The Capital Theory of Stakeholders in DAO that Cannot Be Ignored

2025-05-11 07:35:03

In the wave of Blockchain and Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAO), Stakeholder Capitalism is becoming a key concept for redefining organizational governance and value creation. The traditional shareholder primacy model is struggling to adapt to the distributed nature of DAOs, while Stakeholder Capitalism provides a theoretical foundation for the sustainable development of DAOs by balancing the interests of shareholders, members, communities, partners, and the environment. This article will explore the core ideas, historical evolution, and applications of Stakeholder Capitalism in DAO governance, revealing why it is an indispensable guiding principle in the DAO ecosystem.

1. The Core Concept of Stakeholder Capitalism

Theoretical Background

Stakeholder theory has its origins in management, emphasizing that companies need to not only create value for shareholders, but also meet the needs of stakeholders such as employees, customers, suppliers, communities and the environment. In 1963, the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) first proposed that stakeholders are necessary for the survival of a business, moving beyond the traditional perspective of focusing solely on shareholders. In 1984, R. Edward Freeman systematically elaborated this theory in Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach, defining a stakeholder as "an individual or group of people who can influence or be influenced by the goals of an organization."

Stakeholder capitalism stands in sharp contrast to shareholder capitalism. The latter focuses on maximizing economic returns for shareholders, while the former advocates for companies to have a positive impact on economic, social, and environmental levels, achieving sustainable development. Its core characteristics include:

Expand the scope of accountability: Decision-making considers the impact on all stakeholders, not just shareholders.
Longer Focus: Emphasizes long-term sustainability rather than short-term profits.
Social Responsibility: As a part of society and the environment, enterprises must take on the responsibility of making positive contributions.
Balancing Interests: Coordinate the interests of all parties in a way that benefits both the organization and society.

Stakeholders in DAO

In the context of DAO, stakeholders encompass a broader group, including token holders, community contributors, developers, users, partners, and external participants in the on-chain ecosystem (such as cross-chain protocols and regulatory bodies). Charkham (1992) categorized stakeholders into contractual (token holders, developers) and public (community, regulators); Clarkson (1994) further divided them based on risk bearing into active (core developers, major token holders) and passive (ordinary users). Caro (1996) proposed a further classification of core, strategic, and environmental stakeholders, providing a refined perspective for DAO governance.

The decentralized nature of DAO makes stakeholder management more complex, but it also provides a technical foundation for balancing the interests of various parties, such as smart contracts and governance tokens.

II. The Historical Evolution of Theory

The evolution of stakeholder capitalism has gone through multiple stages, establishing its important position in modern governance:

1963 Stanford Research Institute: The concept of stakeholders was first proposed, emphasizing the necessity of employees, customers, communities, and others for the survival of enterprises.
In 1965, Igor Ansoff: Introduced "stakeholders" in "Corporate Strategy", advocating that corporate goals should balance the interests of shareholders, employees, suppliers, and other longer.
1973, Henry Mintzberg: In "The Nature of Managerial Work", he emphasized that managers need to consider the dynamic balance of a wide range of stakeholders.
1984, R. Edward Freeman: The system proposed the stakeholder theory, advocating for the integration of ethics and social responsibility into corporate decision-making.
1990s, Peter Drucker: Advocated for companies to go beyond profit goals and focus on social responsibility and ethical values.
Contemporary, Klaus Schwab: Promoting stakeholder capitalism through the World Economic Forum, emphasizing the role of businesses in society and the environment.

In addition, John Elkington's "Triple Bottom Line" theory (1997) and Michael Porter's "Creating Shared Value" concept (2006) further enrich this theory, providing an interdisciplinary perspective for DAO governance.

