In the following video, the Fool's Blake Bos and Isaac Pino discuss the invaluable company assets you don't see on paper, such as employees' satisfaction with their workplace and their CEO. Shareholder value can blossom out of these intangibles, since they create a pleasant work environment, which correlates to a happy consumer experience. Whole Foods (WFM) and Chipotle (CMG -1.34%), two companies focused on their employees, show considerable returns for their investors.
Blake recommends Glassdoor.com as a tool to find some of these hidden values. The site gives investors a glimpse at employee satisfaction and other key indicators that don't show up in financial reports. Using the site to compare Procter & Gamble (PG 0.65%) with Heinz (HNZ) -- two companies with relatively close P/E ratios and amounts of debt -- Blake notes that 91% of P&G employees are glad to work for the company, but only 37% are at Heinz. These intangibles can make a company worth a lot more or less than its financial records suggest.
