Every now and then the word “blockchain” appears somewhere in our daily life. It’s is almost always associated with getting fabulously rich, staggeringly poor or in some James Bond style theft of a large sum of money, a person with a Russian sounding last name hiding out in a 2nd world country. The stories we hear usually revolve around cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin or Ethereum, impulsive behavior or marketing hype. They are far from any positive association with real business activities like improved efficiency, creating long-term value, adding to a more robust operation, or any sober minded business practices.
If, however, one looks beyond the negative associations with the word, “blockchain,” they will find the technology is slowly establishing roots in essential industries and well-established companies. These businesses, along with their related supply chains, are implementing blockchain technology beyond beta-testing, where they are discovering significant positive gains in operational efficiencies, customer service, and data gathering.