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Will Federal Acquisition Lead the Blockchain Revolution?


bob7947

Will the Federal Government's Supply Chain Lead the Way in Blockchain Technology?  

18 members have voted

  1. 1. Will the Federal Government's Supply Chain Lead the Way in Blockchain Technology?

    • Yes
      1
    • No
      17


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I looked at the FAR's definition of Acquisition to see if it could encompass blockchain technology for supply chains and I think it does.  It is in quotes:

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the acquiring by contract with appropriated funds of supplies or services (including construction) by and for the use of the Federal Government through purchase or lease, whether the supplies or services are already in existence or must be created, developed, demonstrated, and evaluated. Acquisition begins at the point when agency needs are established and includes the description of requirements to satisfy agency needs, solicitation and selection of sources, award of contracts, contract financing, contract performance, contract administration, and those technical and management functions directly related to the process of fulfilling agency needs by contract.

I added the italics to cover the part that I thought might be missing but I think we have supply chain covered.   What is blockchain technology?  That link explains it in a couple of blurbs.  Fascinating, huh?  Blockchain technology is in its infancy and there wil be leaders and followers.  I don't know much about it but we should be reading about it, at least.  Maybe you are.  Now for the question in my poll about your federal government that is trying to straightem out SAM.  It's very simple--yes or no!

 

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And one Introductory discussion is on WIFCON:

There are so many opportunities including, a new accountability framework, smart contracts, and reporting systems.

I think we’ll either be leading or following, but we are going to follow the blockchain...which will change aspects of governance that are hard to imagine now. 

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  • 2 months later...

Blockchain in government is a bunch of hooey at this point in time.  It is half a bitcoin and nothing more.  People are enamored with doing something new hoping that it will solve problems without necessarily understanding exactly what the problem is or the limitations for the proposed solution.  It is fun to toss around "if" concepts of how it can be applied, but by definition it requires certain aspects to work:  consistent, immutable, ownable, replicable, available, canonical, and decentralized.  

I ask you....does the FAR itself have any of these characteristics?

Here is a good article on the difficulties associated with BlockChain.  The technical is fairly straight forward, and the embedded cartoons are priceless.

https://medium.com/@jimmysong/why-blockchain-is-hard-60416ea4c5c

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jonmjohnson ,

What you and the author of the article describe is a limited portfolio of applications for Blockchain solutions.  Hype, to the extent that it exists in any corner, does not alter the basic observation, simply put, that Blockchain should be applied only by those who understand it and only in areas where it will work. 

In considering the application I have suggested for Blockchain, your points remind me of the old saw about Microsoft products...these are “features not bugs”.  Yes, there is essentially only one way to apply Blockchain and only one reason to do it.  So, look at that one way and examine that one reason for an accountability system (accounting for every acquisition dollar within the confines of DoD)...to me such a forced fit is a major part of the appeal and not a fatal flaw. This system is not to be all things to all people. I remember learning once that when Army went to implement the standardized GFEBS finance system, they figured that they were replacing 64 different legacy systems. A forced fit in DoD finance is nothing new. 

Are you convinced Blockchain wouldn’t work well as an accountability system within DoD?  

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Guest PepeTheFrog

Blockchain in federal acquisition is like "artificial intelligence*" in federal acquisition. It's a joke and a way to give play money and research funding to contractors who can write catchy proposals.

 

*There is no "artificial intelligence" yet. When it arrives, it will not be used for the FAR or federal contracting. It will be used to kill people (win wars), predict markets (make money), and control your thoughts and actions. 

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