Oversees the distribution and the collection of performance royalties throughout the United States and in over 50 countries.
Member of Adelphi University’s Profiles in Success program.
Senior Vice President and CFO of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers)
Favorite class: “Corporate Financial Management. Reviewing and responding to a series of business cases and working with other students was a great learning experience.”Best Adelphi memory: “Using my twin daughters (then less than one year old) as the face of a model marketing campaign for baby food.”
Value of your degree: “Adelphi and the M.B.A. gave me the confidence and the enhanced skill set to go to the next level.”
Advice for students: “Good leaders are made, not born. They develop through a never-ending process of education, training, and experience. Always observe other leaders, because there is no single way to accomplish anything.”
Accounting for Music in the 21st Century
Ask Robert Candela M.B.A. ’86 how his job has changed him and he admits, “before this job, I took music for granted in my everyday life. Now I see copyright and intellectual property everywhere.”
As the senior vice president and chief financial officer of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), Mr. Candela routinely works for current celebrities and groups including Coldplay, Carrie Underwood, Dave Matthews, and Beyonce. His association also represents icons of America’s musical past such as Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, and Henry Mancini.
ASCAP has more than 275,000 members and represents composers, lyricists, and music publishers of all genres. The association regulates licensing and distribution, and it coordinates the collection of over $800 million and payment of $700 million in annual performance royalties.
Mr. Candela oversees the distribution and the collection of performance royalties throughout the United States and in over 50 countries. Because American music is exported at a 4:1 ratio over music imports, ASCAP also enjoys a strong lobby in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Candela’s greatest challenge is keeping up with the daily changes in the management of digital music rights. “Many record companies are really using outdated business models,” he says. “Our goal is to maintain a strong market share by attracting key members. This is a critical measure during the negotiation process with the broadcast industry, internet service providers and other music users.”
Mr. Candela joined ASCAP in 1990, excited, as he says, “to have the opportunity to grow and have a real influence.” Prior to ASCAP, he was assistant controller at Long Island-based Arrow Electronics for seven years.
It was during that time that he discovered Adelphi’s M.B.A. program, and the convenience of classes taught at the Huntington site. Mr. Candela remembers “many team-based assignments and many laughs. The M.B.A. really bridged the gap between accounting and the complete business cycle for me.”
In his spare time, Mr. Candela enjoys spending time with his wife, Carolyn, and their three daughters. An avid sports fan, he still enjoys baseball, football, hockey, and golf (“when I can get away”), and he coached all of his daughters’ softball teams.
His only regret in a career that has become so tied to the music industry: “Not having any musical background myself.”
For further information, please contact:
Todd Wilson
Strategic Communications Director
p – 516.237.8634
e – twilson@adelphi.edu