The Impact of the Blockchain on the Supply Chain

A blockchain is a decentralized database of transactions, executed and shared be-tween blockchain participants. Over a certain period lists of transactions are record-ed onto a ledger and encapsulated in a block. Each block is secure and connected to its previous block by the use of cryptography. Thereby the blockchain provides reliability, traceability, and authenticity of information which makes it very interesting for supply chain management. Due to the fact that the blockchain is still a very new technology, this thesis examines how the blockchain technology can make an im-pact on supply chain management. This thesis focuses on the opportunities of blockchain-based supply chain systems as well as on the effects of the two main characteristics of a blockchain, transparen-cy and immutability. Furthermore, a blockchain-based supply chain is also com-pared with traditional supply chains in terms of fairness. A comprehensive literature review and a qualitative research design were chosen to obtain meaningful data. The qualitative research method consists of problem-centered interviews with com-pany representatives from the agricultural sector. A blockchain-based prototype for a simple agricultural supply chain was developed and presented to the interviewees to give them a basic understanding of this new technology. The findings of this thesis show that the blockchain technology can enhance a supply chain in various ways. Cost reduction, quality assurance, dispute resolution, speed, risk reduction and sustainability are critical components of supply chain management that can be improved. The system has already been adopted success-fully in some food supply chains as well as in agricultural supply chains. In this re-gard, the transparency of the blockchain system plays a central role. A higher de-gree of transparency, which many organizations nowadays strive for, makes many of the above-mentioned benefits possible. However, it cannot be denied that the blockchain technology is still in its early stages of development. Therefore, there is a lack of empirical evidence. This makes it hard to predict the concrete advantages gained from the immutability and the increased transparency particularly with re-spect to fairness. As a result, it is more difficult for the blockchain technology to quickly gain broad acceptance among organizations in various industries.Author Paul MaierUniversität Linz, Masterarbeit, 2019(VLID)387187