A blockchain-enabled solution to improve intra-inter organizational innovation processes in software small medium enterprises

Besides the substantial advantages of adopting information and communication technologies (ICTs), software small medium enterprises (SSMEs) face major challenges largely connected to knowledge sharing, security, and management of data and information. The objective of this paper is to propose a platform backed with the advantages of blockchain technologies, allowing intra-and inter-organizational knowledge and information sharing in SSMEs without losing control and ownership. Blockchain technology has the potential to bring about significant improvements in enhancing business models and processes wherein the authenticity of data is provided by smart contracts at every access point in a distributed information cycle in a transparent manner. The findings will support businesses in enhancing information flow, innovation, and competitive advantage in the current dynamic market. Unlike existing studies, which merely discuss the broader use of blockchain technology in the SSME domain, this paper provides a fresh promising direction in transforming SSMEs digitally.

market, enhance customer service, streamline their operations, increase efficiency, and facilitate collaboration with partners and suppliers. [1][2][3] Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, for example, can help SMEs to automate their business processes, reduce errors, and improve data accuracy.
To acclimatize competently to the transformations in the time-to-deliver market, SMEs are adopting new trends such as secure collaboration, ubiquitous computing, management of information and knowledge sharing using decentralized technology, and several intelligent applications. 4,5 However, the adoption process can be complex and costly, requiring careful planning and management. 2 Factors such as the perceived usefulness and ease of use of the technology, the size of the SME, and the organizational culture can influence the adoption process. SMEs that embrace new emerging technologies and invest in employee training and development can position themselves for long-term success in a rapidly changing technological landscape. 6 This adoption will surely add more significance, value, and reputation to the business with improved knowledge and information sharing.
In the software industry, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face unique challenges related to limited resources, expertise, and market access. Knowledge and information sharing play a vital role in enabling innovation, enhancing productivity, and gaining a competitive advantage. 7 Sharing knowledge and information can help SMEs to develop new products or services, improve processes and operations, and enhance customer satisfaction. 1,4,5,[8][9][10][11][12] Additionally, it can help SMEs to access new markets, technologies, and expertise, which can be beneficial for their growth and sustainability. By leveraging cross-functional teams, Communities of Practice, online platforms, mentoring and coaching, and training and education programs, software small medium enterprises (SSMEs) can enhance their productivity, innovation, and competitiveness. Therefore, SSMEs should prioritize knowledge and information sharing to gain a competitive edge and succeed in the software industry. 1,4,5,[8][9][10][11][12] SSMEs face several unique challenges that can impede effective KM and information-sharing practices. 4,13 Limited resources, lack of expertise, inadequate infrastructure, lack of a supportive organizational culture, and resistance to change were major identified as major barriers to the adoption of KM practices and information sharing in SSMEs. 13 The questions of when and what data should be shared and to whom is of prime concern. Any wrong step in this regard can result in a data breach and sensitivity. Therefore, knowledge and information sharing in SSME implementation need a better sharing platform to battle fraud, and pilferage, and improve collaboration among participants. 9 Knowledge sharing (KS) is the practice of individuals or teams within an organization exchanging and discussing knowledge among themselves or with other teams within the business through a variety of channels (such as forums, conference networks, and knowledge bases). 10 KS is a multilayered process that implies the availability of strategic knowledge at all levels of an organization to encourage the growth of innovation at the individual, team, and organizational levels. 11,12 A company's organizational innovation level, including its capacity to respond more swiftly to challenges or new information, is determined by its capacity to integrate, convert, and integrate new knowledge. Knowledge sharing among multiple stakeholders, including customers, vendors, and collaborators, can have a substantial impact on many business sectors, including customer service, production cycles, collaboration within many department units, and alliance partner connections. 14 The collaboration between various stakeholders, which KS fosters, can enhance the level of service provided to clients, as demonstrated by the superior product quality taking originality and creativity into account. 15 Accurate data trust with increased transparency in information sharing is the catalyst to overcome a few of the challenges of SSMEs. 5,8 One of the difficulties facing SMEs today is the imposition of new trading requirements by globalization. SMEs must create new business strategies focused on flexibility, efficiency, and higher-quality products and processes to compete with their international competitors. 4,9,16 SMEs must rely on effective knowledge management practices to combat knowledge attrition and manage present and future knowledge resources in the best possible way. 5,9 If SMEs find ways to adequately manage knowledge, it provides them with the capabilities to achieve a competitive advantage. Knowledge management includes many processes and structures within organizations. One breakthrough that is thought to be able to address many conventional business-related issues is blockchain technology. However, due to a lack of awareness of this technology, the hype around the blockchain can occasionally mislead corporate decision makers.
