Make a Space - The Platform

In the previous post, we discussed the value a makerspace can bring to the community and some new things that are needed to harness the real potential of a collaborative space.

So what is "Make a Space" about?

A platform to easily create and run collaborative organizations.

The wording "collaborative organizations" instead of makerspace, is because ultimately this system can be applied to many different scenarios. The space might even be virtual. This is simply a way to build a sort of "ad-hoc goal accomplishment cohort of people." It may eventually turn into a business, but is starting out small. Regardless, we are going to apply it to a makerspace first, as it has the most elements from all other situations the system might be used in. In other words, if it can work for a makerspace, it should work for everything else.

Task Management System (TMS)

The primary mode of getting things done centers around creating a system for distributed task management. As outlined in the previous post, the most basic explanation is: being able to post and link tasks with (or without) a reward. At the core, this is how all organizations function. Traditional organizations usually pay by the hour, and not by the task. When a manager tells you what to do with your time, they are just giving you a task to do and are authorizing you to get paid based on time spent working on the task, instead of a defined task completion. The task-based system would allow an organization to have a more decentralized form of management, thus allowing it to scale the help needed more linearly instead of a per employee step function. It is a way to manage a large number of contractors or freelancers that are task based instead of hourly. The purpose of linking tasks and being able to create hierarchies is two-fold. First, it allows context of the task and where it fits in. This allows freelancers to be able to slot in and out of projects with less face to face explanation of the problem. Second, if this system can be searchable, it can find other tasks in the system that are similar enough to your own. This only works for open-source projects but is an extremely powerful mechanism. For example, if ten people need 95% of the same task done, wouldn't it be cheaper to get the task completed at 1/10th the cost and spend a little extra on the adjacent task to absorb the last 5%? Would we see some basic building blocks everyone needs emerge, that previously would have been duplicated? It could provide enormous leverage for creating a low-cost open source product.

We have already started to framework what this system might look like and what it would require building. So far we have decided it will end up being a new programming language of sorts. However, it should be more or less perfectly understandable to the average English speaker. It ends up being similar to a micro contracting framework but specially made to accomplish a task (or series of tasks).

Another feature that could be built into this is a form of identity. This would help keep track of who owns what tasks, and who had a good reputation to work with. You can find more information on what that entails at this blog.

Organization Operating System

Every business wants to be able to run on autopilot, but a small margin semi-volunteer adventure has a greater need than others. With this in mind, we hope to be able to integrate with the task system to cut down on the paperwork. Because everyone is considered a contractor, payroll and taxes are simplified to simpler forms. The makerspace in which the tasks are being completed can act as an escrow between parties, and handle the numbers. They can also pay individuals for the tasks they complete for the space, and request payment from members who owe monthly dues. Again, the key is being able to utilize the TMS for any effort expended that requires payment. You expended a little more effort up front on management, but you are also dealing with the accounting indirectly.

Teamstarter (working title)

After we have the backend of this working, the next step is organizing the front end, people. The goal of making an organization run smoother is great, but why not apply that to the creation of an organization? This is the funding platform we talked about in the previous post. You could use it publicly to organize many individuals, but there is no reason why you couldn't also use it between only a few people. It would be a clear way to understand expectations of any number of parties and, facilitate a very quick creation of a contract. Along with creating an instant contract, we could also provide a basic starter kit for ideas to aid in the success of your endeavor. This could include physical sensors and accessories that integrate into the Organization Operating System, further automating workflows and reducing operational overhead. It could also can basic legal documents to ensure you are covered in various situations (all documents should be reviewed by your lawyer, but this can still significantly reduce cost).

An aspect of teamstarter we are currently working on is a simple contract agreement between individuals to allow a clear understanding of percentage ownership of an endeavor. Even though you may be working with you best friend, or even family member it is important to set up the "rules" of the game before there is any value at stake. We are building a contract (that we will share after we have tested it out) that creates a frame work to determine the amount of "effort" an individual has put into a project. It is an agreement on how many dollars of capital input is considered equal to putting in one hour of sweat capital. This helps everyone understand the potential results of their efforts. When you start on your endeavor, just track the time and money spent on it, and when it becomes viable, you can start a formal LLC and have a clear picture of the current percentage of ownership amongst parties. And there is no reason you can't continue tracking effort expended and adjust the ownership shares accordingly as time progresses.

Conclusion

We feel that building this platform could allow entrepreneurship to become much more accessible. One day, entrepreneurship (self-employment, specifically) will be a significant portion of occupations. As technology lowers the cost to run organizations (an information problem) we will only end up with more and more of them. This allows problems to be analyzed on a smaller scale and allow individuals to be part of many different organizations at once.