Leadership in Public Sector Interorganizational Networks: A Synthesis of the Literature and Propositions Based on a Multiple Case Study

Previous studies characterize public sector interorganizational networks as sets of horizontal relationships between autonomous organizations. Due to these horizontal relationships, networks seemingly offer a promising context for leadership beyond hierarchical tools of coordination as prevalent in individual, hierarchical organizations. However, despite the promising role of leadership in public sector networks, as yet no conceptualization of the functioning of leadership within this context has been developed. This is mainly due to the current disconnect between various branches of scholarly literature on collaborative governance, network management, and leadership. Based on a synthesis of the literature and an empirical investigation of three public sector networks in The Netherlands, this study aims to fill this gap by providing a conceptual framework of leadership in public sector interorganizational networks constituting the types, distribution, and directions of leadership behaviors and the formulation of four theoretical propositions that relate these behaviors to network context.