Several research studies have identified various solutions to improve intra-and inter-organizational innovation processes in SMEs. SSMEs can enhance their innovation processes by creating a culture of innovation, promoting employee involvement, and investing in knowledge management systems. 6 The study suggested that these practices could improve collaboration and knowledge sharing, leading to better innovation outcomes. A study by Isensee et al 17 highlighted the importance of open innovation practices for SMEs. The study suggested that adopting open innovation practices, such as collaborating with external partners and customers, could enhance innovation outcomes and competitiveness.
SSMEs can improve their innovation processes by investing in human capital development, promoting knowledge transfer between employees, and creating an innovative work environment. 7,17 Authors suggested that these practices could improve employee motivation and creativity, leading to better innovation outcomes. 2,3 identified the importance of digital transformation for SSMEs to enhance their innovation processes. They suggested that adopting digital technologies could improve collaboration, knowledge sharing, and innovation outcomes. In short, these studies suggest that creating a culture of innovation, promoting employee involvement, investing in knowledge management systems, adopting open innovation practices, investing in human capital development, creating an innovative work environment, and adopting digital technologies can enhance intra-and inter-organizational innovation processes in SSME. Blockchain technology has been making headlines in recent years as it has the potential to revolutionize the way businesses operate. As discussed above, SMEs often face challenges when it comes to data sharing, which can limit their growth potential. They may also face issues with data privacy and security when sharing sensitive information with partners or third parties. This can create barriers to collaboration, limit access to funding and prevent SMEs from entering new markets. Blockchain technology can address these challenges by providing a secure and transparent platform for data sharing, which can help SMEs to collaborate with partners, access funding, and enter new markets. Unlike traditional data-sharing systems, blockchain provides a decentralized platform that eliminates the need for intermediaries. [18][19][20][21] This means that SMEs can share data with partners or third parties without the need for a trusted intermediary. This can reduce costs and increase efficiency in data sharing. Blockchain technology also provides SMEs with a high level of security and data privacy. The decentralized nature of blockchain means that data is stored across a network of nodes, making it difficult for hackers to manipulate or access data. Blockchain also uses advanced encryption techniques to protect data, ensuring that it remains secure and private. Another benefit of blockchain technology is that it provides SMEs with a transparent platform for data sharing. Each transaction on the blockchain is recorded and verified by the network, providing a clear audit trail for all data-sharing activities. This can help SMEs to build trust with partners and third parties, which can be critical in building successful collaborations. Therefore, Blockchain technology has the potential to improve both intra-and inter-organizational innovation processes in SSMEs by providing secure, transparent, and decentralized platforms for collaboration and information sharing. [18][19][20][21] To the best of the author's knowledge, to date, the existing state-of-the-art literature confirms that previous researchers have made little or no effort specifically in contributing to Intra-Inter Organizational Innovation Processes in SSMEs. In light of this, this paper proposes a reliable Blockchain authentication framework for knowledge and information sharing.
The proposed system provides support for collaboration among SSMEs to achieve a common objective of ensuring critical knowledge sharing at various access points. The authenticity of data is provided by smart contracts. Blockchain technology is used to develop a set of processes and systems to manage and regulate access to knowledge sharing. The owner of the resource still has control over access under the proposed solution. Even though the resource is shared by the owner with another organization, that organization cannot share the resource with yet another third party. To access a resource, a third party must first obtain permission from the resource's original owner. The owner, and the owner alone, has complete control over who has access to these documents. The main contribution of this paper is listed below: • This paper proposed a platform backed by blockchain technology that addresses major challenges faced by SSMEs in terms of knowledge sharing, security, and management of data and information.
• The proposed platform allows intra-and inter-organizational knowledge and information sharing in SSMEs while ensuring control and ownership of the data.
• The use of smart contracts at every access point in a distributed information cycle ensures the authenticity of data.
• The implementation of the proposed platform can bring significant improvements in enhancing business models and processes, leading to enhanced information flow, innovation, and competitive advantage.
