Abstract
Smart contract technology is beginning to alter the way supply chain processes are designed and executed. Blockchains enable peer-to-peer networks where contractual terms are automatically executed without the need for unbiased intermediaries. Due to the immutability of blockchains, smart contracts reduce risks and provide traceable audit trails of all transactions. Moreover, smart contracts can be automatically triggered, resulting in decreasing administration and service costs while improving process efficiencies. These attributes make smart contract technology a promising invention for the poorly automated procure-to-pay process. That is, if the existing technological limitation, like poor scalability, high energy consumption, and limited transaction throughput, can be solved. The primary purpose of this chapter is to investigate how smart contracts can be implemented into existing procure-to-pay processes, what advantages can be gained from the application, and which technological restrictions are yet to overcome. To this end, a systematic literature review was conducted. Academic and practitioner literature were analyzed based on a qualitative and deductive methodology. Additionally, this chapter presents a use case for smart contracts in procure-to-pay in the context of international trade. That way, it lays a foundation for future research, provides valuable insight for procurement managers, and offers approaches to overcome the most pressing challenges.
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Trautmann, L., Lasch, R. (2020). Smart Contracts in the Context of Procure-to-Pay. In: Golinska-Dawson, P., Tsai, KM., Kosacka-Olejnik, M. (eds) Smart and Sustainable Supply Chain and Logistics – Trends, Challenges, Methods and Best Practices. EcoProduction. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61947-3_1
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