The role of cultural diversity in creating value: a case study of South Korea’s pop band BTS

ABSTRACT Globalization has heightened the significance of cultural diversity. Embracing cultural diversity within an organization provides a number of benefits, such as enhanced creativity and a comprehensive understanding of customer information, which all contribute to effective decision making in response to market dynamics. This article examines a case study of BTS, a South Korean pop band, and its efforts to promote cultural diversity. BTS is the first Asian act to win the top honour at the American Music Awards. The band accumulated six No. 1s on the Billboard Hot 100 in just over a year, an accomplishment achieved only by The Beatles in the 1960s. On its path to success, BTS cultivated a committed fan following, the ARMY (Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth), which has expanded from its humble beginnings to an influential organization with members of various cultural backgrounds. The article focuses on how BTS and its culturally-diverse fan base have co-created value by generating content and distributing it to a broad network, augmenting the band’s awareness and its brand equity. The article provides implications for diversity as not only a good cause but also a practice that can improve an organization’s financial success by fostering a virtuous cycle of mutual benefit between the organization and its customers.