• The paper provides a fresh and promising direction for transforming SSMEs digitally, which is different from existing studies that merely discuss the broader use of blockchain technology in the SSME domain.
• The proposed platform can address the challenges faced by SSMEs and support businesses in enhancing information flow, innovation, and competitive advantage in the current dynamic market.
The rest of this paper is structured as follows. A literature review is presented in section 2. A brief introduction to blockchain technology is discussed in section 3. The proposed system architecture for a blockchain-supported platform for SMEs is presented in section 4. Section 5 presents the evaluation of the proposed solution. Discussion and conclusion with practical, managerial, and research implications are presented in Section 6, which also lists potential future research topics.

RELATED WORK
In this section, we examine the research-related literature covering topics like Knowledge management, sharing, and innovation in SSMEs and blockchain technology. Organizational innovation is greatly influenced by knowledge, which also gives businesses a competitive edge. 22 For enterprises to have a competitive advantage, KS must be deterministic. 23,24 It is about exchanging knowledge to assist coworkers in the company, better group problem-solving, improve new techniques, or carry out action plans, goals, and strategies. 25 Companies today must manage basic information as well as knowledge obtained from clients because knowledge is one of the most important assets to manage. 4 According to Reference 26, knowledge management (KM) systems allow individuals to produce, share, and apply knowledge to improve task performance as an information system by internalizing knowledge and improving the ability to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing for improved knowledge innovation across functional units. Confidentiality challenges for storing and exploiting knowledge in companies increase as the volume of knowledge and information increases. 27 Blockchain-based knowledge management systems (KM systems) manage all submitted knowledge commodities under their purview and create knowledge blocks automatically. 28 Requirements for security, authentication, integrity, and privacy are crucial if knowledge is to be maintained in KM systems and used as a source of competitive advantage. 29 By creating a decentralized framework based on blockchain concepts, 27 developed a methodology for using blockchain in knowledge management to enhance the knowledge services framework for knowledge generation and sharing in organizations. User authentication and authorization protocol for KM based on elliptic curve cryptography were proposed by Nyame et al. 29 By confirming users before sharing, transferring, or storing knowledge in the knowledge base, the algorithm offers a secure means for accessing knowledge.
Researchers and professionals have recently given blockchain technology a lot of attention. This is mostly because of its special attributes, which include decentralization, security, dependability, and data integrity. Despite this increased interest, little is known about the theoretical and practical knowledge base and usage of blockchain technology in allowing intra-and inter-organizational knowledge and information sharing in SSMEs without losing control and ownership today. To ensure security, transparency, and decentralization, blockchain acts as an open, distributed ledger for transactional records. A timestamp, a series of transactions, a nonce in the block header, and the cryptographic hash of the previous block make up each block. All transaction histories are kept in the cryptocurrency (current and previous). On top of cryptocurrencies, a smart contract, a component of computer software, enables users to create and carry out contracts on the blockchain. A predetermined amount of gas must be purchased using ether to carry out a smart contract. The order in which a smart contract's code is executed determines how it will behave. When a transaction triggers this execution, gas is consumed and transformed into the amount of Ether that is charged as a transaction fee.
