[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]I recently had the opportunity to hear the outstanding St. Louis Symphony play, and it brought to mind some useful parallels to the business world. The most obvious similarity is structural. As CEO of St. Louis Staffing, my position is that of the conductor; I’m the most visible and, ultimately, the most responsible for the overall success of the ensemble. The conductor sets the tempo and shapes the sound, and makes or breaks the performance. It doesn’t matter how skilled the individual musicians are if they are not led effectively. Similarly, the talented people in my company may be doing their parts well, but they have to be given direction, structure, and the ability to work in unison.[/font]
[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]There are also specialized leadership positions under the CEO who are crucial to the success of a company. Like good vice presidents and corporate managers, an orchestra’s principle first violin is considered second in command. As the concertmaster, this person leads the tuning before the concert, in addition to other management duties. There may be other important collaborators as well, depending on the piece being played, such as a choir director for Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” which I attended.[/font]
[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]Whether it’s a smaller chamber orchestra or a grand philharmonic with a hundred musicians, an enormous amount of work goes on behind the scenes. The musicians have been developing their skills over a lifetime. The show is supported by high-tech sound design and lighting equipment. There is an entire support crew the audience never sees. Like the concept of Front Stage and Back Stage made familiar to me by Strategic Coach, it’s essential that a company successfully manage the process of preparation, execution and damage control away from the eyes of the customer, just as a symphony involves far more than the finished product an audience sees and hears.[/font]
[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]Keeping the audience, or customer, in mind is ultimately the most important aspect of the entire process. Whether you’re running a company or conducting an orchestra, you can never lose sight of what your purpose is, what you’re trying to communicate. You have to know why you’re doing what you’re doing and be able to lead everyone else toward that vision. All the hard work in the world doesn’t ensure that the outcome will be greater than the sum of its parts, or that a musical piece is more than a series of notes.[/font]
[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]As Alan Gilbert, the musical director of the New York Philharmonic said in a 2010 interview with Big Think, “There are conductors who are very clear and show the tempo in a very precise way and help the musicians play absolutely together, but something is missing. The soul is not there; the spirit is not there. . . It’s about inspiring them and making the musicians feel that there’s something in the music that they want to express. ”[/font]
[font=verdana, 'Bitstream Charter', serif]As a leader of your company, your department, or your family, I invite you to think about how you can inspire those around you to see there is something of value that they want to express. Bringing that kind of energy to an endeavor is how to create something truly harmonic.[/font]