3. The Application of Stakeholder Capital Theory in DAO

stakeholder perspective on DAO governance

The decentralized governance of DAO naturally aligns with the stakeholder capitalism theory. Through smart contracts and token mechanisms, DAOs can achieve transparent decision-making and profit distribution, meeting diverse interest demands. The role of stakeholders in DAO governance is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

Informal Influence: Community members influence the DAO's strategic direction through forums, social media, or proposal lobbying.
Dedicated Assets: Core developers and token holders acquire residual claim rights and participate in governance through technical contributions or capital investments.
Supervision and Pressure: The community and external regulators exert a supervision effect through public opinion or compliance requirements, promoting governance optimization.
Governance: The DAO establishes a governance mechanism that balances the interests of all parties through on-chain voting and negotiation, forming a system between the market and the organization.

Specific Strategy

To integrate stakeholder capitalism into DAO governance, the following strategies can be adopted:

Organizational Culture：

Advocate for a fair and transparent governance culture, encouraging community participation.
Enhance members' recognition of DAO goals through education and training.

Internal Process：

Design a multi-dimensional performance evaluation to measure the impact on the community, users, and ecology.
Optimize proposal and voting processes through smart contracts to ensure fairness.

Decision Mechanism:

Establish a diversified governance committee that includes representatives from different stakeholders.
Enhance the transparency of on-chain governance, making proposal and decision-making processes public.

Implementation Steps

Clarify Vision: Define the long-term goals of the DAO, balancing economic and social value.
Identify Stakeholders: Classify core (token holders, developers), strategic (partners), and environmental (regulators) stakeholders, and analyze their needs.
Cultural Revolution: Promote the concept of Decentralization governance through community activities and education.
Process Adjustment: Optimize the on-chain governance mechanism to ensure transparency and efficiency.
Transparent Communication: Regularly publish governance reports and accept community feedback.
Continuous Improvement: Enhance participation based on the iterative mechanism of governance effectiveness.

4. Long-term Benefits and Challenges

Long-term benefits

Sustainability: By balancing the interests of various parties, the DAO can reduce governance risks and enhance ecological resilience.
Brand and Reputation: Fair governance enhances community trust, attracting more users and developers.
Member Participation: A transparent benefit distribution mechanism enhances members' sense of belonging and stimulates contribution motivation.
Ecological Cooperation: Establish long-term partnerships with cross-chain protocols, communities, etc., to promote ecological prosperity.

challenge

Definitional Dilemma: How to accurately define the stakeholders of a DAO and their priorities?
Participation Path: How to design incentive mechanisms to ensure widespread and effective participation?
Performance Evaluation: How to quantify governance effectiveness and assess stakeholder contributions?
System Adjustment: Do the existing on-chain governance rules support complex interest balancing?

The strategies include enhancing community education, designing flexible governance mechanisms, utilizing data analysis to optimize decision-making, and collaborating with regulatory agencies to ensure compliance.

V. Future Outlook

As blockchain technology and global attention to sustainable development deepen, stakeholder capitalism will play a more important role in the DAO ecosystem. Future trends include:

ESG Integration: DAOs will place greater emphasis on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria to attract sustainable investments.
Data-Driven Governance: Utilizing AI and big data to optimize stakeholder management and improve decision-making efficiency.
Global and Local Balance: DAOs need to find a balance between global ecology and local community needs.
Co-creation Model: Encourage community and partners to innovate together through open governance.
Regulatory Collaboration: Collaborate with regulatory agencies to develop rules that support decentralized governance.

VI. Conclusion

Stakeholder capitalism provides a governance framework for DAOs that transcends traditional shareholder primacy. By balancing the interests of token holders, developers, users, and the community, DAOs can not only achieve economic value but also promote sustainable social and ecological development. In the blockchain era, adopting this model is not just a strategic choice but also key for DAOs to stand out in competition. Decision-makers should actively embrace this concept, building a more resilient and impactful decentralized ecosystem through transparent governance and innovative mechanisms.

The future of DAO lies in collaboration and co-creation, and stakeholder capitalism is the bridge connecting technology and value.