ABSTRACT
Following the dissolution of the monolithic state structure and the abolition of the hegemony of the Communist Party, almost overnight the elite lost their two main pillars of orientation: a stable hierarchical order and a common belief system. It therefore became imperative for them to find alternative ways of co-ordinating decisions. One main strategy for doing this was the formation of networks. As a medium of social exchange a network is less formal than an organisation but also less fluid than market relations. The hallmark of networking is communication through personal contacts with some regularity. Networks were not a new phenomenon after 1991, but since the old power institutions broke down and the elite had to reorganise, the importance of informal contacts increased. Elite-networks are particularly crucial structures for co-ordination in periods of swift political and institutional change. The purpose here is to identify such networks, the political background of the elites and to what extent legacies of the past shape the patterns of contact.
