Kilicman, A., & Ibrahim, S. N. I. (2018). On intellectual capital and financial performances of banks in Malaysia. Cogent Economics and Finance, 6(1).

Prasojo, P., & Hadinata, S. (2020). Intellectual Capital and Firm Performance: Empirical Evidence from the Jakarta Islamic Index. Journal of Accounting Auditing and Business, 3(2), 64. https://doi.org/10.24198/jaab.v3i2.27249

Ramasamy, B., Ong, D., & Yeung, M. C. H. (2005). Asian Academy of Management Journal of Accounting and Finance Firm Size, Ownership and Performance in The Malaysian Palm Oil Industry. In AAMJAF (Vol. 1). www.oilworld.biz

Ramin, A. K., Lizam, M., Zabri, S. M., & Ahmad, M. F. (2017). Finn’s size and solvency performance: Evidence from the Malaysian public listed firms. Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 12(5), 1240–1244.

Salaman, G., Storey, J., & Billsberry, J. (2005). Strategic human resource management: defining the field. Strategic human resource management, 1-11.

Senan, N. A. M., Ahmad, A., Anagreh, S., Tabash, M. I., & Al-Homaidi, E. A. (2021). An empirical analysis of financial leverage and financial performance: Empirical evidence from Indian listed firms. In Investment Management and Financial Innovations (Vol. 18, Issue 2, pp. 322–334). LLC CPC Business Perspectives.

Shairi, S. A. B., Mohammad, H. S., & Tuyon, J. (2021). Intellectual Capital and Firm Performance: Evidence from Technology Sector in Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Economics and Management Sciences, 10(1)

Shamsuddin, A., Khalit, M. S. B., Abd Latib, Z. S. B., & Raub, M. I. B.(2015) The Relationship Between Intellectual Capital and Firms’ performance In the Trading and Services Sector in Malaysia.

Soewarno, N., & Tjahjadi, B. (2020). Measures that matter: an empirical investigation of intellectual capital and financial performance of banking firms in Indonesia. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 21(6), 1085–1106. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-09-2019-0225

Ting, I., Kiong, W., Chuann, C. Y., & Hooi, L. H. (2011). The Effect of Intellectual Capital on Firm’s Performance: Evidence from Servicing and Non-Servicing Sectors in Malaysia. In Terengganu International Finance and Economics Journal (Vol. 1, Issue 1).

Tran, N. P., & Vo, D. H. (2020). Human capital efficiency and firm performance across sectors in an emerging market. Cogent Business and Management, 7(1).

Value, I. F. (2023), How the Malaysian plantation sector performed over the past 10 years.

Wernerfelt, B. (1984). A resource‐based view of the firm. Strategic management journal, 5(2), 171-180.

Weqar, F., Khan, A. M., Raushan, M. A., & Haque, S. M. I. (2021). Measuring the Impact of Intellectual Capital on the Financial Performance of the Finance Sector of India. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 12(3), 1134–1151.

Widarni, E. l., & Wilantari, r. n. (2021). The relationship between human capital development and economic growth: Evidence from Malaysia.

Xu, J., & Li, J. (2022). The interrelationship between intellectual capital and firm performance: evidence from China’s manufacturing sector. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 23(2), 313–341. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-08-2019-0189

Xu, J., & Wang, B. (2019). Intellectual capital and financial performance of Chinese agricultural listed companies. Custos e Agronegocio Online, 15(1), 273-290.

Downloads

Published

2025-08-04