The Strong Ties of Cultural Organisations Event Networks and Local Development in a Tale of three Festivals

The purpose of this paper is to provide a deeper understanding of successful event networks and offer a conceptual framework which can be used to analyse their impact on local development. In particular, this study addresses two research questions: first, how does network structure affect the success of the event and its outcomes on local development, other than in economic terms? Second, which main capabilities does the "network orchestrator" need to promote the effectiveness of the event network? By analysing three different Italian cultural festivals - "Festivaletteratura" ("Festival of Literature" - Mantua), "Festival della Scienza" ("Festival of Science" - Genoa), and "Festivalfilosofia" ("Festival of Philosophy" - Modena, Carpi, Sassuolo) - this article sheds light on: (a) the features of successful event networks, (b) the dynamics linking network structure and the social outcomes generated, and (c) the typical bundle of relational capabilities that network orchestrators need. Then, we draw some implications for management and offer some remarks to stimulate further research in the field of special events.