Project management capability and resistance in cloud transformation: configurational evidence from African e-commerce

This paper investigates resistance patterns in cloud-based digital transformation within African e-commerce contexts, examining how project management capabilities moderate the relationship between infrastructural constraints and transformation outcomes. Through a mixed-methods study of 180 organisations across eight African countries, we employ fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), necessary condition analysis (NCA), and polynomial regression to identify multiple pathways to transformation success and failure. Our findings reveal that resistance emerges through five distinct configurations, with project management capabilities serving as a critical moderating factor. We identify a ‘capability paradox’ where organisations with moderate project management maturity experience higher resistance than those with either low or high maturity, suggesting non-linear relationships between capabilities and outcomes. The study contributes to the digital transformation literature by developing a contextually grounded resistance framework that accounts for infrastructure volatility, institutional voids, and the unique characteristics of African e-commerce ecosystems. We propose the concept of ‘adaptive resistance’ as a functional response to resource constraints, challenging assumptions that resistance purely represents opposition to change. Practical implications include the need for hybrid project management approaches that balance structure with flexibility and policy recommendations for infrastructure investment prioritisation.