Jessica Phillips

Principal, Arts + Culture

A member of the Grammy Award-winning Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since 2001, Jessica is equally at home on the concert stage, in the classroom, and the boardroom. As the Principal of Arts & Culture, Jessica partners with performing arts organizations on organizational culture, complex change, leadership development, and the design of learning experiences that prepare artists and organizations to thrive in a rapidly changing industry.

A frequent guest speaker on industry podcasts and at conferences, her work is grounded in the belief that lasting change begins by cultivating cultures of learning where people, organizations, and communities can continue to grow.

Jessica serves on the faculty of The Juilliard School, where she teaches graduate courses in career development and is a member of the clarinet faculty of its Music Advancement Program. She is also Clarinet Studio Head Faculty at OAcademy Music Conservatory, a coach for New World Symphony's BLUE Project, and guest faculty for OPERA America's Leadership Intensive and the League of American Orchestras' Essentials of Orchestra Management.

Her national advocacy includes her board service through the League of American Orchestras and CounterpART, and as a co-founder of the Coalition of Musicians for Ethical Change (CMEC). Prior to this, she served on the Executive Board of AFM Local 802, as an ICSOM Delegate and on its Governing Board, and chaired the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Committee through two contract negotiations.

Jessica earned her MBA in Arts Innovation & Entrepreneurship from the Global Leaders Institute, where she also serves on its Admissions Advisory Board. She holds executive certificates from Harvard, NYU, and Cornell, and a BA cum laude in Political Science and Music from Barnard College, Columbia University.