Blockchain and Design Sprints: Complex Problems Need Structured Approaches

New York, NY, Jan. 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- BTblock, the fast-growing blockchain & cybersecurity consultancy firm, today announced its partnership with Fresh Tilled Soil, the leading digital experience and design firm. 

This partnership leverages Design Sprints to identify and understand problems facing companies moving vast amounts of material and data across extended & complex supply chains.  When these companies choose to create greater market transparency with reduced complexity and lower costs, there is serious consideration for using distributed ledger technology (DLT) such as blockchain.

For these companies, one area of focus is to find innovative ways to track and verify data through extended supply chains to improve transparency and increase productivity while lowering total operating costs.

“Knowing the status and condition of every product on your supply chain from raw materials to distribution is critical,” said Brian Gale, Partner at BTblock. “In many cases, DLT’s immutable ledger is a natural fit.  However, with any new technology, a necessary comfort level first needs to be achieved.  The design sprint is critical to identifying and then solving the right problem.”

The partnership brings to bear the traditional five-phase Design Sprint methodology with an added layer of DLT and Blockchain subject-matter expertise to the team of key stakeholders from within the client organization.  By adding blockchain domain experts, companies can address questions as the Design Sprint is running.  This is called the Design Sprint Hybrid Model™. 

Led by an objective facilitator, the Design Sprint Hybrid Model™allows our clients to identify true areas of opportunity that address organizational challenges through the lens of DLT.  The Design Sprint process puts a premium on answers, so it is inherently practical by nature.

“With blockchain performance challenges such as throughput and security being addressed by technology advancements, adoption should accelerate in 2019 as dominant companies such as WalMart and Carrefour follow through on the commitment to move their extended enterprise onto blockchain platforms,” said David Garrity, CFA, co-founder, and partner at BTblock.  “We anticipate similar demand-side adoption in other industries soon, especially given the potential advances in safety, security, and privacy that DLT can enable, all features customers rightly prize,” adds Garrity.

“We’re excited to see Distributed Ledger Technology & blockchain added to the current mix of market-changing innovations,” adds Richard Banfield, CEO of Fresh Tilled Soil, and co-author of ‘Design Sprint: A Practical Guidebook for Building Great Digital Products (O'Reilly Media, 2015).’ “Design Sprints act as a catalyst to bring the right people in the room and build consensus around the potential application.  There’s a structured quid pro quo in these sessions.  Each expert brings value that when applied to the scientific approach results in a 1 + 1 = 3 outcome.”

“When product leadership decides whether to invest in new technology, they have to consider their customer,” said BTblock Partner Tammy Kahn.  “If their customer desires the technology, then every effort should be made to determine feasibility.  This desirability, however, does not confer feasibility.  Product leaders should be quick to abandon applications where there is no incremental value.  This partnership is designed to get our clients to the right answer, and give them the first-mover advantage as they implement blockchain solutions in their verticals.”

About BTblock

BTblock is a blockchain & cybersecurity consultancy firm founded by seasoned entrepreneurs who have a strong track record of creating value through the building and sale of successful businesses. BTblock enables ideation, validation, implementation, and bringing emerging innovations to market. For more information, please visitwww.btblock.io.

About Fresh Tilled Soil

Fresh Tilled Soil was the first company to apply the Design Sprint process to Enterprise level problems with Intel’s RealSense Technology. Today, we support companies like FedEx, Keurig, LendingTree, and Tripadvisor through product discovery, user experience, and interface design processes. For more information, visit www.freshtilledsoil.com.

For further information, please contact:

Tammy Kahn, Co-founder & Partner - BTblock

Email: tammy@btblock.io