HUMAN CAPITAL OR THE ECONOMIC DESIGNER MAN AS THE BEST VERSION OF HIMSELF FOR GENERAL SOCIAL WELFARE

FUTURE WORLD – GLOBAL GROWTH
HUMAN CAPITAL OR THE ECONOMIC DESIGNER MAN AS THE BEST VERSION OF HIMSELF FOR GENERAL SOCIAL WELFARE
Sascha A. Roßmüller
The germination of the fruit to result or the potential for success lies in the correct understanding of the nature and purpose of a factor. The judgements and conclusions concerning the factor human capital are not exempt from that. In contrast to financial capital, human capital is not only a means to an end but also an end in itself, firstly qua natura, because the economy ultimately has to serve people and not the other way round, and secondly because, apart from the aforementioned moral aspect, human capital is the source of economic processes. According to the definition of the interplay of useful knowledge and skills, human capital must be considered in the context of socially complex      dynamics and, therefore, organisational requirements. In concrete terms, this means that the strategic approaches to political action must be localised  primarily in the areas of general education, apprenticeship and further training, social skills including capabilities of networking, motivated performance and resilience, which require physical health and mental balance, and last but not least, fair participation in the domestic product providing perspectives for the future. Otherwise, regarding the participation aspect, an unhealthy allocation of capital will be countered, as the flipside of the coin, by a capital-deficient lack of demand in the long term, which regularly resets the system of rampant imbalances via economic crises, only to start all over again. Here, it is essential to remember Henry Ford's insight: 'Cars don't buy cars.'

Human Capital as a Primary Factor

In the debate on economic theory, the concept of capital often appears in the context of production factors alongside land and labour. However, contrary to the common practice of placing these factors on an equal footing and subsuming human capital under the production factor capital, according to the author`s opinion, it should not be missed that the factor capital is a derivative of the other two production factors and that human capital is more likely to be attributed to the factor labour than capital. It is relevant not to lose sight of the fact that capital, as a means to an end, has to fulfil a 'serving' function. Further, regarding the fundamental question of any investment, i.e. the 'return on investment', it is essential to ensure that capital is not overvalued in relation to or even at the expense of the factor of labour, which means including human capital.

Increasing the Potential

Global growth must, therefore, be strived for in the sense of that particular balance to be more than just a sectorally changing economic flash in the pan and

can only be achieved based on the pillar of human capital by increasing the potential of the interplay of knowledge and skills of the participants in the economic process mentioned in the first paragraph. As a source of genrating capital, people must, therefore, be placed at the centre of political incentives to become the best versions of themselves. Only as such is to realise the potential understood by human capital optimally. A willingness to perform and adequate prosperity-related participation in the GDP are closely linked, so the political focus should be on incentives for continuous commitment to qualification, both, on the part of the company and the employee.

Values, Orientation, Performance

From a company's point of view, a high-quality formal qualification when entering working life at a young age helps to compensate for the lack of professional experience, which aids to counter the problem of youth unemployment. However, the somehow paradoxical phenomenon of youth unemployment in an increasingly ageing society cannot be attributed solely as a faiure of the economy alone. About schools and curricula, there is often a lack of career-orientated information to give young people a perspective, as well as a lack of motivation and will to performance on the part of young people. The latter cannot be taught via a curriculum but results from an exemplary education based on an overall social model that passes on a particular work ethic as an essential foundation of its system of values. In the economy, great importance is to attach to planning security concerning framework conditions. Values and traditions represent solid cornerstones within a society, which are not only not unknown variables but are also identity-forming and are recognised by entrepreneurs, workers and consumers alike, enabling loyalty to a location, which makes a national economy in the sense of an 'extended corporate identity' possible. Pride in one's profession, awareness of state welfare and personal happiness, and trust in the cooperative spirit of one's nation, precisely because generally recognised values unite, are the fertile soil for a posotove perspective into the future.

Active Population Policy

On the other hand, positive future prospects are a fundamental prerequisite for thriving families, without which an ageing society cannot be managed in the long term. Migration policy can never fully replace that, if only because of the unifying values discussed above. The regenerative capacity of a nation and the next generation for its economy must purposefully strived for maily from within the nation itself. The crucial formative phase of a person is in the first years of life when the foundations of mother tongue and communicative competence are laid - fewer language barriers, less 'clash of civilisations', but more identification. A fatalistic acceptance of an ageing society would be tantamount

to a capitulation of politics concerning social self-organisation of its framework conditions. As the nucleus of the nation, the family must also experience the wealth of children as the highest form of wealth in everyday life, which is why social recognition of child-rearing achievements, especially those of mothers, must also be reflected in monetary terms. Tax credits for parental leave, family start-up loans that can be reduced depending on the number of children and tax relief for companies that employ workers with large numbers of children are examples of child-friendly family policy measures.

An increasingly ageing society can represent a noticeable obstacle to its innovative capacity. So additionally to a career-friendly, the same a parent- friendly access to the labour market must be a component of active population policy. Regarding the start-up dynamics among promising young entrepreneurs in the innovation-orientated technological sectors of the future, close cooperation with universities, colleges, and research and development institutions makes sense. In particular, the political promotion of such cooperation can be expected to result in multiple benefits for the institutions as well, in terms of location loyalty, technology transfer, and future acquisition of third-party funding.

