The mediating role of blockchain technology in improvement of knowledge sharing for supply chain management

Purpose: Sharing knowledge with business partners is a challenging issue as firms need to share their valuable know-how assets with individuals or other companies out of their organizational boundaries. As supply chain management (SCM) deals with various stakeholders, firms face difficulties with privacy and ownership when they share their know-how with suppliers or business partners. This study introduces blockchain technology as a mediator in improving knowledge sharing (KS) practices in supply chains. Design/methodology/approach: The data have been collected from surveys with 116 experts working in blockchain start-ups and organizations, and the authors used structural equation modeling for its analysis. Findings: The results show that two features of blockchain technology, namely transparency and security, have the highest impacts on mediating knowledge sharing impacts on supply chain performance. The authors’ findings also highlight that among the performance metrics of SCM, speed is highly improved when blockchain technology is used for knowledge sharing. Their study provides guidance for managers on how to improve SCM performance through KS, which is empowered by a blockchain system. Originality/value: The authors’ findings help organizations to improve supply chain actions, improve innovation, enhance competitive advantage and increase the speed of relationships in the supply chain. The research also contributes literature by analyzing the key factors showing how knowledge sharing structure may be improved by blockchain technology which would be helpful for both academics and practitioners.