Beyond Temporary Organizations: Trade Fairs as Temporary Markets, Clusters and Community Gatherings

Abstract

The notion of temporary organization allows project studies to connect with the broader discipline of management and organization studies. However, temporariness is an important structural property of many social systems, rather than just organizations. Economic geography has studied trade fairs and other professional gatherings and conceptualized them as temporary markets, clusters or communities. With its unique focus on physical space, economic geography can enhance our understanding of temporary organizing. This is illustrated with reference to trade fairs, but can be extended to other professional gatherings, such as conferences and conventions, and to some extent, even to field-configuring events or places.