Business Federations: The Future of Inter-market Co-operation

Depending on where you are, business is either booming into online spaces due to the pandemic or is crumbling due to lack of Online infrastructure, Alternatively, both. The state of Business is in a Multi-faceted shift just now, from the in person store to the Online Marketplace, from the mass pollution to the often Green-washed paper only straws and solar panelled roofs, Business is changing. Whether its for the better, depends on your perspective.

The business world has been “Shaken up” but not in the way that most people expected. No one expected a Pandemic to come along and force previously in person businesses to start moving online. But that’s absolutely what happened, but it also impacted workers. Some for the better as Home-working at least for now is a common phenomena, giving some workers the flexibility they didn’t realise they needed and more spare time to look after their kids or do other things. But one thing ties all of this together, Businesses are changing how they do Business.

I mean of course, Businesses have to change with the times, they can’t all stay the same otherwise they don’t grow. But they’re changing much quicker and maturing much more quickly which raises a few concerns. Whenever something is done quickly you inevitably run into the issue of having made a decision too quickly and the quick move back to the previous policy creates confusion on the part of the workers but also the Consumers. Things that were previously available online, are no longer, and can only be bought in person.

There’s also the concern on the part of the worker, the constant talk of “Home-working is only during the pandemic” when in most situations workers are starting to realise Office-life is a farce and that 99% of their job can be done from home. For the first time in a while, I’ve actually heard former colleagues of mine realise that Office-life is just a means of control, that the online infrastructure to work from home was there but it was more convenient for the business to keep tabs on them from an Office space than it was at home. Giving food for thought to workers who previously liked their jobs but now find a deep distrust of their employers.

I’ve also noticed a increase in the number of Local businesses doing collaborations with each other. Business collaborations aren’t uncommon but they are usually more noticeable with Larger Goliaths of companies like Google, Amazon, Samsung, etc. Local business pre-pandemic keep themselves to themselves and keep collaboration to a minimum to try and not conflate niches in the market or rely on another businesses specialties like logistics or marketing. But that too seems to be changing, and I think what is now on the table is quite revolutionary.

Business Federations are an old idea, they basically act as Guilds for business. A bunch of businesses form a guild, the businesses are independent from each other but they create a common marketplace where they can exchange ideas, product ideas, fund each others projects and exchange services at a discounted rate to each other. Business Unions exist but they tend to be more of a source for Lobbying Government on common values than collaboration. I think that Federations act as a boost to small businesses because they can work together, to grow together.

The idea of a Business Federation or Guild can be used to fit any baseline idea, like I said, if the idea is just to grow together then they’re great for that and you can create some kind of paid membership structure that allows the guild to provide low interest loans or grants to smaller businesses. Alternatively, you can create a Business Federation of Progressive businesses, with the goal being to build and grow progressive businesses with a shared workplace policy, membership structure and promotion (or enforcement) of certain Progressive ideals and Policies that can create a new form of Competition in the wider market.

Overall, I think that Business Federations act as an Inter-market Governance structure that compliments the Governments of the day, rather than aims to invalidate the Government structures. It democratises business overall, rather than the empty promise of the stock market which to most small businesses is inaccessible almost in its entirety. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in this space.