Partial organization for complete organizational identities. Revitalizing Tradition: The Italian Literary Festival's Leap into the Future

This paper uses the concept of ‘partial organization’ to analyse an empirical case regarding the creation of a new organizational body within Festivaletteratura, Italy's oldest and most prestigious literary festival. This community, the “Stati Generali”, was promoted to revitalize the festival by involving volunteers, particularly those under 35, in decision-making processes aimed at making the festival more interesting for a younger audience. This study utilizes the “partial” versus “complete” organizational framework to analyze the dynamics at play in a process aimed at innovating the festival's cultural offerings and identity. By focusing on volunteer roles, the research illuminates how various festival members contribute to its evolution, emphasizing the significance of the 'Stati Generali'—a new, less constrained partial organization within the festival. This emerging collective community, effectively fosters innovation more than the complete organization, burdened by inertia to change. The paper aims to contribute to festival literature by showcasing the potential for evolution in cultural offerings and organizational identity. It also employs partial organization theory to provide empirical insights into the nature and capabilities of such an organization.