Implementing Blockchain: What’s Next for You?

You’ve done your homework, read up on consensus, answered the five key questions, and finally determined that blockchain makes sense for your business case. Now what? Well, there are a few more considerations to make. (Have no fear, you’re in the home stretch!)

First, it’s necessary to know who will participate in your blockchain network and to understand the motivations and risks for each involved party. Why would they want to participate and what might prevent them from it? Determine and/or explain the value of data sharing within a blockchain context, and develop an action plan. For instance, how will each participant roll out the technology, collect data, and encourage adoption.

It’s also important during this phase to align incentives—create a scenario where everyone wins! The value of the network should be shared equally amongst participants. Finally, determine the Minimal Viable Ecosystem: what is the minimum set of features to offer and the minimum number of participants required for the blockchain to work successfully? Note, this will be very specific to your use case, and can easily be explored during a workshop with us.

Just as you wouldn’t play a board game without first understanding the rules, before launching your blockchain network, you’ll want to determine its terms. Leave nothing unspoken for! Otherwise, unintended consequences will result. Key questions to ask include:

• Who owns the data? Who owns the insights gleaned from the data?
• If a revenue-generating solution is built on the network, does that revenue get shared?
• Who owns the technology IP? How are the infrastructure costs addressed?
• What is the process of adding and removing members?
• What types of assets are traded on the network and by whom?

Once you’ve determined the network’s participants and its governance, next comes the fun part: monetization. What’s the point if you’re not creating value? Again, key questions to ask include:

• How will this help build shared value?
• How is the value returned to participants?
• How can the network and associated infrastructure be sustained and maintained?

Whether you’re just getting started or have a majority of these questions answered, the SPR team is here to discuss your options and develop a plan of action. If you have any questions or would like us to speak in more depth on any concepts discussed above, please feel free to contact us using the link below.