Blockchain technology has been used in supply chain management because of its properties. First, the blockchain's chain structure assures data authenticity and immutability, making the full transaction data traceable. 30 Blockchain technology was employed by Lin et al to create a food management platform that enabled efficient tracking of commodities while upholding data privacy. 31 Credit et al 32 successfully avoided the issue of product counterfeiting by using blockchain to record and track all the information about agricultural items. Second, the encryption method resolves the conflict between the need for information sharing and the protection of personal data. 33,34 To break the data island and enable information exchange, nodes on the blockchain can access data on the chain to make informed judgments. Rejeb et al 35 used blockchain technology with the Internet of Things to record and monitor transaction data, achieving data sharing and privacy protection. Dwivedi et al 36 suggested a blockchain system manage inventories and coordinate the shipping of goods. To assist businesses in making better supply chain decisions, this system offers accurate and trustworthy information. Additionally, the intelligent contract efficiently avoids all forms of opportunism and moral hazards by automatically processing the transaction under presupposed circumstances, which lowers the cost of human communication and enhances transaction efficiency. [37][38][39] Another promising technology called IPFS makes advantage of a peer-to-peer network to store data. Because Interplanetary File System (IPFS) protects data from tampering, it offers safe data storage. Since changing the identifiers is the only way to attempt to change data saved on IPFS, it uses a cryptographic identifier to prevent the data from changing. Every piece of data that is kept on IPFS includes a cryptographically generated hash value. It is distinctive and used to identify stored data on the IPFS. 40 Because of its safe storage method, the IPFS protocol is a good option for keeping sensitive and important data. To lessen the laborious computing operations over the blockchain, the created cryptographic hash could be stored on the decentralized application. IPFS works as follows: First, a distinct cryptographic hash is given to each file stored on IPFS. Next, the IPFS network does not permit the existence of duplicate lessons and lastly, a node on the network maintains its own index and stores content. 40 These studies demonstrate that blockchain technology can be utilized to address the supply chain management issue because SMEs also experience this issue. Platform managers looking to create blockchain-supported platforms for intra-and inter-knowledge management in SSMEs can learn a lot from this research.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO BLOCKCHAIN
Blockchain technology enables secure and open record-keeping of transactions and data through a distributed and decentralized digital ledger. Although it was initially created for the virtual currency Bitcoin, its uses have now been extended to several other sectors and businesses, including supply chain management, healthcare, and real estate. A network of nodes makes up the blockchain. These nodes validate and record transactions into blocks, which are then connected in a chain in chronological order. Every block creates a tamper-proof record that cannot be changed without network consensus by including a cryptographic hash of the previous block in the current block. As a result, fraud, hacking, and data tampering are difficult with the blockchain. When all members have access to the same information on the network, it also enables increased transparency and confidence in the flow of information and assets. 41 The applications of blockchain technology, which is still in its infancy, are continuously being investigated. [18][19][20][21] But because of the increased interest and investment it has received from other businesses as a result of its promise of security, effectiveness, and openness, it will be a crucial technology to watch in the years to come. Blockchain technology has significant potential to benefit SMEs in various ways. [18][19][20][21] Blockchain technology can improve security in SMEs by providing a tamper-proof digital record of all transactions. This helps to prevent fraudulent activities such as double spending, while also reducing the risk of data manipulation or cyber-attacks.

BLOCKCHAIN-BASED INFORMATION-SHARING MODEL
To enable information sharing, this section suggests a blockchain-based model for intra-inter information sharing that is subject to mutual restrictions for the group members in SME. In this proposed model, members are mutually supervised, which permits accurate information sharing. As a result, a shared, open, transparent, and traceable process with tech-oriented recognition is generated. Additionally, blockchain autonomy effectively lowers management complexity, the risks of a centrally controlled system's single-point failure, and potential issues resulting from data-sharing such as ownership, use, and circulation path difficulties.

Proposed system architecture
This paper proposes a framework that integrates blockchain technology to address the issues encountered by SMEs in knowledge management. It is widely accepted that there are three types of blockchain: public, consortium, and private. A public blockchain is completely decentralized because each node has the freedom to join or leave the blockchain network at any time. However, this creates major privacy issues and slows down transaction processing. However, a private blockchain is entirely centralized because it is managed by a different organization; as a result, nodes can only join the blockchain network with the company's approval. The nodes that control a consortium blockchain can validate, store, and update data on the blockchain network. In addition to processing transactions more quickly than both public and private blockchains, consortium blockchain also allows for a more flexible node authority setup. So, to create the proposed platform, a consortium blockchain is used. Figure 1 shows the proposed architecture for the blockchain-based intra-and inter-organizational knowledge and information-sharing system. Only registered users can participate in the process to upload or access the information. The proposed solution is a peer-to-peer approach built on the blockchain, where multiple organizations or department providers collaborate in a network to store and manage knowledge. No single authority has the power to violate the privacy of others; instead, each organization or department develops and controls the information that falls within its purview. It can be viewed as a form of a decentralized peer-to-peer database. It is an appealing technology for creating the aforementioned application since all participants (e.g., organizations) in a blockchain participate on equal footing and have control over their information. Several blockchain nodes make up the blockchain cluster (or servers). Each organization (information provider) contributes one or more blockchain nodes to the system, which they use to participate. The Solidity smart contract will provide centralized authentication of the business logic that coordinates the process of handling the information exchange. The whole process consists of the following set of blockchain Protocols each of which is executed by different actors and is summarized below: • Hosts: the organization responsible for hosting (contributing one or more nodes to the blockchain) the resource on the blockchain.
