- Introduction
- Company Background
Walmart is one of the biggest super markets in the United Kingdom. Due to the spread of food borne diseases in the countries, all the companies and super markets decided upon taking good care of the food services and in order to do so, it has been working with the IBM Corporation to determine the safety of the food with the help of one of the emerging hype technologies, block chain, to do so. In the report, we will discuss the impact of block chain technology on Walmart’s food safety [1].
- Critical Evaluation and Discussion:
- Critical Evaluation and Justification of the Theoretical Capabilities of the Technology
Walmart has been working in collaboration with the IBM Corporation in order to improve the supply chain management and track down the food to ensure the safety of the same. Before the implementation of the block chain technology Walmart has a manual process of handling the supply chain management system. The process that used to take place was completely untraceable. Hence, it was nearly impossible to track down if anything was misplaced or products were defected due to handling. According to [2] the hyper ledger technology used by the block chain helps in determination of the ways in which each and every aspect of the technology is accounted for.
It is impossible to make changes in the entire supply chain management process without notifying the authorities. As supply chain is one of the most important business use cases of the Walmart Company, it laid emphasis upon securing the system at its fullest [2]. The company makes use of IBM food trust solutions, which is developed for this specific use case.
As per [3], before implementation of the block chain technology, tracking down the food sources was very difficult and took more than a week for performing the job. With the implementation of the supply chain management system, the process is not only fast but also reliable. Apart from this, the company has included the block chain technology in various other fields as well. The author mentions that, the technology is now used for increasing the transparency of the business with the customers. The security system of the block chain technology makes it impossible for the intruders to make any change or attack the system without leaving an impersonation of it. Therefore, it can be said that the block chain technology helps in the development of better security infrastructure with the help of its distributed ledger system.
However, this has been supported by [6] who said the block chain technology has helped in increasing speed and efficiency of the operations. The traditional system of the supply chain management or other management system that was used by Walmart Company was handled by the people. Human intervention made the process slower and prone to errors. With the introduction of the block chain technology the majority of the aspects are automated. The automated system can function evenly throughout the day with the least possible errors. Numerous functions can be performed at once and that too with accuracy and transparency. This has also led to increase in production of the company as well [5].
- Critical Evaluation and Justification of the Practical Feasibility and Effectiveness of the Technology
In order to implement the block chain technology in the system, a practical framework can be used. This framework will help in identification of the steps which are required for the implementation of the block chain technology in companies like Walmart.
The following framework will help in successful installation of the block chain technology in Walmart, enhancing their security and operational efficiency. The implementation process will be feasible as it will require very less time to be implemented and the cost of implementation is not as high as maintaining a large number of people for performing the tasks that block chain can perform.
The framework that has been developed for the implementation of the technology helps in identifying the ways which should be obtained while implementing block chain in the system. This is a feasibility aspect. The first phase helps in identification of the business issues, which helps in determining what steps have to be taken up for mitigating them. Once the issues and their solutions are obtained, a platform is determined which helps in the process of implementation of the block chain technology. This framework of implementation of the technology helps in implementing the technology in a systematics way such that it can pass all the tests before complete deployment.
The hype technologies are those technologies which has a possibility of being adopted by the organizations or the industries in the near future. From all the papers that has been discussed the block chain technology comes with its own benefits, which includes increased transparency and enhanced security. With the development of the technology, the organizations can make use of the block chain technology for establishing a secured environment. The ability of the technology to merge with the existing systems of the organization makes it suitable for all sectors. Along with it, the benefits provided by the technology includes zero per cent fraud, zero per cent interferences from the government, instant transaction and most importantly, enhancement in the financial efficiency. The technology helps in the development of a fast, secure and efficient service, which helps in betterment of the company. However, there are certain drawbacks of using the technology. This includes no traceability, extremely volatile in nature and lack of people with knowledge of the technology.
All though the block chain technology has certain discredits, but the pros outweighs the constraints. All though the crime rates increases and tracking the illegal transactions becomes almost impossible with the usage of block chain, the security aspects or no manipulation technique of the system helps the organization to enhance transparency and efficiency of the processes and operations. Hence, it is justified to say that the block chain technology is hyped technology that can be adopted in the future by all the organization irrespective of where they belong.
The analytical framework that has been proposed is apt in all sense as after analysing the issue that the business is facing; it can be decided upon as which applicability of blockchain best suits the business operations. As per the hype curve one of the pros of blockchain is fast and secure transactions which will be best addressed after checking on the way blockchain is supporting the business operations after implementation. The running field test will help to figure out whether one of major cons that is lack of knowledge to handle the technology is dominant. In this way the analytical framework chosen will help the company to check on the strength and weaknesses of blockchain in their business operations.
- Conclusion
After conducting the research, it can be said that the block chain technology which is considered to be one of the emerging hype technology, helps in increasing the system efficiency. The Walmart Company, which is one of the most renowned companies in UK, adopted the technology. The benefits that the company has obtained are incomparable. Not only the operational efficiency of the supply chain management system has increased, but also the transparency of the system has been enhanced. With the usage of the technology the security and integrity of the system has been enhanced as well.
References
- Min, H., 2019. Blockchain technology for enhancing supply chain resilience. Business Horizons, 62(1), pp.35-45.
- Saberi, S., Kouhizadeh, M., Sarkis, J. and Shen, L., 2019. Blockchain technology and its relationships to sustainable supply chain management. International Journal of Production Research, 57(7), pp.2117-2135.
- Cole, R., Stevenson, M. and Aitken, J., 2019. Blockchain technology: implications for operations and supply chain management. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 24(4), pp.469-483.
- Chang, S.E., Chen, Y.C. and Lu, M.F., 2019. Supply chain re-engineering using blockchain technology: A case of smart contract based tracking process. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 144, pp.1-11.
- Wang, Y., Singgih, M., Wang, J. and Rit, M., 2019. Making sense of blockchain technology: How will it transform supply chains?. International Journal of Production Economics, 211, pp.221-236.
- Tönnissen, S. and Teuteberg, F., 2020. Analysing the impact of blockchain-technology for operations and supply chain management: An explanatory model drawn from multiple case studies. International Journal of Information Management, 52, p.101953.
