Multi-level Network Governance for Chaotic Disaster Management Contexts by Bryan Fenech

1. PM4THEWORLD
Multi-level Network Governance for
Chaotic Disaster Management Contexts
Bryan Fenech

2. Introduction
- What is Governance?
- Order of topics in this
presentation

3. The rules, relationships, systems and processes for exercising and regulating authority
as well as well as for holding actors accountable for their work, in other words the
conditions of self regulation.
The framework that outlines the boundaries for management’s execution of their tasks
and what they will be held accountable and responsible for.
What is Governance?

4. Complexity and chaos in disaster management
Issues with Governance in such contexts
Latest developments in Governance in Project Management – How can this help?
Conclusions and sketch of a research agenda
Order of topics in this presentation

5. Complexity and
chaos in disaster
management
contexts

6. Diversity in type of disaster – flood, earthquake, war, famine, drought, disease,
economic collapse, etc - and degree to which human agency is involved – war, climate
change, etc
Diversity of stakeholders – central and regional governments, international agencies,
NGOs, media, private sector, the impacted community
Diversity of needs of those impacted
Diversity of priorities over time – during preparedness, mitigation, relief and recovery
Diversity of communities of practice, knowledge and methods
Value pluralism
An intersection of unrivalled diversity
in human endeavor

7. Issues with
Governance in these
contexts

8. “Critics are quick to point to the shortfalls of government-led recovery and the
inefficiency of the traditional model of top-down governance”
“…it is not possible to regulate governance networks by means of traditional sovereign
forms of detailed, hierarchical, and bureaucratic regulation. Sovereign forms of
regulation would inevitably undermine the self-regulating capacity of the networks.”
Traditional centralized governance is
ineffective

9. Coordination and communication
Prioritisation
Sequencing around resource constraints and managing overload
Duplication of effort
Points of handover
Understanding global risk – ie, commonality and downstream impact
Understanding global value
Leveraging knowledge and diversity
Problematic areas

10. Latest developments
in Governance in
project management
– How can this help?

11. Project management implies independence, decentralization and delegation of
authority. This is its great strength, but it also raises a coordination problem.
“[if] an organization manages many individual projects, each with its own dedicated
project manager, there will inevitably be little or no control of projects”
– A P Van Der Merwe (1997)
“The widespread use of projects has brought with it the need to marshal project-based
activity in some coherent and beneficial way”.
– Sergio Pellegrinelli (1997)
Local agility versus global coordination
– a project management dilemma

12. Wang et al (2023) Network Governance for Interorganizational Temporary
Organizations: A Systematic Literature Review and Research Agenda Project
Management Journal Vol. 54(1) 35–51.
Unterhitzenberger et al (2023) A Multilevel Governance Model for Interorganizational
Project Networks Project Management Journal Vol. 54(1) 88–105.
Kuitert et al (2023) Definitely Not a Walk in the Park: Coping with Competing Values in
Complex Project Networks Project Management Journal Vol. 54(1) 19–34.
Hot off the press: Governance in
project management

13. Conceptualizing this landscape
Network of Permanent Organisations
– “Network Governance”
Permanent Organisations in Multiple Simultaneous
Temporary Project Networks – “Governance of Networks”
Special purpose vehicle Programs

14. Observed modes of interorganizational
governance

15. A multi-level interorganizational
governance model for project networks

16. A proven and workable multi-level and distributed alternative to traditional sovereign
forms of detailed, hierarchical, and bureaucratic governance.
Balancing local agility and global coordination – addressing problematic areas.
Successfully leveraging the potential inherent in diversity.
Metagovernance as an approach for developing best flexible practice guidelines and
standards for governance in disaster management.
Improving the success rates and value of disaster management interventions.
How can this help disaster
management?

17. A proven and workable multi-level and
distributed alternative to traditional
sovereign forms of detailed, hierarchical,
and bureaucratic governance.
Balancing local agility and global
coordination – addressing problematic
areas.
Meta governance as an approach for
developing best flexible practice
guidelines and standards for governance
in disaster management.
Improving the success rates and value of
disaster management interventions.
How can this help disaster
management?

18. Conclusions and
sketch of a research
agenda

19. At the heart of these matters is a critically important goal – successfully leveraging the
potential inherent in diversity.
While these new developments in multilevel interorganizational governance in multiple,
simultaneous, temporary project networks offers much to disaster management efforts,
disaster management contexts provide perhaps the best context to further test, validate
and develop such models.
Into the field …
Typologies and taxonomies
Testing of models and mechanisms
Development of meta governance frameworks and guidelines (potentially standards).
Conclusions and a sketch of a
research agenda

20. Your Questions and
Comments are important -
We will use the Q&A section
to capture your input
YOUR QUESTIONS
AND IDEAS WANTED

21. - Use the QR code to contribute
GIVE WHAT
YOU CAN,
HOWEVER
YOU CAN.