The extraordinary power and value of block chain is it’s ability to collapse a transaction that might under normal daily circumstances take several weeks, to one moment in time and it’s the cryptocurrency world that we have to thank for giving us this immensely powerful technology!
For example, in today’s world in a property transaction, might take several months to validate that the vendor actually owns the property for sale and similar length of time, to validate that the buyer can actually afford to pay for the property. Imagine this whole transaction being collapsed into an immediate transaction because of course, every element of the block chain has a digitized record/memory of the history of all transactions which got the vendors and the buyers to this point in time, available at this point in time.
So why the delay in uptake in our supply chains particiularly? We have been able to build block chain supply chains for several years now and we have perfectly great examples of them working and working securely and well in a variety of applications globally.
If there is one thing that block chain is becoming most known for, is its capacity for the highest level of transparency ever enabled by technology. In fact, a recent Forbes article even posed the possibility that it could perhaps be too transparent for organizations that might still warrant some degree of privacy.(Which is most organisations that I can think of.)
Yet for supply chains in general, the pros and cons of blockchain are simply a symptom of what has always been a longstanding problem: end to end visibility.
The problem of visibility has been a long war even before the Information Age, the Industrial Revolution and even the Age of Exploration. Blockchain’s particularly strong potential only indicates just how frustrated the world at large is when it comes to the meddling of less than scrupulous ‘middle men or persons’ and the lack of visibility that results.
Whether or not you think the technology will benefit you, the very fact that it was developed already forces you to confront the visibility issue. It is not a question of if your supply chain suffers from it, but how much.
There is no denying that lack of visibility plagues us all (especially now as our organizations become increasingly globalized). The decision to implement blockchain rests simply on the already existing (and unanswered) question of what is there to hide in your supply chain and who is hiding it?
This means facing some painful truths when auditing your supply chain. Here are some signs that should be heeded.
Sign #1. Rising tide of customer complaints.
It is one thing when a small percentage of customers complain, but another beast entirely if you just spent the last few quarters barely dodging one product recall in various countries around the globe after another.
This is particularly difficult if you are an organization that does its best at headquarters but have little to no visibility of other parties (such as your logistics partners, manufacturers, suppliers, their suppliers and so forth, subcontractors, distributors, partners and agents).
If something, like tampering, has been happening to your product on its way to the customer, then you need to get to the bottom of it.
Think of Walmart and their proposed use of block chain in food security. Remember their trials on Mangoes from Mexico, and Pork from China, and then further, their initiative working with the top 10 largest food suppliers in the world, to bring block chain to the global food industry.
If it means requiring engagement and collaboration like never before in your SC network, then so be it!
Sign #2. Increasing delays in communication among leaders.
If your SC network has someone with a habit of being too slow to pick up the phone, then you should already be concerned.
Poor communication is another cause of poor SC visibility. Delays in confirming orders and inconsistent tracking reports pile on to create a confusing image of the entire operation.
And when you try to resolve it, the conversation with all leaders devolves into unproductive finger-pointing and stubborn refusal to accept responsibility.
If you really want to resolve these issues, rather than continue griping about them for the next 20 years, then block chain may well be your technology of choice!
There can be no hiding, everyone knows who did what, when, and who changed what and where and such extraordinary opportunity for learning and greatness, when we can see the results and consequences.
Sign #3. Startling reports about partners.
Whether it is scathing news reports of labor abuse or business reports with inconsistent figures, lack of visibility enables all of them.
If you see signs of this and are dreading the implication, then now is the time to let partners know that their involvement in your supply chain is a privilege.
Should their activities result in great problems in the wider network, then that privilege must be revoked.
There is a limit to how low-visibility can be justified when your organization is already experiencing disastrous consequences with no clear explanation.
Coincidentally, the issue tackled by blockchain presents the age-old challenge of balancing the need for privacy with that of security. The long war continues and it’s all the more reason to ensure that the longevity of the whole supply chain and your organisation is not being held to ransom or paying the price for one, shady middle ‘persons’ privacy!
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