Strategic Continuity – Advancing to the 11th Edition

Here we go again—stepping into a new chapter with familiar purpose and renewed energy. As we begin the 11th edition of Managerial and Intercession Skills in the Music Business – The Modern Fundamentals of the Industry at Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, one idea defines this moment more clearly than anything else: strategic continuity.

What started as a focused study unit has gradually evolved into a long-term platform where each edition builds on the last. The thinking becomes sharper, the dialogue deeper, and the field itself more interconnected. This is the essence of strategic continuity—the ability to carry forward what works, refine what needs rethinking, and continuously align knowledge with the realities of a fast-moving industry.

A Stronger Lineup – A Wider Horizon

This year, three remarkable guests join us, each representing a different dimension of the modern music business:

• Chris Lakey (Kobalt Music) – leading voice in sync, licensing, and creative partnerships

• Brian Vickers (The Walt Disney Studios) – specialist in music curation, supervision, and creative placement

• Pavla Slivova (Colours of Ostrava) – festival professional with broad experience in programming, curation, and live-event ecosystems

Their combined perspectives anchor this edition and open up more precise lenses for understanding how ideas move, gain momentum, and transform into opportunities.

Deepening the Core: Skills for the Modern Manager

The framework remains grounded in The Art of Music Business Management – For Artists & Managers (2nd Ed., 2024), yet it continues to evolve through practice-based insights. The curriculum explores the strategic layers that define today’s music management:

• Online Presence & Passive Promotion – building relevance and visibility in both digital and physical realms

• Copyright & Passive Income – understanding long-term value and rights-based leverage

• Management Agreements & Active Promotion – forming the core structures of professional relationships

• Active Promotion & Reactions – adjusting strategies based on audience and industry response

• Music Supervision – unlocking sync as a visibility and revenue driver

Each topic reinforces our ongoing theme: strategic continuity, where actions create effects across multiple dimensions—often long before they become visible.

Learning in Real Time

As always, the first three sessions establish our shared logic—our operational language. Once this foundation is in place, our guests step in organically according to the natural rhythm of the course. Their contributions are not scripted; instead, they merge with the ongoing flow of discussion, examples, and real cases that emerge from current industry practice.

This spring, our main focus within intermediation will be on music supervision and live performance. The reason is simple: these are the two key pathways for independent artists to gain meaningful traction, even if their long-term organizational goal is a record deal with a strong label or a partnership with another industry entity.

With both live work and music supervision, artists can move forward on their own terms and build their industrial relevance in a way that doesn’t depend on external gatekeepers. This perspective provides a solid and accurate foundation for teaching management.

This approach also keeps the course alive, responsive, and firmly integrated with the realities students will soon navigate.

Looking Forward – Strengthening the Global Transition

This edition also advances the development of the upcoming global program, Music Business Management Course for Everyone. Every session, question, insight, and adjustment helps refine the structure of the international online version through continuous collaboration and practical development work behind the scenes. Building and delivering an international course at this level highlights the importance of a strong team. Since 2022, I have worked closely with Matti Mäkelä on the practical arrangements related to courses and websites. Having a support professional who not only manages technical execution but also understands strategic objectives is crucial in the AI era, and this type of support role may well be — if it is not already — becoming a profession in its own right.

In Closing – A Course That Moves With You

This course is built for those who want to understand the mechanics behind the industry—not just the visible parts, but the layers underneath where modern management increasingly operates. It gives students the tools, the perspective, and the confidence to act, analyze, interpret, and ultimately build careers that are durable and forward-facing.

With this 11th edition, the tradition continues—but so does the evolution.

Feel free to connect with us on LinkedIn as well, where we share updates and reflections about the course.