User:Zoë Böhme/sandbox

Economy 3.0
Economy 3.0 is a new economic system that is described in the book ‘We are the Economy!’ by Oliver Fiechter. In cooperation with tech entrepreneurs, politicians, and artists, Oliver Fiechter had developed 33 theses which later constituted the basis of that book.

In order to understand Economy 3.0, one needs to understand the economic systems that preceded it, as well as the key differences between Economies 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0.

Economy 1.0
Economy 1.0 is the first economic system that is based on money. It marks the beginning of large scale industry and its goal is dealing with the fundamental problem of physical scarcity. Basic needs like food, water and clothing have to be satisfied. The demand is significantly higher than the supply, so the size of the market is determined by the supply side, which mainly consists of small businesses that focus on satisfying local needs. The driving force of Economy 1.0 is development and the system is controlled by the state.

Economy 2.0
Economy 2.0 is not just about survival anymore; its participants are longing for material wealth. An increase in efficiency leads to more supply, which brings supply and demand into alignment and therefore increases the power of the consumer. The average size of enterprises increases – which is one of the reasons for increased efficiency – and enterprise management is concentrated in the hands of a few. Furthermore, the realization of the ego becomes the driving force of the system; the individual wants to be unique. Since the needs of the customers are more or less equal, whether or not a need can be satisfied depends on the financial possibilities of the individual. In this economy, success is assessed through profit, respectively the lack thereof.

Economy 3.0
“The imperative of Economy 3.0 is called intellectualization, this means that a community is to empower its members to reflexive thinking and acting.” In Economy 3.0, the third sector – the service sector – dominates. There is an abundance of physical and material goods, which is why the exchange of intangibles in order to increase intangible prosperity becomes the primary focus of the system. The demand for efficiency and size is replaced by a demand for creativity and empathy. Intangible needs are highly individual and cannot be satisfied through mass production. In order to fulfill a customer need, an enterprise needs to know what exactly the need is and how it can be fulfilled. The gap between producer and consumer shrinks; the consumer turns into a co-producer. New forms of relationships between organizations and stakeholders are required, the interaction becomes more important than the transaction. Digitalization leads to a new kind of knowledge society because the internet makes it possible for everyone to contribute and access knowledge.

Dematerialization
“The basis of the new creation of the economy is through dematerialization.” Dematerialization changes the needs as well as the means to satisfy the needs. The physical world is losing importance, whereas the non-physical world is becoming more and more relevant; the material world is turning into an intangible world.

The swarm-intelligent enterprise
Corporate management in Economy 3.0 works according to the principles of self-organization. The metaphor of the swarm can be used to explain these principles. “Swarms function without central control, solely by the cooperation of individual agents that interact loyally with each other and are equal to each other.” A swarm forms, whenever a group of people pursues the same task. Successful swarms require a commitment to self-organization, indirect cooperation, access to a wide variety of knowledge and it has to be able to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Since there is no one giving instructions, tools like knowledge competitions – where different approaches are compared and assessed – need to be used to increase the quality of decisions.

When enterprises function according to the swarm principle, this leads to a decentralization of management, which leads to a new, more equal distribution of power.

As beneficial as the swarm principle may seem, there is one thing that needs to be taken into consideration: the so-called knowledge paradox. More available knowledge leads to better processes due to better information. However, having knowledge that no one else has means having power, which incentivizes individuals to keep knowledge to themselves. The knowledge paradox arises due to lack of knowledge about the behavior of others. Communicative integration and information transparency can help to avoid it.

The winners and losers of Economy 3.0
The characteristics of Economy 3.0 are transparency, digitality, and reciprocity. Like any new system, it has new rules and creates new winners and losers. Five new rules that can be derived are that one needs to self-reflect and network. Additionally, one needs to be transparent, offer dematerialized value and take part in the new, decentralized control possibilities. The winners of Economy 3.0 can be separated into two categories: the digital and the creative. Who the digital are is quite self-explanatory; due to digitalization, the distances between two countries is virtually nonexistent. The world is designated as flat and individuals are separated into different segments on the internet according to their identity. The digital are the ones who are able to cope with this and use it to their advantage.

The creative are able to interpret and reinterpret knowledge, products, processes, and systems. They think critically and question existing conditions and premises. Closely related to the creative are people with high human capital. Their main task is storing and managing knowledge. They understand, collect and document existing knowledge. People with high human capital have received a high formal education and collaborating with them is desirable for others.

The losers of Economy 3.0 are difficult to determine. Whether the winners of Economy 2.0 constitute the losers of 3.0 depends on their focus and whether or not they accept the change. The most apparent thing the winners of Economy 2.0 are going to want to focus on is trying to hold on to the old system. “The winners of Economy 2.0 will use their weapons so that the old power relations remain alive. This is achieved by the old system remaining alive, the old conventions being declared as irreversible and the previous central control mechanisms being maintained.” However, if they master the rules of Economy 3.0 or if they are able to manipulate their weapons so that the rules of Economy 2.0 still lead to success, they may become winners of Economy 3.0.

Education in Economy 3.0
Education of Economy 2.0 works according to the key principle of its economy: efficiency. It can be compared to a trivial process; input is offered and a clear output is expected; the individuality of the learners is ignored. Future educational systems should be systems that accompany people over their entire lives and embrace the individuality of those learning. They should allow creativity and unpredictability; strengths should be discovered and promoted. “As a result of modified education, people become less able to be influenced, less able to be manipulated, less able to be controlled from the outside.”

Future measuring systems
Measuring systems of today, most importantly GDP, measure success according to the principles and goals of Economy 2.0. In new economic systems, we need new indicators to evaluate the prosperity and well-being of states. Instead of only measuring quantitative indicators like financial profit, emotional indicators like the happiness and the health of a society should be integrated into our calculations of success.

Synchronomy – the system succeeding Economy 3.0
Instead of calling it Economy 4.0, ‘We are the Economy!’ refers to the economy following Economy 3.0 as Synchronomy. Synchronomy is a neologism made up of synchronization and economy. This new system overcomes the logic of scarcity; it is replaced by the logic of abundance. The tangible needs are already satisfied; the system is entirely devoted to the intangible. Enterprises only exist as synchronization platforms where people who produce certain benefits and people who want to receive those benefits meet and form ‘communities’. A community dissolves, once the particular need is satisfied. In Synchronomy, the features of the markets that are characteristic in Economy 3.0 – virtuality, transparency, and reciprocity – gain importance. Dematerialization continues, the principle of exchange and ‘interaction instead of transaction’ are in the foreground. Hierarchies are replaced by networks. There is a complete decentralization of the structure, development, and management of enterprises; they are fully in the hands of the stakeholders. Instead of having executives, communities rely on direct communication and swarm intelligence.

The central task of the dematerialized enterprises in Synchronomy is to act as knowledge centers that store, develop and redistribute knowledge. Physical work loses relevance because it can be delegated to robots and avatars.

In the decentralized system of Synchronomy, every person has equal value. This means, that every single one of us is responsible for the well-being of the economy and the welfare of society. “Synchronomy is only possible if people have a high level of education and recognize their social, political and economic responsibility.” Individuals need to be willing to reflect on personal and social goals as well as on their identities. There are three hurdles in the way of realizing the ideas of Synchronomy. The first one is the educational system. It should promote the individuality as well as the self-reflection of those learning and accompany people over their entire lives. The second hurdle is the mistaken belief that the mass is always right. Structures that make the implementation of self-defeating ideas harder need to be created. The third hurdle is overcoming the monetary system. Synchronomy is a modern exchange economy; it should return to a system of reciprocal exchange.