Reconstructing Core Competencies of Front-Office Employees in South Korean Professional Sports Organizations in the Era of Artificial Intelligence: A Delphi Study

As artificial intelligence (AI) increasingly reshapes organizational decision-making, fan engagement, and business operations, the competencies expected of front-office employees are also evolving. This study aimed to reconstruct the core competencies required of front-office employees in South Korean professional sports organizations in the AI era. To this end, a three-round Delphi study was conducted with 20 experts from academia, South Korean professional sports organizations, and research institutes. The Delphi process involved generating competency items, evaluating their relevance, and establishing expert consensus regarding the final competency framework. The findings identified 28 competency items grouped into the following five competency domains: Data & AI Utilization Competency, Human–AI Collaboration Competency, Marketing & Fan Engagement Competency, Communication & Execution Competency, and Ethics & Values Competency. These findings suggest that competencies in AI-enabled professional sports organizations extend beyond technical proficiency and warrant an integrated combination of technological, collaborative, organizational, relational, and ethical capabilities. This study refines the application of competency theory to AI-supported work by providing a context-specific framework for front-office employees in South Korean professional sports organizations. The proposed framework offers a foundation for understanding how South Korean professional sports organizations may reconstruct workforce competencies in response to the evolving demands of the AI era.