Planning and Leading Blockchain Projects
This is the second of two courses in the fully online UBC Micro-certificate in Blockchain Innovation and Implementation.
This course builds on Blockchain Essentials for Leaders and Professionals by illuminating how you can bring blockchain initiatives to life. Blockchain has the potential to create value in many different areas of business and society, but use cases often require organizing and navigating many complex different trade-offs and tensions.
In this course, you’ll gain a toolkit and the frameworks needed to champion and scale blockchain initiatives. The course ends with a design challenge in which teams design and present an original blockchain solution to a significant problem facing society, followed by a virtual networking event.
Please note that is not a coding course, and you don’t need a technical background to enroll. Instead, you’ll come away with a toolkit for designing, governing, implementing and scaling blockchain use cases that create business and social value. You’ll understand what it takes to build a team, and be able to identify and overcome barriers to implementation and adoption.
By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- apply a toolkit for the design, governance, implementation and scaling of blockchain use cases
- understand and identify barriers to the implementation and adoption of blockchain solutions, and strategies for overcoming these
- understand keys aspects of planning and leading blockchain implementations, building on the experience of industry experts
- understand how you can create a balanced team for designing and building a blockchain solution
- build upon and apply your experience in designing a blockchain solution to address a significant societal challenge through the design challenge group project.
You’ll also come away with a likeminded professional network of blockchain enthusiasts, including your colleagues from the cohort and industry and academic experts you’ll meet in the networking event.
Week 1: Identifying Barriers to Blockchain Implementation. Successful implementations need more than just business or technical skills: we also need to consider societal and human implications. Discover the common barriers to implementing and adopting blockchain in a real environment, and why these arise.
Week 2: Blockchain System Design and Governance. Discover how to design and govern a blockchain use case that works for all stakeholders in your network. Apply a holistic framework for use case design, and understand the different governance mechanisms (including incentives, code, laws/regulations and norms) that enable the effective operation of blockchain systems.
Week 3: Building and Scaling Blockchain Solutions. Find out what you need to become the blockchain champion in your organization, and to create the team that will build your blockchain solution. Explore strategies for scaling blockchain use cases, and their pros and cons.
Week 4: Design Challenge. Work in teams to design and present an original blockchain solution to address a societal challenge (as voted on by the class). You are not expected to code or develop an application. Rather, the goal of this project is to apply what you have learned by designing and communicating a feasible solution that creates business and societal value, including articulating aspects of your business model and strategy, and identifying potential implementation challenges.
Teams receive feedback from academic and industry experts, as well as from other teams. You’re assessed on your project, as well as the quality and constructiveness of your feedback for other teams’ projects.
Week 4: Virtual Networking Event. The program concludes with a two-hour virtual networking event that brings together students and industry experts.
How am I Assessed?
You’re assessed on your participation and ability to demonstrate that you have achieved course outcomes and competencies by completing weekly activities, participating in the discussion posts and your group design challenge presentation, and providing feedback on other groups’ blockchain solutions. You’re also strongly encouraged to attend the live online classes.
Technology Requirements
To take this course, you should have an email account, internet access and an up-to-date web browser. You’ll also need access to a desktop or laptop computer.
Textbooks
There are no textbooks for this course.
Course Format
This 100% online instructor-supported course combines self-paced independent study with live classes held on Mondays from 6pm to 8pm Pacific Time.
Each week, review readings, podcasts and videos that are published online before class, and contribute to a discussion board where you apply your learning to real-world examples.
You’ll need to set aside approximately 5–7 hours a week to complete all learning activities, including attending instructor-led classes. The design challenge is estimated to take upwards of 12 hours, including the live session during which you present your solution.
Requisites