Intersection-Based Emergent Organizational Brokers and Their Effect on the Resilience of Emergency Response Networks: A Case Study of Two Disasters in China.

This study focuses on intersection-based emergent organizational brokers (IBEOBs), which refers to the intersection of planned and emergent organization interactions. This study attempts to identify the role and composition of IBEOBs and examine their effect on the resilience of emergency response networks. We identified the information and resource networks in two disaster environments. Specifically, using the broker role classification framework, we identified the broker roles and organization types of the IBEOBs within the networks. Then, we investigated the effects of various roles and types of IBEOBs on the resilience of information and resource networks from a network perspective. Findings reveal that social groups (SGs) and foundations (Fs) comprise IBEOBs in the information network, but in addition to them, there are also social service institutions (SSIs) and private enterprises (PEs) in the resource networks. IBEOBs mainly play three broker roles: gatekeeper, representative, and liaison. The study's results on the effect of IBEOBs with different roles on resilience show that liaisons have a more significant influence on the resilience of information and resource networks than gatekeepers and representatives. Regarding the effect of different types of IBEOBs on resilience, SGs have a more significant negative influence on information and resource network resilience than Fs. Furthermore, SSIs and PEs have a redundant effect on resource network resilience. This study provides theoretical support to managers strategically use broker strategies to design resilient networks to cope with emergency operation risks.