Hubs and Spokes

I just read a piece on business implications of tribal aggregation by Jay Deragon on the "The Relationship Economy" website. It is a great explanation of how tribal organizations of purpose, through their behavior, create a hub & spoke of connections, influence and communication. Through shared goals of the tribal organizations, hubs are created where like minded people can communicate, collaborate and co-create in order to achieve specific common goals.

This idea of tribes and hubs is relevant to the Repeace community. The community goal is to make accountability a profitable currency...to place the power back into the institution of the people. This common goal of demanding accountability from business and political leaders is what creates the hub in order to build the numbers needed to make those demands of accountability.

Repeace hopes to rally people behind 4 positive pledges, or demands. To make this work requires large numbers of people who believe in these simple demands, and who are willing to stand up and be counted. Numbers are what businesses and politicians understand, and in order to avert their attention away from the corrupt influence of money, and place the power back into the people's hands, we have to reach a critical mass of people demanding change. The four pledges are simple, and require only that people go to the Repeace website, and invest a couple of minutes to click on the pledge buttons. Here are the four pledges:

1. I will support businesses that focus on sustainable, local products and services, not on buying influence.
2. I will support politicians who are accountable to me, not to corporations.
3. I will support countries that promote and defend freedom of expression.
4. Worldwide support for all nations.

"The way Repeace wants to give power back to the institution of the people is by creating a worldwide, massive, virtual demand of accountability from businesses, and directing all power of purchase towards businesses who will make concrete steps toward abandoning their financial influence in public policies (money out of politics for increased support)."

• "We tell businesses: "Back off of my representatives and I'll buy your products, or else I'll buy from businesses who will."
• "We tell politicians: "Find alternative ways to find support and voters other than private cash, or else I'll support candidates who will".

TRIBAL HUBS AND SPOKES

"Tribal behavior creates a “hub and spoke” of connections, influence and communications. Each of us have our “hub” which represents a gathering of friends, family, business associates and extended relations. We reach out to others via “spokes” and we pull others to us via use of distribution “hubs” in which we communicate, collaborate and co-create.

"Tribal communities of purpose willingly share common goals with individuals and other tribes that identify with the philosophical bonds that unites people. Tribes stand for meaningful issues of importance to the human network.

"Tribes are creating five new dynamics that will change the way markets behave. These are:

1. The tribes control the message with growing influence over markets. If your business cannot relate to the message then you are considered an outsider.
2. Tribes have a purpose. Help them fulfill their purpose and just maybe you can be a member of their tribe. Understand the purpose and you’ll understand the tribe.
3. Companies will have to learn that they are not the “connection” to the marketplace rather tribes, internal and external, hold the keys to tribal influence. Marketing, in the traditional sense, carries no influence.
4. Tribes do not need management they need tools to accomplish their objectives. Tribes are and always will be self managed.
5. Tribal leaders are dedicated to serving tribe members and the common purpose than themselves.

"The irony of today’s social dynamics is that brands and large networks think and behave like they are the “hub” and “tribes” are the “spokes”. The reality is that as technology progresses tribes are becoming the “hub” and the marketplace, the networks and every organization trying to aggregate us for their purpose are becoming the spoke." read the rest...