Page 19 - FCW, Jan/Feb 2018

Trailblazers
Trailblazers rank areas in which blockchains can enable new business models
FCW PERSPECTIVES
n Trailblazers
n All other governments
17%
more
UNLOCKING
BLOCKCHAIN’S
POTENTIAL
90%|77% Contract management
The technology that secures cryptocurrency transactions is catching the attention of federal agencies
Although blockchain is inextricably linked to bitcoin in many people’s minds, federal leaders have begun extolling its virtues for a wide range of government activities. Each block in a cryptographically secured chain of records contains transaction data, creating an open, distributed ledger that is resistant to modi cation. As a result, the technology has the potential to safeguard government transactions, increase transparency and build trust with the public.
Last November, FCW gathered a group of federal leaders to talk about what makes blockchain worth exploring and embracing. Some are already putting the technology to use, while others are trying to nd
25 ways to help their agencies understand how it works and how it could % revolutionize the sharing of data and more complex resources.
more
86%|69% Identity management
12%
more
86%|77%
Financial transaction management
The discussion was on the record but not for individual attribution (see Page 20 for a list of participants), and the quotes have been edited for length and clarity. Here’s what the group had to say.
Test or dive right in?
The discussion began with an effort to explain why blockchain makes sense for the government.
“What blockchain and distributed ledger technology provide is a new way of thinking, really a new intellectual paradigm for how you recon- cile disaggregated information in a way that is much more ef cient,” one executive said.
Another added that “blockchain allows you to disaggregate and decen- tralize data and push everything to the edge. It creates a higher level of security because [hackers] don’t have a centralized point to attack.”
Several participants pointed out that agencies’ business processes rely heavily on intermediaries, and therefore activities such as managing identi- ties, supply chains and records could bene t from blockchain. Indeed, the question wasn’t whether to use blockchain, but how aggressive to be.
“People talk about whether we can afford to risk testing the value of disintermediation,” one executive said, but a better question is: “Can we afford not to as a government? Look at how fractured things are. It could only get better, so we have to challenge ourselves to do this.”
Blockchain runs counter to the government’s longtime bias toward cen- tralization, so one executive advocated a measured approach that starts with low-risk activities.
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