“Today, artistic directors are more like symphony conductors who make talented soloists – I don’t call them ‘assistants’ – work in harmony. How can just one person handle everything? They can’t. Either you are a head designer or you’re a conductor. Either one can be a star, and it’s not a question of talent: It’s about how you use your talent.”
-JEAN-JACQUES PICART

Context:  French fashion consultant Jean-Jacques Picart-the man who paved the way to success for fashion stars including Thierry Mugler, Jil Sander, Helmut Lang, Riccardo Tisci, and Hedi Slimane today announced he is vacating his front row perch.

http://www.vogue.com/13371195/jean-jacques-picart-fashion-advice/

//Looking to fashion, for inspiration, because startups are guilty of ignoring art and ‘soft skills’, while agencies often brutal in the daily death march to profit and deadlines.

That’s not completely fair, of course. But there’s value in aspiring to conducting symphonies (coordinating and harnessing groups of talented individuals): grand, sweeping, uplifting flow.