The goal of this session was to further the effort to develop an actionable checklist. There were two breakaway groups the day before which came up with a basic Open Business checklist:- Social
- Access
- Profitable - financially sustainable
- Open license for the content
- Transparent
- Fair
- Community
- Two way feedback (reciprocal)
Part of the process is to demystify Open Business and both define and distinguish it from the usual concept of business. Fred Benenson referred to the Open Business website and quoted from the definition presented on the site. Jon Phillips pointed out the Wikipedia definition of Open Business. Oona Castro related Brazilian experiences with the process of developing Open Business models with specific reference to the Techno Brega music industry.
The group split in two breakaway groups which were asked to determine whether the statement or conceptualisation of Open Business which the groups were tasked with producing accords with the checklist developed in the previous session. The basic idea was to come up with a question to ask about a business model/plan to determine whether it could be regarded as an Open Business together with whether it is even possible to formulate such a question. Lannon Prigge, the facilitator, pointed out that this process is not intended to be prescriptive and rather that it is intended to develop guidelines to help explore the concept of an Open Business.
The approach adopted by one group regarded the initial process as a process of exclusion, almost discrimination. For the most part the discussion raised a series of questions about the items listed in the checklist, few of which were answered satisfactorily. The participants were concerned that the process be developed further rather than going back to ground that was already covered. The checklist seemed to be relatively straightforward but the questions asked about each item on the checklist only increased the complexity of the overall task. One interesting set of questions revolved around the implications of transparency on a business styled as an Open Business and yet focussed on particularly sensitive information, for example weapons manufacture. This question became a tool to help determine which items on the checklist are critical elements of an Open Business and which simply add to the model.
As a guide, Lannon suggested that participants review their beliefs about conventional business and consider in what ways an Open Business is different to a conventional business and why it is preferable to be involved in an Open Business as opposed to a conventional business? Jon remarked that an Open Business is a business with a degree of openness. Another point Lannon raised is that some people see Open Business as an exclusive model/concept. Part of the session's focus is to debunk this and, in effect, open up the concept of Open Business. Jon responded by asking what happens if he doesn't want to let people in on the inner workings of his business. Even if the model is open, the business is still competing. Reference was made to the social contract with the Community on the Debian website. Is a social contract a component of an Open Business model? Another consideration that was raised is the cost of entry into a market and the ability to lower that cost to facilitate improved access.
Other suggestions included a form of collaboration in the production of a product or service. The goal of a business, any business, is to be productive and to innovate. Another idea that was presented is that it isn't necessary to find a new business model. The technological evolution drives certain sectors to develop new business models almost as a function of that evolution. When it comes to Open Business, is it meant to correct some deficiency in conventional business? Open Business and profitabilty are not mutually exclusive and Jon suggested that Open Businesses could even charge more for their products or services because of their unique value proposition. A form of certification by a kind of Open Business Bureau was also mooted although the value here seemed to be more in the further value such a certification could add because of what being an Open Business could mean.
Another important question was whether the very idea of Open Business is perhaps "unnatural" in a way. A consumer is probably going to be more likely to take the best deal, whatever that may represent for that consumer. For some consumers that may come down to price, not so much the values the business embodies. The need to lower costs is often paramount and it wasn't clear that an Open Business model necessarily lowers costs. In many ways this discussion is also a discussion about waste which was raised in the Open Research track on Day 1.
Picture by Paul Jacobson on flickr.com, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Picture by Paul Jacobson on flickr.com, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
