The Impact of Network Management on Outcomes in Governance Networks

There is a large amount of literature and research on network management strategies. However, only a limited portion of this literature examines the relationship between network management strategies and outcomes (for an exception, see Meier and O’Toole 2001). Most of the research focuses on managerial activity or networking rather than on the question of which types of strategies matter the most for outcomes of complex processes in networks. This paper attempts to address the question of whether managerial strategies matter for outcomes and also explores which types of strategies have an effect on outcomes. The research is based on a survey sent to respondents involved in environmental projects in The Netherlands. The findings show that the number of employed network management strategies has a strong effect on perceived outcomes. The few variations in the effect of four constructed types of network management strategies found include exploring content, connecting, arranging, and process agreements.