• Resource Manager: The person who creates resources through their actions and who wants to impose access restrictions on those resources.
• Third Party: the person who wants to access a resource they have generated and who wants to make sure they own it.
The system will provide the following functionality: 1. add_user(): this function will generate individual records. It has the following fields: ID, name, organization, designation, file_ID, file_component, and IPFS hash. The actual data/information uploaded can be referred to using an IPFS hash. 2. update_user_records(): using this function only the individual's records would be updated. This is allowed in case the individual role is changed in the organization or he needs to access other information at some point in time. The IPFS hash cannot be changed or updated for providing security of records (data/information). 3. view_records(): using this function the user can access data/information stored in records. This access will only be granted to the user once his validity is confirmed. The user's public account address is used by the system for this reason to guarantee that only the relevant data records are displayed to the viewer. 4. delete_record(): using this function any record file can be deleted. This function can only be invoked by the role-issuing organization (host/resource manager) having the authority to remove any information from the blockchain.

access_grant():
Access must be granted for each of the aforementioned transactions since only the role-issuing organization (host/resource manager) having the authority is authorized to add or update a patient's records. Therefore, only these entities would have access to add and alter records. Additionally, the user/viewer has access to read/access the records but not to add to or modify them.

Access control
In this paper, an authentication system based on smart contracts is used for authentication and providing access to different users over the network. The user role-based access is made via the smart contract (SC), which is subsequently broadcast on the blockchain. To create user-role-based access that is effective, efficient, and secure, the SC offers a variety of capabilities. While protecting user privacy, the usage of the blockchain makes it possible for roles to be formed transparently. It also acts as a synchronization point for service-providing businesses to verify stated roles. The SC is a programmable asset that is reliable and secure and operates exactly as instructed. Additionally, all activities (executed functions) made utilizing the SC are made public on the blockchain. Features of the SC include: • enabling organizations to issue roles; (and other pertinent details) to users.
• permit role-issuing organizations to control and change data as necessary.
• permit organizations that issue roles to do so in a transparent manner if necessary, to cancel the responsibilities given to users.
• permit users to recommend other users (and to take down the recommendation as well).
Using the add_user() function, a role-issuing organization can quickly change the details of a user who has been given a role. Similarly, by utilizing the addEndorsee() function, a user can quickly update the details of a user it has endorsed. Even if updating the information is simple, all updates are done responsibly because they can all be independently verified. By using the removeUser() function to delete the user, revocation can be accomplished. This capability is crucial in situations where the user's job has expired. By doing this, the misuse of vacant roles will be avoided. The verification property is efficiently and successfully attained by the proposed framework. The challenge-response protocol is made to safely confirm a user's ownership of roles as well as their assigned user roles. Because all actions taken within the SC are recorded in the SC's events log and on the Ethereum blockchain, the proposed framework can achieve transparency. As a result, an entity will not be able to carry out a "secret" action without the knowledge of the other entities. Furthermore, it is presumed that only the specific entities have power over their private keys, and entities will not be able to refute any action taken. In addition to this, a challenge-response action is also created to authenticate actions related to role ownership and user role-based access verification. The following are the guidelines for the same: • a user must declare that they have a role.
• the information linked to that declaration must be verified.
• the user must be challenged.
• the user must respond to the challenge.
• the response must be verified.
The challenge-response action mechanism is created in a way that it may be used offline as well as online, meaning that various organizations do not need to communicate with one another or form a partnership for it to work. As stated previously, only the registered users can participate in it process.

EVALUATION
Analysis was done on the costs associated with building the smart contract and carrying out the functions. The average gas value was roughly 0.000000019 ETH at the time of analysis. However, the validation time is not crucial for our system; I would use the system for accessing and sharing data and information in the future with my peers.
