[Flux Trends] Towards creating an empathic, consumer-dominated economy?

Huge human effect

The loss of jobs throughout the world has left a huge human effect on communities - an effect that will not just go away, according to trend analyst and creative thinker Dion Chang.

Many companies have begun collaborating and job-sharing - to help those who have been retrenched - has become a new trend post-recession, which is a clear indication that the recession has engendered a culture of empathy in some parts of the world, Chang pointed out.

However, cash-strapped consumers who went through a round of hell during the recession have learned that businesses, which mostly only care about huge profits, can no longer be trusted. Therefore, the world has begun to witness the rise of consumer revolution, which demands more accountability, social responsibility and transparency from companies and politicians.

Find out the truth

“The public outrage over bank executives' big bonuses and President Zuma's 20th child with a woman who is not his wife are a tangible proof of consumer revolution,” Chang said. He added that the price-fixing scandal has also led to consumers becoming angry and distrustful, waiting to find out the truth.

Likewise, companies that use the badge of honour to fool communities that they are involved in the corporate social responsibility, are quickly identified and unmasked, Chang said.

“The post-recession has led to a shift of power balance, where we see the rise of a consumer-dominated economy, and even business templates that we used in the past are fast becoming obsolete,” Chang stressed.

Chang, labelled a ‘visionary' for his ‘ability to think outside the box', also spoke about the digital customisation and personalisation that has reinforced social engagement, and catapulted knowledge - as a commodity - and the importance of value of ideas in this age of human capital. Knowledge has become a sense of business, he said, labelling companies that block social networking sites as ‘short-sighted'.

Listen and engage

“Your workers are part of this generation; listen to them and engage them. Money is no longer on top of the list nowadays, but growth of knowledge is. We need more empathy and more big-picture thinking,” he said.

Chang is an author, freelance journalist and columnist, specialising in social commentary. His company, Flux Trends, is responsible for launching the Flux Trend Review. The 2009 edition of Flux Trend Review was published by Pan Macmillan in 2008, and the 2010 edition in October 2009.

For more, go to www.fluxtrends.co.za and follow Dion Chang on Twitter at @dionchang. Bizcommunity.com is a media partner.