CEO Outlook: Leading through creativity with Deborah Kelleher, Royal Irish Academy of Music

“I became obsessed by the creativity of the business world” 

In this episode of The EY CEO Outlook podcast series, Deborah Kelleher tells host Richard Curran the story of her childhood love of music, her rise to the highest levels of musicianship and academia, and subsequent transition to business and leadership in the Royal Irish Academy of Music. 

Deborah Kelleher started playing piano at the age of seven and so began a devotion to music that was to dominate her formative years. Coming from a highly musical family, Deborah was surrounded by the people and structures that helped her to excel as a pianist and, for her, the future was clear - “I became so immersed in the music and the life that I couldn’t imagine doing anything else”. 

However, Deborah began to realise that the skills she had built in the world of music were highly transferrable to that of business and leadership – lateral thinking, problem-solving, creativity and discipline. And so, after completing a ‘game-changing’ MBA, Deborah joined the Royal Irish Academy of Music, and has been Director of the organisation since 2010. 

 They discuss: 

• The difficulty of taking on a leadership role at the height of the recession in 2010 and how Deborah navigated early challenges around redundancies and funding. 
• If the film Whiplash is an accurate depiction of modern musical tuition.  
• The importance of prioritising one’s personal best. 
• Deborah’s vision for the RIAM.