Investigating the Role of Permissioned Blockchains as Inter-Organizational Systems for Enabling Supply Chain Digital Transformation

Abstract

There are many people use the term Blockchain referring to all kinds of distributed ledger technology applications, however, there are two categories of Blockchain which include Permissionless and Permissioned Blockchains. This chapter introduces Permissioned Blockchains as a decentralized business-to-business model which enables supply chain digital transformation and explores the core differences between itself and the Permissionless Blockchain model. This chapter also discusses Permissioned Blockchain as the newest generation of Inter-organizational Systems IOS). As Permissioned Blockchains are valuable for mission-critical business transactions between trading partners with low trust, questions arise to how it can be adopted successfully. This chapter discusses the two adoption primary adoption routes for Permissioned Blockchains which include individual-firm adoption and Blockchain Industry Consortium adoption (e.g., engages industry players in a ‘co-opetitive” relationship). Finally, the primary blockchain adoption determinants are discussed in this chapter based on a conceptual model and the insights obtained from 10 senior information technology executive interviews.