Strategic Value Creation through Enterprise Blockchain

Abstract

Blockchain and other distributed ledger technologies have enormous potential for creating business value but have not yet been widely adopted. Enterprise blockchain systems are recognized as solutions to existing operational problems or ‘pain points’ but their potential for delivering value through strategic opportunities is not well understood. Drawing from literature on strategic alliances and the resource-based view of the firm, we identify avenues through which blockchain systems can contribute to a firm’s strategic capabilities and, as a result, to its sustained competitive advantage. We provide a framework for understanding how participation in blockchain solutions can enable companies to build upon existing strategic capabilities, strengthen collaborative capabilities and develop blockchain-specific capabilities. The framework can be useful to firms and service providers for incorporating strategic outcomes into the evaluation of blockchain investment opportunities.