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The network organization : a governance perspective on structure, dynamics and performance
Moretti A., Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, Switzerland, 2017. 157 pp. Type: Book (978-3-319520-92-6)
Date Reviewed: May 16 2018

Social networks are an important part of modern society. We can say that social networks partly determined the results of the 2016 US presidential election. Social networks exert their influences by a myriad of nodes and connections between nodes. The nodes can be people, events, things, and so on. The connections can be friend relations, timestamps, associations, and so on. Studying social networks and their impact has become an important part of mathematics, computer science, and sociology. Specifically, social network analysis (SNA) is becoming increasingly important.

This book is not really about the usual social networks such as Facebook or Twitter that only exist in computer systems. It discusses the real social network that exists in our society. From the author’s management PhD background, it is understandable.

As the book title implies, this book covers the structure, dynamics, and performance of a social network from the governance point of view. However, it is not mathematically oriented. There is not a single equation in this book. Terms are defined and explained in plain English. Nonacademic people will be able to understand the book.

This book has two parts. Part 1 introduces the network organization and the concept of network governance. For example, terms such as formal and informal networks, vertical and horizontal networks, coordination mechanisms, network trajectories, network effectiveness, and so on are explained. Part 2 uses the tourism network at the Venice Film Festival (VFF) as a real example. It studies the network formed by tourists, the local hospitality system, and local institutions. At VFF, there are actors, actresses, directors, producers, and tourists, among others. When many people flock to Venice for VFF, can the local hospitality system handle this influx of people? The evidence shows the network was underperforming and the attempt to govern it also failed. It seems that the existence of two different cognitive frames about the cooperation between the festival and the hospitality system is the main cause of failing dynamics.

To summarize, this book studies real-life social networks, focusing on network governance. For readers interested in the analysis of computer social networks such as Facebook, this book is not for you.

Reviewer:  R. S. Chang Review #: CR146033 (1807-0349)
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