He's a black guy and has done incredibly well considering the music business tends to be both sexist and racist. It's incredibly hard for anyone to make their mark as at times it seems to be run by public schoolboys. However, Lincoln has because ultimately you're judged by who you sign and whether you sell records. He has recently been instrumental in establishing the indies' representative body, AIM. The greatest ever record company boss is Berry Gordy Junior, who started his career as songwriter for Jackie Wilson but went on to establish the finest independent record company of them all, Tamla Motown, at one time the world's largest black-owned corporation, the like of which won't be seen again.Alan McGeeChairman,Creation RecordsWere I to have to chose the people I admire most in the music industry, I would chose the ones who possessed a relentless vision of music and the sub-culture from which it grows and is nurtured.

But I'd rather not spare any thoughts for the music industry really It depresses me. However, there is one character who impresses me immensely: Lincoln Elias from Sony's S2. Universal is the world's largest music company since its takeover of PolyGram last year. To satisfactorily combine the two companies' cultures and rosters of artists is probably an impossible task, but Jorgen is the best person to have a crack at it, being not only a superb polyglot business administrator with international perspective, but also someone who understands music and has respect for his subordinates.The most accomplished leader in the UK independent sphere has to be Martin Mills of Beggars Banquet, who has experience of the entire music business and would grace any major record company, but has always chosen to remain independent. Although he recently tried to pinch one of V2's key people, I still believe the best music executive in the major sphere is my old boss, Jorgen Larsen, who has the biggest job in the music business, chairman of Universal Music International. Fortunately this leaves a niche for independent companies like V2 which can make up in creativity what they lack in financial by more creative people.

For me, he heralds a whole new era of executives.Jeremy PearceChief ExecutiveV2 Music GroupThe apparently freewheeling music business is actually dominated by the five major record companies - big businesses answerable to shareholders and therefore employing corporate administrators as chief executives. His lack of ego is refreshing in our particular arena and also, I think, endears him both to his colleagues and competitors. He is a very clear thinker who rarely shoots from the hip and is a considered operator which is important in this fast-moving business. You'd expect anyone successful in the music business to have an astute musical brain which, indeed, Nick has but what marks him out particularly, as I said, is his laid back style. That's the most difficult commodity to both find and retain.Sean O'BrienChairman,TelstarThe man in the industry who particularly stands out for me is Nick Phillips of Warner Music. In music industry terms, at 35 years old he's very young to be such a high-profile executive, but I think that he's heading up a new school of record executives. His open style of management is vastly different from that of the old school which tended to be far more autocratic.