Comedian and conductor Rainer Hersch says managers striving to lead high-performance teams can find inspiration in the concert hall. ...
A well-connected, talented orchestra, working in harmony with a responsive and thoughtful conductor, can deliver a breathtaking rendition of a complex score. But the same group, without a leader and a vision, can massacre a masterpiece.
Does this ring any bells? The job of the conductor and the dynamics of the orchestra share a lot in common with business management. These parallels offer valuable food for thought for leaders and teams in all kinds of organizations. But to understand how, it’s important to appreciate how the world of orchestral music works.
For the orchestra to function, that group – as with all the other groups – must do exactly the same thing at the same time.
Most people are aware that an orchestra is a large group of musicians, from around 20 to 120 people, divided into groups of instruments: first violins, second violins, violas, cellos, woodwind, brass, and percussion.
The biggest department is the first violins. For the orchestra to function properly, that group – as with all the other groups – must do exactly the same thing at the same time. The first violins are managed by the ‘leader of the orchestra – the principal violinist who sub-conducts his peers, based on direction from the conductor. From there, a hierarchy ripples through each department. The goal is to create a seamless, homogenous unit that plays in harmony and in unison to bring the conductor’s vision to life.
As you probably know, the orchestra performs a piece of music that is written down in detail as a musical score for each instrument. The conductor is the only one who sees the whole score. Everyone else sees only what they are supposed to play. The job of the conductor, therefore, is to mold and lead this disparate, sometimes self-interested group of musicians to build something bigger than the sum of their individual parts.
“You might assume that, because the music is so strictly written down, that nothing anyone could do would possibly make a difference.”
The conductor is neither a metronome just keeping time, nor a deterministic god. The conductor’s main task is to interpret and communicate the ‘project’ (the music). This score has to be lifted off the page and converted into a very human, unique musical experience.
This endeavor is not as easy as people think. You might assume that, because the music is so strictly written down, that nothing anyone could do would possibly make a difference. The reality could not be farther from that assumption.
I like to think of the role of a conductor as painting a picture: working with a range of colors on a canvas to create an image that fits the vision. Yes, each of the musicians in an orchestra is an artist too, but it’s impossible for everyone to work independently on the same canvas. It’s the conductor’s job to examine the score and come up with a vision that inspires and unites everyone to create one piece of art.
This is not a master-servant relationship, nor are we servants to each other.
At the heart of this is collaboration: listening, communicating, and working together effectively as a team to produce a wonderful result. This is not a master-servant relationship, nor are we servants to each other. It’s a dynamic, interactive dance that requires listening and knowing when to participate in your own section, when to communicate within your section, and when to wait for – and follow – the communication of the person who is in charge of the big picture.
There are two points to bear in mind here:
Each one of us must define our own strategy for leadership and managing the talent in our teams.
The Austrian conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt said there are as many conducting techniques as there are conductors. This resonates well beyond the confines of the concert hall. Each one of us must define our own strategy for leadership and managing the talent in our teams.
This article is inspired by a keynote session at IMD’s signature Orchestrating Winning Performance program, which brings together executives from diverse sectors and geographies for a week of intense learning and sharing with IMD faculty and business experts.
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