This essay applies the framework of Change Management — most prominently associated with John Kotter — to analyze the Korea IGF 2025 Seoul conference from a management perspective. Target audience: executives, MBA students, management researchers, consultants, and policy analysts.
Executive Summary
Kotter's 8-Step Change Model systematizes successful organizational transformation. Institutional transformation through internet governance shares isomorphic challenges with corporate change management.
For firms operating in South Korea and adjacent AI, ディープフェイク, 若者保護 domains, this essay maps how to incorporate the conference debate into strategic decision-making through the lens of Change leadership.
Eight steps of regulatory transformation
For organizations in South Korea to link 2025 outcomes to domestic transformation, conscious implementation of the eight steps — urgency, coalition, vision, communication, removing barriers, short-term wins, accelerating, anchoring — is required.
The theoretical framework of John Kotter provides a lens to read the 2025 debate not as mere "industry trends" but as a precursor of structural change. The fact that this is a national-level discussion has direct strategic implications for the geographic scope of the target market.
Establishing urgency
For practical application, we map the applicability of Change leadership to each topic at the conference.
1. Application to "AI"
The discussion on "AI" can be located, in John Kotter's framework, as a primary strategic variable.
Concrete managerial implications include:
- Implications for South Korea's market: early identification of regulatory trends and preemptive business-model adjustment
- Impact on competitive advantage: monitoring competitors' moves and reviewing one's differentiation strategy
- Investment decisions: allocation of R&D investment and reconfiguration of the portfolio
2. Application to "ディープフェイク"
The discussion on "ディープフェイク" can be located, in John Kotter's framework, as an important constraint.
Concrete managerial implications include:
- Implications for South Korea's market: early identification of regulatory trends and preemptive business-model adjustment
- Impact on competitive advantage: monitoring competitors' moves and reviewing one's differentiation strategy
- Investment decisions: allocation of R&D investment and reconfiguration of the portfolio
3. Application to "若者保護"
The discussion on "若者保護" can be located, in John Kotter's framework, as an auxiliary topic.
Concrete managerial implications include:
- Implications for South Korea's market: early identification of regulatory trends and preemptive business-model adjustment
- Impact on competitive advantage: monitoring competitors' moves and reviewing one's differentiation strategy
- Investment decisions: allocation of R&D investment and reconfiguration of the portfolio
4. Application to "国内法整備"
The discussion on "国内法整備" can be located, in John Kotter's framework, as an auxiliary topic.
Concrete managerial implications include:
- Implications for South Korea's market: early identification of regulatory trends and preemptive business-model adjustment
- Impact on competitive advantage: monitoring competitors' moves and reviewing one's differentiation strategy
- Investment decisions: allocation of R&D investment and reconfiguration of the portfolio
5. Application to "政府＋民間協働"
The discussion on "政府＋民間協働" can be located, in John Kotter's framework, as an auxiliary topic.
Concrete managerial implications include:
- Implications for South Korea's market: early identification of regulatory trends and preemptive business-model adjustment
- Impact on competitive advantage: monitoring competitors' moves and reviewing one's differentiation strategy
- Investment decisions: allocation of R&D investment and reconfiguration of the portfolio
Strategic Actions for Firms Operating in South Korea
We translate the management analysis above into concrete actions for firms operating in South Korea.
Short-term (within 6 months)
- Intelligence gathering: closely read the Korea IGF 2025 minutes and reports; share with the corporate strategy function
- Stakeholder mapping: identify relevant regulators, industry associations, and civil society organizations
- Risk assessment: quantify potential impacts of the regulatory directions under discussion
Medium-term (1–3 years)
- Capability building: close the capability gaps identified through the Change leadership framework
- Alliance strategy: cultivate relationships with the international IGF community
- Regulatory dialogue: shift from reactive compliance to proactive agenda-setting
Long-term (3–10 years)
- Business model reconstruction: structural transformation informed by John Kotter's framework
- Contribution to international standard-setting: sustained participation in venues like Korea IGF
- Norm formation from South Korea: accumulation of soft power through distinctive contributions to international debate
ROI Analysis Perspective
In John Kotter's framework, ROI of investment in Korea IGF participation is evaluated not as a single-year financial metric but as multi-year option value. This aligns with the "real options" approach to decision-making under uncertainty.
| Dimension | Short-term ROI | Long-term option value |
|---|---|---|
| Direct financial | Limited | Medium–Large |
| Network capital | Medium | Large |
| Brand / legitimacy | Medium | Large |
| Policy intelligence | Large | Medium–Large |
| Talent development | Medium | Large |
Conclusion: A Question to Executives
Reading Korea IGF 2025 through the auxiliary line of John Kotter's framework, the conference emerges not as a mere international gathering but as a site of contemporary implementation of Change leadership. Executives in South Korea face a strategic choice: passive observer or active participant.
This essay argues that the latter choice is indispensable for building long-term competitive advantage. John Kotter's theoretical insight provides the intellectual foundation for that strategic choice.
Primary Sources
- IGF Secretariat. Annual Reports of Korea IGF.
- Korea IGF 2025 Seoul Conference Materials.
- Japan IGF Support Organization. https://japanigf.jp/
- Nakazawa Yuki Blog. https://nkzw.jp/category/igf/
Secondary Sources (Management)
- Works of John Kotter (representative texts of Change Management)
*This piece belongs to the academic essays (management series). Strategic proposals are illustrative applications of general analytical frameworks; specific business judgments require individual due diligence.*
更新履歴
第1稿投稿 2026年6月11日 20時32分（記事コンテンツアップ）
— 中澤祐樹
