Understanding stakeholder complexity remains a critical yet underexplored challenge in project management, particularly in public infrastructure projects where competing agendas and power asymmetries often determine success or failure. This study investigates stakeholder complexity through a comparative analysis of three municipal projects in South Africa. The findings reveal indicators of complexity related to stakeholder roles, agendas, power, and influence networks. These indicators help practitioners recognize when adaptive and intensive engagement strategies are required, bridging the gap between conceptual stakeholder models and their practical application in contested project environments.
Worsley et al. (2026) studied this question.