16 orchestras in 16 cities in just six months: world-renowned conductor, Kerem Hasan, shares his secrets to culture leadership across borders.
British-Cypriot conductor, Kerem Hasan, is set to face an incredible feat this year, in directing sixteen different orchestras, across sixteen of the world’s big cities, in just six months.
No stranger to success, the 32-year-old musician, who took home the 2017 Nestlé and Saltzburg Festival Young Conductors prize, will use authenticity and his ear for culture to rise to the challenge.
“It’s very much about leadership in general”…
Kerem tells host, Charlie Coode, who interviews some of the world’s most prominent minds on his Culture de-Cooded podcast channel.
Whilst Kerem admits that moving from orchestra to orchestra can prove awkward – much like a first date when things go wrong – he claims the key to culture leadership lies in how he presents himself to very experienced musicians.
It’s an attitude of respect for our teams that all leaders can learn from, with Kerem emphasising that it’s his job as conductor – as leader – to adapt to the professionals he’s guiding – and not the other way round.
“There’s normally one day before the concert full of rehearsals {…} two days, if you’re lucky” Kerem tells Charlie, highlighting another critical challenge: establishing a rapport with those he leads as an outsider who is not always around.
“It’s very much about collaboration” explains Kerem, reiterating how good conductors must be able to read the room. As soon as he walks in, within the first ten minutes, he must gain a sense of how that orchestra works – dealing with different rehearsal times, as well.
“You can have the best ideas in the world, whatever that means, but if you don’t know how to present something to an orchestra […] it’s going to be a difficult week, to put it mildly,” he says, going on to explain that…
“culture leaders have to be able to easily adapt to different ways of working”.
Pointing out the parallels between Kerem’s work and that of any culture leader in any industry, host Charlie discusses the role that collaboration plays, commending Kerem for his ability to step back and listen to his team.
Allowing for autonomy and approaching teams as his authentic self are both tools that have allowed Kerem to build bonds quickly – with the results immediately coming across to the crowd.
Now in its tenth episode, the Culture de-Cooded podcast draws out many more key lessons, designed to inspire CEOs around the world. To hear Kerem’s full story, head to episode ten ‘Kerem Hasan – Pioneering Global Conductor’, available on all major podcast channels, now.
Culture15 is your complete toolkit for tracking culture change. CEOs and Exec Teams at world-leading organisations use Culture15 analytics to ensure success by aligning their culture with their strategy.
If you’d like to learn how to define the culture you need, diagnose the culture you have and close the gap, talk to our team
