This article was written by Ray Sidney-Smith, facilitator for Alexandria Small Business Development Center’s monthly Business Development Roundtable. You may join us every third Tuesday of the month for different topic-based discussions for Small Business in the City of Alexandria, Virginia. He will also be presenting a workshop on April 17th: “Blockchain for Small Business: What it is/Marketing/Management Opportunities”. Register here.
Few times in my career as a technologist have I so clearly seen the proverbial writing on the wall regarding a technology that will change the world. And, a technology that is so powerful that it will change the way we do (almost if not) every type of business transaction. But, it’s not the kind of change that you’ll notice on the surface. It’s the type of change that’s subtle. It’s in the way we produce and use the software that is all around us. It’s the way we manage trust among our vendors, suppliers, customers and other parties to business transactions. It’s the way we secure ourselves from the growing concerns of cyber-attacks on our Small Business data and systems. That technology is blockchain and here I explain what blockchain is (in as simple terms as I can).
Invented by Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonym used by the unknown inventor(s) of the method behind how it works, in 2008, blockchain is discussed most frequently and popularly as synonymous with the wildly popular and speculative investments in digital currencies today. This is because Nakamoto’s application of the blockchain was used for the cryptocurrency coined Bitcoin in 2009. But, don’t mistake blockchain technology for being only Bitcoin. It’s so much more.
Blockchain is a highly complex way of dealing with digital assets. Thankfully, all of the complicated workings of blockchain happens in the background. Essentially, it is a way of securely validating and sharing data (e.g., digital currency, health records, and contracts) for all parties involved. The way in which you once centralized your data and managed your security, blockchain changes that with the use of many locations where you data is held and some powerful cryptography techniques applied.
If you want to learn more about how blockchain works (and how Small Business opportunities to use blockchain today), attend my upcoming seminar on April 17th. At the seminar, we talk about the real potential for this new technology is to improve security, reliability and validity of data, plus a few innovative ways Small Business can take advantage of this technology today and in the near future.
It’s difficult to fathom but mathematics and algorithms (running atop massive computer power today) has a profound impact on our daily lives. It’s only logical that each iteration of newly-minted, competent technology will also affect business operations and marketing. It’s imperative that you continue to learn about major groundswell changes like that which blockchain brings.
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