In our previous blog article, we’ve detailed what a next-gen, community-driven company looks like. We’ve touched on its benefits over traditional organizations, while we also emphasized the most important differences between them.

Community-driven organizations are fair, transparent, decentralized, and democratic, which makes them an ideal workplace for those professionals, who are looking for real flexibility, freedom, and appreciation. What is more, at workplaces like this, the workflows are all virtual, enabling developers and other contributors to work from any part of the world. 

However, there is a quintessential factor we didn’t get into in this article; how it benefits its workforce community through tokenization. This is what we are going to elaborate on in this material.

What is tokenization and how tokenized communities work?

Originally, tokenization is the substitution of sensitive information with equivalent nonsensitive information. The nonsensitive, replacement information is called a token, which has a value defined by the market.

In a corporate setting, tokenization means that on top of the tangible monthly payment, community members are also eligible for the company’s Initial Coin Offering (ICO) plan in exchange for their diligent contribution.

What is ICO (Initial Coin Offering)?

ICO in this scenario is the digital ledger-based equivalent of an Initial Public Offering (IPO). While IPO enables private corporations to offer shares to the public, ICO is meant for community members only.

Tokens, which are the actual “currency” of the ICO, form part of a tokenized Community Stock Ownership Plan, which is a way for community members to receive tokenized stocks with their contributions. 

How does a Community Stock Ownership Plan work?

ICO offers the means for community members to take part in the company’s Community Stock Ownership Plan. This reward solution allows community members to co-own the company along with part- and full-time employees but without restrictions on their work habits and environment. 

Tokenization is a great choice for community-driven organizations, as decentralization, flexibility, and democracy within the corporation are only emphasized due to co-ownership. The fundamental idea behind a Community Stock Ownership Plan is that the more members support and contribute to the community by developing the product or service in any way, the more shares they get.

How can members use and benefit from these ICO tokens?

First of all, we need to emphasize that these tokens don't replace real (fiat) money paid for work. They are an additional reward for the diligent and meaningful contribution of members, representing their activity level.

Just to mention a few examples, tokens can be obtained by writing an exceptional blog post, speaking at a live meetup, inviting a new member or participating in a charity event, or any other activity that is useful for the development and propagation of the company. 

Instead of exchanging ICO tokens for fiat currency, they can be redeemed within the community and the corporation to participate in training programs, and educational sessions, and boost expertise. 

All in all, tokens act as a currency but only within the organization rewarding members with a well-thought-out benefit program.

How do ICO tokens serve the advantages of the organization?

1. Increasing member satisfaction

As you could see in the above-mentioned sections, tokens can be used to reward exemplary performance and contribution. By owning more tokens, community members can take pride in their tokenized stocks and company ownership, Just like with stocks the ICO value shifts with the company’s value further boosting its potential.

Furthermore, thanks to this method, community members feel appreciated and cared for, so they know it is worth working hard within this supportive construction.

2. Bolstering personal development

As ICO tokens can be redeemed for courses, training sessions, or participation in other self-development events, they are an ideal solution to increase the know-how within the organization. This approach is beneficial for both parties, which explains why this method becomes more and more common in next-gen organizations.

3. Supporting incubation

A great community constantly strives toward innovation. The essence of community-driven organizations is that small and agile squads constantly come up with groundbreaking ideas that serve the advantages of both sides involved. But when we are talking about hundreds of incubated projects on a global scale, teams need motivation and support to create something that stands out from the crowd. ICO tokens are an excellent way of investing in projects with a high success rate. These investments indicate that the team aims for the success of their project and needs additional resources.

4. Increasing the value of the corporation 

When ICO tokens are redeemed by a community member to develop him/herself professionally or personally, a great portion of this knowledge lands within the community. As they apply the gained knowledge throughout the workday and use it to increase the effectiveness of their team, or even teach others new methods, this kind of investment has a butterfly effect with a highly positive result affecting the corporation to the core.

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve shown that a next-gen company not only needs to innovate its corporate structure and use development methodologies but the way they reward their employees too. ICO and tokens are an optimal solution for this purpose, as they facilitate the decentralization, democratization, and development of the organization while providing an exemplary benefit program to the workforce and community members.

While ICO tokens cannot be exchanged for fiat currency, they serve as an additional reward for stellar performance. They come hand-in-hand with co-ownership and can be redeemed for self-development purposes.

All things considered, a tokenized Community Stock Ownership Plan serves all parties involved, explaining why this construction is becoming more and more popular.