Authors @DAOplomats.eth

Simple Summary

This proposal suggests creating a 6-month trial of a funded Recognised Delegates Programme for 1inchDAO.

Abstract

The goal of the Recognised Delegates Programme is to reduce the collective cost of governance and increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the governance process in 1inchDAO. To attract, select and retain the best talent, we suggest vetting each Recognised Delegate (group/individual) based on past performance in 1inchDAO and other DAOs and a compensation structure.

Motivation

Crypto is speed-running in the history of human coordination. As DAOs evolve from their early idealistic vision to becoming more internet-native organisations, so too must the coordination mechanisms evolve. We have seen that specialisation plays a crucial role in traditional organisations. Specialisation allows organisations to maximise efficiency and effectiveness and thus increase productivity overall. All specialised positions, from Gardners to rocket scientists, do their best work when they are adequately compensated for their time and efforts. We believe that this Recognized delegates program will assist the DAO in reducing its collective cost of governance while improving efficiency and direction.

Specification

What is a Recognized delegate? A recognised delegate is an elected, paid position of reputable, diligent and qualified 1inch DAO members who will work closely with the team and contribute to the growth and sustainability of the 1inchDAO Eligibility: Have a minimum 500,000 in voting weight and a maximum of 250,000 in self delegation Contribute to forum conversations for 3 months Post a public link with an audio recording where the delegates communicate their vision and values. Get accepted as Recognized delegates by following the process below: Framework for Delegates to become recognized delegates At the beginning of the engagement, each delegate posts their goals and plans for the 6 month engagement with the DAO with clear KPIs.If the proposal is approved, then the DAO will accept the delegates as recognized delegates and hold them accountable to the listed KPIs The delegate has to communicate their work at the end of the engagement with a report posted on the forum. Responsibilities: Read, understand, and provide feedback on governance forum posts if necessary. Always vote in the best interests of the DAO and the community over their personal interests. Actively vote on governance proposals and explain the thinking behind each vote when relevant. Understand the 1inch Network, its key metrics and the overall ecosystem.

Compensation:

This Recognised Delegates Programme trial program aims to attract and retain entities and individuals who will actively participate in governance on behalf of 1inch token-holders as governance specialists. Hence we suggest compensating the delegates based on minimum participation and performance. Fixed Compensation: All recognised delegates meeting the minimum eligibility criteria will receive $4000 in USDC each month.

Fixed comp eligibility: Minimum Participation: A delegate must maintain at least an 80% participation rate. Participation is measured as voting in any “temperature check” or on-chain governance vote. Minimum Communication: A delegate must maintain an 80% communication rate. Communication is measured as providing for any “temperature check” or on-chain governance vote a summary, voting position, and justification for that position. A missed vote will still require communication to avoid a lower communication rate.

Minimum Delegation Threshold: To remain eligible for delegate incentives, a delegate must maintain the voting weight of at least 500K 1inch tokens.

Rationale

Delegation and compensation mechanisms vary across the DAO ecosystem. Some DAOs such as Maker, OP, and Hop compensate delegates as a % of their voting power, participation, and minimums. We believe that this motivates delegates to accumulate more voting power instead of focusing on positive governance practices in the DAO. Hence we suggest a minimum delegation and participation threshold to qualify for governance rewards. Based on delegation examples in traditional organisations, we believe that this methodology offers the best results for the DAO in the short to mid-term, given its current maturity and contributor engagement. We acknowledge that crypto is a fast-evolving space, and the ecosystem may arrive at better governance mechanisms than delegation in the future.

Considerations

The 1inchDAO should consider building a reputation dashboard so that anyone can track delegates' voting history and performance. A platform such as tally.xyz can also make it easy for potential delegators to delegate their tokens. In terms of budget, we suggest setting aside 100,000 USDC for the pilot. We suggest using a separate operations multi-sig to administer these expenses. Any unused funds should be returned back to the DAO after the end of the trial period.