Excessive Professor Salary at Thunderbird

[sanantone]

Thunderbird is a non-profit organization that exists to break even, not make a profit. If they can't even break even, how can they expect to make a profit? A business school professor can expect exorbitant pay, but it doesn't mean he or she is going to get it. The professors at Thunderbird are getting the compensation packages that they want at the detriment of the school. If the problem isn't fixed, then Thunderbird will go out of business, and the professors will have to find work elsewhere like the former Hostess employees. It is up to the administration of the school to determine what the professors are worth and how much the school can afford to pay. They are failing to do that, which looks bad for what's supposed to be a good business school. Their compensation is way above the market rate. Thunderbird charges more than enough to stay in business. It's not even close to free. Business 101: they need to cut costs and they may even need to cut tuition to combat the declining interest in their business programs.

Maybe Laureate Education is just there to help them do the managing that the supposedly top business professionals failed to do, but if they go for-profit, they can kiss all of their prestige goodbye. I wouldn't be surprised if Laureate advises them to replace half of their faculty with adjuncts who are paid the equivalent of $10 an hour. For-profits also have the tendency to spend more on marketing than education. Thunderbird definitely wouldn't be worth the nearly $70k they charge now. If they really want to bring in the money, they can always lower their admissions requirements to match those of other for-profits further bringing down the reputation of the school. The alumni who were educated in business by this school are not happy with this sale. I wonder why.

The decision has kicked up a storm of controversy. At least two board members have resigned in protest and nearly 2,000 of the school's alumni have signed a petition contending that its agreement with Laureate Education Inc. would "cheapen the value of the [Thunderbird] degree."

Inside Thunderbird B-school's chronic decline - Fortune Management

Some observers say the deal is evidence of waning interest in the MBA degree. In fact, many of the institution's troubles have been long lasting and self-inflicted, making it a quintessential case study in organizational decline. The new partnership reflects years of deterioration due to increased competition from rivals, lackluster fundraising, insufficient resources devoted to getting jobs for students, and overly generous compensation for some of its faculty.

As much as they charge, how much money do they need to raise from donations? How can they not afford to provide sufficient job search resources for their students? Oh, maybe it has something to do with mismanagement and the outrageous compensation packages. If they don't support their students during the job hunt and they lower their prestige by going for-profit, are they going to expect donations to increase? I guess they won't need them if they end up publicly traded on the stock market. I'm sure shareholders wouldn't put up with those compensation packages. Shareholders only like to pay high salaries to executives. If the professors aren't bringing in the money, then they aren't worth their pay.

It's not unusual for world class faculty to be paid so generously, but the highest paid business school professors tend to be widely known and publicly visible figures at universities that can afford them, not at a troubled school that has been in a long-term fight for survival.