Leading Cultural as Location Factor

Migration harbours more challenges and dangers than opportunities, whereby the respective degree of the consequences is measured not only by the number of immigrants but also by their cultural proximity and adaptability to assimilate. Here, too, integration is only successful if there is an accepted guiding cultural identity to offer, which in turn emphasises the importance of values and traditions. Regarding the social system of the target country of immigration, only highly qualified immigrants are likely to be beneficial in terms of years of work performance and contribution to the social system. Further, it is to bear in mind that too much 'brain drain' from developing and emerging countries is contrary to the goal of a global economy, as it prevents chronically backward nations from being able to utilise their potential to a relevant extent to catch up and act as consumers on the worldwide markets. As a rule, high immigration levels only intensify competition in the less qualified segment, where the situation is worsening anyway, not least due to technological progress.
Increasing inhomogeneity and increased precariousness can significantly jeopardise the social coherence of a society. As far as the immigration of highly qualified people is concerned, the so-called soft location factors, i.e. a country's range of cultural facilities, are particularly important for such a clientele to fulfil the demand for sophisticated leisure, which usually goes hand in hand with a high-calibre intellectual background.

No Progress Without Progressing

The potential of people without work is at risk of withering away, i.e. their 'human capital' is dwindling. Artificial intelligence and technological and organisational efficiency improvements that increase labour productivity may, undoubtedly, improve international competitiveness. Still, if that leads to noticeably higher unemployment, a nation leaves potential human capital unused in the long term. Progress must be linked to the fulfilment of tasks so that society, as a whole, can 'move forward', and to avoid progress to remain solely a project of the elite. Otherwise, it is progress without progressing. Despite the importance of humanities disciplines, it is undoubtedly crucial to ensure that schools have a solid curriculum in maths, physics, and computer science, not to to be left behind by the increasingly rapid pace of technological development.
However, just like demographics, the labour market of the future must not be seen fatalistically as unchangeable, which merely tolerates adaptation to quasi self-fulfilling prophecies, missing any proactive shaping. After all, it is illusory to believe that we will achieve a fully qualified society of skilled workers, but work is fundamentally more than just earning a living and securing a livelihood; it is also meaningful and socialising. That social component of work must be considered in the design of labour market policy, for example, by publicly subsidised sectors.

Analogue Alternatives

As far as the digital divide between social classes and generations is concerned, despite all the measures taken to prioritise respective education in schools and/or adult training, it will only ever be possible to reduce this divide, but not to eliminate it completely. Therefore, before we fail to square the circle, we would be well advised to maintain analogue living environments as an alternative in the future to enable social participation for all, mainly because it cannot be ruled out that some people will consciously want to close themselves off to excessive digital usurpation, not because of ignorance but for other reasons. As these are probably not the most uncritical contemporaries, the state should not deprive itself of the potential of this clientele. However, technological progress and the leaps in innovation in artificial intelligence will result in far-reaching changes that will transform everyday life, the labour market and education, but will also raise numerous unresolved issues, such as, for example, in trademark law.

Equal Opportunities and Reality-based Pedagogy

Particularly about human capital, however, it should not be forgotten that the changes in digital technology and artificial intelligence in the field of learning do not only have favourable consequences, as it has already been proven that increased use of AI can also impair the process of critical self-thinking. Easier access to information reduces the basic knowledge available without tools and

contributes to the atrophy of many skills. At the very least, 'googling' or using an AI does not help to improve one's own ability to delve deeper into issues and understand contexts. A society that takes timely and skilful countermeasures  here by appropriate educational training will become a more competitive nation in terms of human capital. A certain amount of support for the gifted should not be neglected within an educational system, recognising that inclusion, which has become modern, becomes an educationally empty shell if the question is ignored whereto to include. Equality of opportunity instead of 'egalitarianism' is crucial, as an allencompasing 'level playing field' in terms of talent is beyond the reach of education. Specialised educational institutions and specially trained remedial teachers are more effective for children and young people with learning difficulties, as well as for gifted children and young people, than ideological hallucinations of inclusion based on the false assumption that there were such a thing as entirely unconditional learning. Paying the utmost attention to aptitude for the teaching profession is part of the alpha and omega of education policy.

Self-Esteem and Personality

In terms of the collective dimension, social well-being is likely to depend on how optimistic or pessimistic the majority is about the future regarding internal and external security and the development of prosperity. Particularly in times of geopolitical paradigm shifts, much will depend on whether the political leadership has a recognisable objective that is consistent and predictable. In a society of trust, there is also mental stability, without which it won't be easy to achieve a generally desirable physical condition, regardless of the promotion of sports and public role models. In principle, a healthy lifestyle is an expression of a certain self-respect and, not least because of this, falls into the area of personality development, which in turn does not reduce the formative teaching staff of a nation to the mere transfer of knowledge.

Conclusion: Appreciation instead of Instrumentalisation
As the definition of human capital already demonstrates its complex and interdependent character, it is clear that a political approach in this regard must be no less interdisciplinary if it is not to remain an inefficient patchwork.
Furthermore, it will not be possible to understand human capital from an analysis of statistical data alone because it is not just about capital but also about socio-cooperative processes subject to certain behavioural predispositions. Last but not least, psychology also plays a role insofar as the decisive aspect of motivation is not detached from the relevant motivation. As the bearer of human capital, people should not feel degraded by that term but rather addressed as appreciated.
AUTHOR:
Sascha A. Roßmüller; Freelance Journalist; Germany