3.11 1.31 therefore, the minimum value is adequate. The miners have the option to disregard transactions with low gas values, the longer the transaction takes to be validated by miners, the lower the gas value. Additionally, the variation in confirmation time (from 14 s on average using the average gas value) was negligible. Table 1 summarizes the costs associated with carrying out the various SC functions. Because the input lengths for various functions can vary, the charges will also change based on roles. Table 2 summarizes the descriptive statistical analysis of the user study conducted in an online manner. Survey results suggest the observed internal consistency of all scales is adequate, with Cronbach's alpha value of 0.936. For internal consistency, reliability Cronbach's alpha value of 0.70 and above is considered good.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
Blockchain is a decentralized technology, which addresses the issue of remote islands of information in the development of knowledge management. The blockchain system is open, which is suitable for the sharing and utilization of knowledge. Blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize the way SMEs operate by providing a secure and transparent platform for data sharing. By eliminating the need for intermediaries and providing a decentralized platform, blockchain can reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve data privacy and security. SMEs can use blockchain technology in a variety of ways, from supply chain management to trade finance, to improve their operations and expand into new markets.
A substantial body of research demonstrates how knowledge management is becoming more and more important for an enterprise's competitiveness. Today, small and medium businesses must manage the KM process as a critical activity. According to the wide literature listed in this paper, KM is becoming a crucial strategic aspect in the current industrial environment. In an attempt to tackle the practical issues of automated information sharing, information traceability, and transparency in a SMEs, a BIMF-PSC blockchain-based approach is put forth in this study. This study closes the research gaps in the area of Knowledge management and sharing in SMEs using blockchain network modeling. To fully employ the blockchain's potential, a systematic structure, and its development methods were first described. Also, a visualization method was suggested to show how the proposed model works, and model performance was assessed.
Additionally, the authors emphasized how information management has a good effect on several performance factors, including market performance, operational performance, human performance, and organizational performance. New KMSs have been developed as a result of the development of ICTs, which are more affordable and user-friendly than conventional ones. The essence of KMS is also affected by this innovation process because it provides both new organizational perspectives and technological advantages. In reality, KMSs are technological or organizational tools that assist businesses in gathering and sharing knowledge to increase the efficacy and efficiency of KM operations. KM's serve as techniques and reasonably priced software packages that facilitate the integration of knowledge across people, processes, technology, and the organizational structure. The literature has demonstrated, from an operations perspective, that KMSs have a significant and advantageous impact on organizations' operational performance in terms of flexibility, quality, cost reduction, and partner collaboration.
In this context, this paper proposes a trustworthy, reliable solution that offers assistance for SSMEs to work together toward the shared goal of assuring crucial knowledge exchange at diverse access points. Blockchain is a decentralized ledger that operates without a central authority and enables the creation of a decentralized, unchangeable, and traceable log of transactions. Smart contracts offer the assurance of data validity. To monitor and control access to knowledge sharing, a set of procedures and systems has been developed using blockchain technology. Under the suggested solution, the resource's owner continues to have control over access. The owner may share the resource with another organization, but that organization is not permitted to share the resource with yet another third party. A third party must first get permission from the resource's original owner to access it. The recommended framework combines role access controls with secure record storage. It develops a system that is simpler for users to operate and comprehend. The framework also suggests steps to ensure that the system addresses the issue of data storage using IPFS's off-chain storage feature. Additionally, the system benefits from role-based access because only related and trustworthy people can access the information. For the development of user-role assignments and the verification of a user's ownership of a role, the proposed solution offers a safe and effective mechanism. Additionally, numerous collaborative rights management techniques, like personalization and endorsement, are also integrated. Blockchain technology can provide SMEs with a secure and transparent way to share data. However, SMEs need to carefully evaluate the performance of blockchain technology against their specific business needs, taking into account factors such as security, speed, cost, and scalability. To sum up, the following ways in which the suggested methodology might improve knowledge management and sharing: • It can be difficult for SMEs to share their valuable know-how resources with individuals or other businesses outside of their organizational boundaries, making knowledge sharing with business partners a concerning situation. Organizations have difficulties with privacy and ownership when they share their know-how with organizations or business partners involving several stakeholders. In this paper, blockchain technology is presented as a potential mediator for enhancing knowledge-sharing (KS) procedures in SMEs.
• The results demonstrated that two characteristics of blockchain technology-transparency and security-have the greatest effects on mitigating the effects of knowledge sharing on SMEs' efficiency. The research offers managers guidance on how to enhance KM and KS, supported by a blockchain system.

