Born in Munich, Germany, Florian Riem studied at the Munich Conservatory and at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, USA. Working in arts management since 1999, he has held leading positions at Gidon Kremer's Kremerata Baltica Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa (Japan) and the Southwest German Philharmonic Orchestra of Constance, Germany.

From 2013 to 2020, he served as Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director of the Tongyeong International Music Foundation in Tongyeong, South Korea, where he was responsible for Tongyeong Concert Hall, the Tongyeong International Music Festival, the international ISANGYUN Competition, and many other projects.

Florian Riem has been a board member of AAPPAC (Association of Asia-Pacific Performing Arts Centres), ISCM (International Society of Contemporary Music), and Ensemble TIMF (Contemporary Music Ensemble).

Since 2020, he is Secretary General of the World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC) in Geneva, Switzerland.