Blockchain adoption readiness in supply chain networks: a design science-based assessment model

Abstract

Blockchain technology has attracted significant interest in supply chain management due to its potential to enhance transparency, traceability, and interorganizational coordination. Despite its promise, blockchain adoption in supply chain networks remains limited, largely due to the complexity of decision-making and the multidimensional nature of adoption challenges. Existing research has predominantly focused on identifying isolated barriers or success factors, offering limited guidance on how organizations can systematically assess their readiness before committing to implementation. The objective of this PhD thesis is to advance the understanding and assessment of organizational readiness for blockchain adoption in supply chain networks and to translate this knowledge into a decision-oriented evaluation model. To address this problem, the thesis adopts an article-based research design composed of four cumulative studies. The first two studies investigate technological and non-technological barriers to blockchain adoption in supply chains and the strategies proposed to mitigate them, with particular attention to adoption stages and stakeholder characteristics. The third study addresses the methodological problem of how readiness models for emerging digital technologies in operations and supply chain management should be designed and structured, resulting in a Design Science Research-based reference architecture. The fourth study builds on the preceding findings to design, develop, and evaluate an organizational readiness assessment artifact for blockchain adoption, employing fuzzy logic to operationalize readiness conditions and provide an interpretable overall readiness classification. The results of the thesis contribute to the literature by consolidating and structuring readiness conditions for blockchain adoption from technological, organizational, environmental, and interorganizational perspectives, and by demonstrating how existing theories can be consciously adapted to this context. Methodologically, the thesis contributes a systematic approach for developing readiness models and a validated readiness assessment artifact. From a practical perspective, the proposed model helps organizations assess their readiness to adopt blockchain, identify critical areas for improvement, and avoid premature implementation decisions. Overall, the thesis bridges conceptual discussions of blockchain adoption with actionable readiness assessment for supply chain networks.