Implications of research
The proposed methodology gives businesses and policymakers an operational instrument. Businesses can utilize the suggested technique as a tool for allowing intra-and inter-organizational knowledge and information sharing in SSMEs without losing control and ownership to better align knowledge management in SSMEs. On the other hand, the proposed method can be useful to policymakers in identifying an enterprise's deficiencies so they can come up with special policies to enhance the competitiveness of local systems by enhancing management procedures and the sharing of knowledge across firms. This software has the advantage of being particularly adapted to knowledge sharing and management, in addition to being used to measure alignment, efficiency, and effectiveness. The findings indicate that investments must be made solely in knowledge management solutions that may help an SSME manage its knowledge. On the other hand, an SME's alignment with the nature of its knowledge is significantly reduced by investing in KMSs that are out of sync with that knowledge. It can support an enterprise's organizational structure (organization), market structure (market), industry structure (planning and production), and cross-firm integration structure (strategic relationships) in managing its knowledge processes. This study offers a fresh perspective for better understanding information-sharing mechanisms. The results show that while KS culture, organizational structure, and midlevel leadership can all contribute to raising the level of tacit information sharing in organizations, they have no direct bearing on explicit knowledge sharing. Only the management system encourages both explicit and tacit information sharing; while IT assistance can assist in boosting explicit KS levels in organizations, it has no direct bearing on tacit knowledge sharing.
Businesses, supply chains, markets, and a variety of industries have already taken notice of and adopted blockchain technology. Applying blockchain-backed solutions in enterprises has a variety of benefits, including improved security, enhanced traceability, trustworthiness, and documentation streamlined asset management with constant access to asset information; simplified multiagent transaction recording. It also solves several technological difficulties with blockchain, such as scalability, security, and decentralization.
The findings are suitable for managers to improve KS performance in terms of policy recommendations. Businesses should put their efforts into developing a KS system based on emerging technology. Thus, it is suggested that blockchain be used to create trustworthy connections and knowledge exchange in intra-inter organizations. The findings of the research can enhance information sharing in SC cooperative innovation. Businesses should think about KS based on innovation-related activities and procedures to improve performance within their businesses. Managers must consider if it is in the organization's best interests to take advantage of an individual. Managers must consider the organization's best interests when utilizing a person's technology expertise. Based on the research presented in this article, practitioners and researchers may have a better understanding of the advantages and potential enabling and restricting consequences of implementing blockchain technology knowledge sharing and management.
In this study, the authors have looked into how blockchain technology can help with intra-inter knowledge management by promoting knowledge exchange. To do this, the authors have discovered the special characteristics of blockchain technology and created a construct for knowledge sharing and SC performance, filling a gap in the understanding of blockchain technology at the micro-level related to information sharing. To increase speed, quality, dependability, and flexibility in the development of transparency, security, exchangeability, decentralization, tracing, and authentication, it is recommended that organizations should concentrate on aspects of blockchain technology. Future research should concentrate on blockchain advancements and include more empirical data to help with the problem of knowledge sharing. Future research should also investigate how much value is generated by blockchain technology.

Comparison of proposed solution with related work
The proposed solution offers an effective and secure role-based mechanism that can reflect the intra-inter organizational information sharing utilization of roles along with its various features. Studies in past have proposed various solutions using methods, case studies, and hypotheses. Most of these studies focused on the efficient utilization of the KS process through awareness of benefits offered by technical training, enhanced organizational policies and culture, individual soft skills, communication using e-mail and social channels, and document management systems. Additionally, practices to enhance trust among teams through problem-solving and teamwork programs, and team or project rotations are also suggested as solutions to encourage knowledge and information sharing. The following are the findings of the comparison of the proposed method with existing solutions: a with the proposed method knowledge and information can be shared transparently by ensuring privacy, user control b it will help in keeping track of who shared what, with whom, when, and for what purpose. c Scalability is one of the issues which act as a barrier in blockchain technology due to the storage issue of a large volume of information in a decentralized manner. To address this issue, this paper employs an off-chain storage solution to hold basic information and IPFS hash which are included in the data kept on the blockchain. The scalability problem is now resolved because a sizable number of information records are no longer kept on the blockchain. Since the bulk of the data kept on the blockchain has been reduced, transactions may now be completed more quickly. d The data that is kept in this system is accurate and is not altered by any unapproved means. Users of the system and any other parties are not permitted to alter the smart contract because they do not have access to it. This is accomplished by utilizing the access rules, which guarantee that information is kept secure and inaccessible.