The Current State of Blockchain: Has the Technology Met Expectations?

Blockchain Technology was designed to increase the speed and accuracy of financial operations and make organizations more efficient in recording and managing transactions. The technology is designed to track not only supply-chain life cycle but also secures every single transaction that moves through it. There is a misconception among many that blockchain can be used for financial transactions only but the truth is, its potential lies in almost every industry that undergoes transactions with anything of value including cryptocurrency.
Blockchain by design is a distributed ledger platform which is built using a number of advanced technologies. It acts a digital ledger that leads to more transparency and security in businesses. It makes sharing and processing transactions much easier and makes problem-solving easier than ever.
According to an American research advisory Gartner’s survey in 2017, 3,000 CIOs of companies across the globe were surveyed to analyze the interest in blockchain technology. 293 of the CIOs revealed that investments by their organization have already been made into the technology or were in the planning process to adopt blockchain. 23% of the CIOs revealed that the technology is quite new and it is difficult to implement with a lack of skilled blockchain professionals.
There is a noticeable demand for qualified blockchain professionals and organizations are finding it hard to gather enough professionals to grow their IT departments as it requires an understanding of value exchange, law, security, business models and decentralized governance. Once the industry has access to more blockchain developers, it is expected that the technologywillchange the way business models are shaped in any organization that adopts it.
However, a lot of the hype surrounding the technology is premature,and blockchain is still in its early phase of experimentation in the commercial market. It is far from being a mainstream technology that is adopted across the world. People are attracted more to the value it brings to them with its implementation in the cryptocurrency market than the actual technology itself.
Blockchain technology is yet to mature,and platforms like Ethereum and Hyperledger are trying to take blockchain to its fullest potential. Applications that work with blockchain technology are still in an experimental phase and are being developed for multiple industries. As more blockchain-centric applications become available for businesses, the technology will be able to evolve and make it into industries as a standard framework.
Blockchain technology promised to transform the industrial scene in the world, but the reality is there is much work to be done. The success of the platform will depend on how the stakeholders of organizations manage blockchain’s evolution. Legal and regulatory frameworks need to be setupto control interactions between businesses using the technology. Industries like utilities, government sectors, transportation are becoming highly engaged and interested in the technology as the above sectors rely heavily on supply chain management and logistics. If more applications become available for the technology that meets industry requirements, blockchain can truly be a game-changer in global industries.