The future of the web? The coordination and early-stage growth of decentralized platforms

【Author】 Hsieh, Ying-Ying; Vergne, Jean-Philippe

【Source】STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT JOURNAL

【影响因子】7.815

【Abstract】Research Summary This abductive study investigates how management occurs without managerial authority as part of a previously unseen organizational form-the decentralized platform with an independent market value. Our mixed-methods study of the cryptocurrency industry draws on fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analyses (QCA) to analyze archival and interview data and offer new theory on how decentralized platforms coordinate activities to grow in an early-stage, before network effects kick in. We find that, in the absence of a central authority, platforms coordinate activities with three mechanisms, namely decentralized (a) algorithmic coordination, (b) social coordination, and (c) goal coordination. Our QCA treat these mechanisms as explanatory conditions and, using a representative sample of 20 cryptocurrency platforms, reveal which configurations of decentralized coordination mechanisms nurture, or hinder, early-stage platform growth. Managerial Summary Firms operate around a managerial hierarchy that distributes tasks, resources, information, and rewards to organizational members who pursue common goals as contract-bound employees. From 2009, a new organizational form, called the "decentralized platform," emerged and diffused without relying on hierarchy nor managerial authority-and without having to employ anyone. The most prominent decentralized platform, Bitcoin, has millions of users, thousands of contributors, and a market valuation never achieved before by an organization without a CEO nor shareholders. This study explicates how this unprecedented level of organizational decentralization functions in practice. We foreshadow implications for the digital economy, wherein "Web3" innovations, such as non-fungible tokens and DAOs, have already shifted the orchestrating role played by platforms in capitalist societies.

【Keywords】blockchain; coordination; decentralization; growth; platform

【发表时间】

【收录时间】2022-10-13

【文献类型】综述

【主题类别】

区块链治理-市场治理-技术采用