Abstract

The article provides an analysis of a group of Lombard social Special Agencies («Aziende Speciali»), which recently joined into a network called «NeASS» (Network Aziende Speciali Sociali). Aziende Speciali are instrumental bodies of Italian Public Local Authorities. They benefit from entrepreneurial autonomy and from the possibility of having specific administrative statute. As such, they represent a hybrid solution for managing and supplying public services. Moreover, they can play an important role in the governance of public services and particularly in the experiences of in partnership management of services. The article introduces the main institutional and organizational features which characterize Aziende Speciali and then it examines the different forms through which each of the members of the NeASS networks interprets its role, at organizational, managerial and institutional levels. The emerging overall picture is made of distinct organizational and managerial patterns, which emphasise the plasticity of Aziende Speciali in developing relationships with local stakeholders, the institutional polyvalence of Aziende Speciali and their organizational polymorphism. The potentialities and the implications of these findings are hence discussed, considering both the specific experience and the context of each Azienda Speciale and the broader institutional trends (at a national and regional level) in the governance and organization of social services.