Blockchain in Service Management and Service Research - Developing a Research Agenda and Managerial Implications

Abstract

As blockchain technology is maturing to be confidently used in practice, its applications are becoming evident and, correspondingly, more blockchain research is being published, also extending to more domains than before. To date, scientific research in the field has predominantly focused on subject areas such as finance, computer science, and engineering, while the area of service management has largely neglected this topic. Therefore, we invited a group of renowned scholars from different academic fields to share their views on emerging topics regarding blockchain in service management and service research. Their individual commentaries and conceptual contributions refer to different theoretical and domain perspectives, including managerial implications for service companies as well as forward-looking suggestions for further research.

Conceptualizing the role of blockchain in omnichannel healthcare: a Delphi study

“…Further, processing of transactions in an omnichannel healthcare can be made simpler when the consumers can effortlessly pay the consultation fee and buy medicines through secure payment mechanisms made using BCT across channels. Tokenization can be utilized for making payments for higher transparency and acceptance across channels (Büttgen et al. , 2021).…”

“…, 2017; Patel, 2019). Dclinic is another healthcare blockchain platform to integrate healthcare systems, clinics and hospitals (Büttgen et al. , 2021).…”

“…, 2021). It offers virtual clinics to doctors where they can onboard patients, provide consultation services and provide online payment options (Büttgen et al. , 2021).…”

“…, 2017a). Dutch municipalities are using smart contracts and tokens to provide healthcare services to their citizens (Büttgen et al. , 2021).…”

Educational Offers as a Link Between Research and Practice–How Research Findings on new Technologies give Rise to Practice-Relevant Ideas for Innovations

“…Somit ist die Blockchain-Technologie vor allem geeignet, um Vertrauen in entstehende Geschäftsbeziehungen aufzubauen oder um Daten in einem Netzwerk von Teilnehmenden automatisiert und sicher zu übermitteln (Halaburda et al 2019). Essentielle Funktionen, die durch die Nutzung von Blockchain ermöglicht werden, sind der Einsatz von Smart Contracts, digitale Authentifizierung, eine neue Art der Datenkonnektivität und (Non-fungible) Token (Büttgen et al 2021;Crosby et al 2016;Schütz et al 2018). Smart Contracts ermöglichen bspw.…”