EVENTS, ORGANIZATIONS, SOCIETIES, AND UNIONS
Country Music Association (cma)
VICE PRESIDENT OR SENIOR DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL AND NEW BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
JOB OVERVIEW
At CMA, Jeff Green's area of responsibility is twofold: “I help artists and repertoire develop around the world, with particular focus on Australia, Canada, Latin America, and specific markets in Europe. The other half of my job is focused on new and Internet business development. I oversee our web site, webcasts, enhanced CDs and DVDs that we produce, web events, the MINT [Music Industry and New Technology] Conference series and other related educational series, on-line marketing initiatives, venture capitol for startup programs, and legislation issues with respect to rights management, copyrights, new technology, emerging technology, and multimedia.”
SPECIAL SKILLS
“Writing skills are very important because of the number of presentations, reports, documents, and analysis you have to formulate and present to people to sell them on an idea. Another is constantly flexing the creative side of your mind as it applies to business. When it comes to building new markets, like international, or relaunching a trade publication in Europe, there are no rules. Being able to rethink how things ought to be and brainstorm without fear of being wrong, is a wonderful point of view to bring to the job.”
A DAY IN THE LIFE
“What's on my plate for today is discussions with representatives in London, Cologne, and Australia about an upcoming project,” says Jeff Green. “This afternoon I have a meeting with an executive of a company that is interested in webcasting the CMA Awards show, and I'm working on a presentation about the impact of Internet radio for the CMA board of directors. I have a meeting with a company that is involved with multimedia content, that takes live concert footage, and makes it available on line. I'm working on a large proposal for CMA, with respect to our overall Internet strategy and I'm meeting with a German journalist. We're having an MP3 demo session and preparing to teach the staff about that technology. I've got 459 e-mails to go through, and about eight or nine phone calls to talk about how we can make the CMA Awards a multimedia event. I have Yahoo and Yahoo Broadcast coming in to talk about chats with artists and web events.” Green is on the road an average of 90 days a year to attend CMA board meetings, and music, Internet, and new technology conferences around the world.
CAREER TIPS
“Don't be afraid to move on to another job when you've gone as far as you can. I've had six or seven jobs in my career. I've stayed employed (knock on wood) every day of my life. I'm very proud of that. Constant growth is important in any career. When you realize that you've done as much as you can, or reached the point of diminishing return in terms of what you are learning from the job, then it's time to reinvent yourself or look for new opportunities.”
“The five words I like most to hear from anyone are: ‘I'll take care of it.’”
POINTERS FOR THE JOB SEARCH
“The number one thing we [CMA] look for in a new employee is culture fit. If the person fits in terms of attitude, work ethic, team philosophy; then the job skills can be learned.”
JEFF GREEN, FORMER SENIOR DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL AND NEW BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION (CMA)
THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT THIS JOB:
“It's very difficult to stay focused because the demands of time. There is a frustration that I can't do everything that I want to do.”
THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS JOB:
“I love the variety and the endless opportunities that come in. The exciting part is that there are so many things to do.”
“The very first gift I ever got was a record player when I was two years old,” says Jeff Green. “I was fascinated with music.” He amassed his early record collection from his parents, a disk at a time, as a reward for his achievements. At an early age, he built a radio station in his bedroom, and an even better one for his high school, where he also served as deejay. At age 16 his family moved from Minnesota to San Francisco, where he finished his high school studies and enrolled at San Francisco State College. He majored in radio and television broadcasting, minored in music, and worked at the college radio station. On the side, he played drums in a jazz band and did somes studio session work. Following graduation in 1978, he worked briefly at legendary rock radio station KSAN in San Francisco, and several other stations around the Bay Area, then moved down the coast to Monterey to work for three years at a radio trade publication. He began as adult contemporary (AC) editor, and later was promoted to national music director. When the magazine closed in 1981, he moved to Carmel, California to join former Monkee Mike Nesmith's multimedia company. While there, he worked on Elephant Parts, the first video to earn a Grammy Award, and worked on film sound tracks. After eight months, the opportunity arose to join the staff of Radio and Records (R&R) in Los Angeles.
After three years as AC editor and three years as managing editor at R&R, Green was looking for a better location to raise his children, as well as a way to gain a stronger background in marketing and management. He made the move to Nashville in 1987 to join Film House, where he produced television ad campaigns for radio stations and did music research. After three years, he felt he had learned all he could and was ready for a change. When the opportunity surfaced to move to Amsterdam as editor in chief of Billboard magazine's sister publication, Music and Media, Green accepted the challenge. He was promoted to associate publisher, but after two years, family needs convinced him it was time to return to the states.
When he left America, Green had not realized that getting a job on his return would be so difficult. After two years away, he felt all but forgotten. He returned to Nashville and Film House late in 1992, but after just eight months, again felt his career development restricted. When he heard about a new department at the Country Music Association (CMA), Green applied, but it was not until spring of the following year that he finally was hired as international director. Charged with launching the newly formed international department, he found himself having to develop a marketing strategy and assemble research and photo archives from scratch. He was promoted to senior director of strategic marketing in 1995. CMA recognized the emerging potential of the Internet and its application to country music and the music business in general, and expanded Green's responsibilities. He now handles issues relating to music on the Internet and develops ways to better serve the music community through online resources. He earned the title of senior director of international and new business development in 1997. A self-described music junky, Green also publishes a reference book called The Green Book of Songs by Subject, which classifies songs by subject matter for use by ad agencies, television and film studios, and others.
Green exited his position at the CMA in 2004 to become executive director of the Americana Music Association, a professional trade organization dedicated to building and promoting Americana music. Jim Lauderdale, Lyle Lovett, Kelly Willis, and Marty Stuart are some of the artists that benefit from Green's efforts at AMA. While at AMA, Green received a CMA International Award for his dedication to marketing development of country music outside North America. In October 2007, he departed his post at AMA to pursue other career goals. www.cmaworld.com and www.americanamusic.org
Additional topics
- EVENTS, ORGANIZATIONS, SOCIETIES, AND UNIONS - Nashville Songwriters Association (nsai)
- EVENTS, ORGANIZATIONS, SOCIETIES, AND UNIONS - National Association Of Recording Arts Sciences (naras)
Job Descriptions and Careers, Career and Job Opportunities, Career Search, and Career Choices and ProfilesCareers in the Music BusinessEVENTS, ORGANIZATIONS, SOCIETIES, AND UNIONS - South By Southwest Annual Music Festival, National Association Of Recording Arts Sciences (naras), Country Music Association (cma)