Music innovators Muse Group, makers of the world’s most popular online libraries, tools and community spaces for audio creators — including MuseScore, Ultimate Guitar and Audacity — announces the appointment of three seasoned executives to its leadership team.
Debbie Diekelman steps in as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Sven Ahrens has been named Chief Growth Officer (CGO), and Mohammed "Mo" Chahdi joins as Chief Operating Officer (COO). The new executives will drive forward Muse Group’s vision to provide unparalleled access to the best content and resources to music makers worldwide.
These strategic executive moves underscore the company's commitment to growth, operational excellence and financial strength as the technology and digital content leader continues to evolve following its acquisition of Hal Leonard last year. MuseClass, a teaching platform combining AI-practice tools and educational content, was the first flagship release combining the strengths of Hal Leonard and Muse Group in June 2024.
"Sven, Mo and Debbie bring deep and diverse experience to our senior leadership team. Their visionary approach, proven success in scaling businesses and passion for our mission will be invaluable as we continue to evolve to best serve our global community of musicians, educators and learners,” said Eugeny Naidenov, CEO of Muse Group.
Muse Group has more than 400 million users and is the world leader in sheet music publishing.
Sven Ahrens, Chief Growth Officer
Sven Ahrens brings a wealth of experience in global business development and strategic growth initiatives to his role as Chief Growth Officer at Muse Group. Ahrens most recently led the global user and subscription growth team at Spotify, driving the majority of the company’s annual revenue growth through highly successful acquisition programs woven into the well-known “Year in Review” campaign. During his eight years at Spotify, Ahrens also built a global team of strategy and operations managers focused on driving regional implementation of Spotify’s strategy.
As the Chief Growth Officer at Muse Group, Ahrens' role will center on expanding the user and subscriber base for the company’s apps and web-based consumer products. He will oversee a multidisciplinary team of product managers, software developers, growth marketers and data scientists, driving strategic initiatives to boost acquisition, activation, conversion, engagement, and retention. His responsibilities include identifying new market opportunities, optimizing user acquisition channels and enhancing product offerings through data-driven insights.
"What excites me about joining Muse Group is the chance to lead the digital revolution in the world of playing instruments and reading sheet music, much like what we've seen with music listening and streaming over the past decade,” said Ahrens. “Muse Group stands out with its top-notch apps and incredible content from Hal Leonard. The company has already shown incredible growth, and I'm confident we can take it even further by expanding our offering, going international, and connecting the dots to an awesome ecosystem for both hobbyist and serious musicians.”
Debbie Diekelman, Chief Financial Officer
Debbie Diekelman, a seasoned financial strategist who joined Hal Leonard in 2018 and most recently served as the company’s COO and CFO, is now promoted to CFO of Muse Group. Diekelman has been a CFO for the past 24 years with a wealth of experience in operational and financial strategy and optimization, acquisition diligence and integration. Diekelman will be responsible for guiding the company’s financial strategy and functions including accounting, treasury, budgeting, reporting, regulatory and compliance, and forecasting.
"The past six years with Hal Leonard have been extremely rewarding, and it’s exciting to now transition to serving as CFO of Muse Group as the companies continue to integrate in a rapidly changing market," said Diekelman. “With the combination of Hal Leonard, a legend in sheet music and educational publishing, and Muse Group, the company behind the world’s most popular online resources for musicians with hundreds of thousands of users, we have an incredible opportunity to improve the lives of musicians everywhere with truly pioneering solutions.”
Mohammed "Mo" Chahdi, Chief Operating Officer
Mo Chahdi joins Muse Group as COO with a distinguished career in operational excellence and leadership. In his previous role as Global Vice President of Business Transformation and Employee Experience at Appen, an ASX-listed AI solutions provider, Chahdi helped to define and implement the company’s turnaround vision and key value creation strategies, while also leading the implementation of people and culture initiatives.
During his nearly 20-year career at Dell Technologies, Chahdi held multiple leadership positions with a focus on talent and people operations. He helped to increase technology adoption and automation to deliver an enhanced experience at scale for the company's 50,000 employees.
As COO at Muse Group, Chahdi will oversee all aspects of Muse Group's operations, helping to shepherd the continued integration between Hal Leonard and Muse Group and achieve the company’s strategic goals.
"I look forward to making a significant impact at Muse Group, leveraging my operational expertise and leadership experience to ensure our operations are robust and scalable as we continue to grow our offerings for music makers around the world," said Chahdi.
For more information on Muse Group, visit www.mu.se/.
