Innovation as a robust response to crises in public healthcare organizations: Evidence from Italy

This study investigated whether public managers implemented innovations as a robust response to the Covid 19 crisis. To fulfill the aims of the study, interviews were conducted with the chief executive officer (CEO) of Italian public healthcare organizations to identify the innovation types that were implemented, their loci, and the factors affecting their implementation. While some innovations were stimulated by external factors, driven by the regional government’s institutional priorities, others were driven by the CEO’s leadership. Although all the innovations to be implemented required a set of physical and technical resources, the internal ones, especially those related to strategic positioning, required the CEO’s additional effort to legitimate innovation. This article examines innovation strategies and factors that influence strategic repositioning in public healthcare organizations as a reaction to extraordinary crises. It deepens understanding of collaborative and robust governance to address turbulent crises.