Network of networks: Preliminary lessons from the Antwerp Port Authority on crisis management and network governance to deal with the COVID‐19 pandemic

In this article we describe and illustrate what we call a network of networks perspective and map the development of a Lead network of the Antwerp Port Authority that governs various organizations and networks in the port community before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that setting a collective focus and selective integration to be crucial in the creation and reproduction of an effective system to adequately deal with a wicked problem like the COVID-19 pandemic. We use the findings on crisis management and network governance to engage practitioners and public policy planners to revisit current design and governance of organizational networks within organizational fields that have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.