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Feb 14, 2011
CHARITY LEADERS' SALARIES
If you pay peanuts, you get...
MR VICTOR Looi's letter ('Avoid paying big salaries to hire charity leaders'; last Friday) raises the issue of what really constitutes hefty pay.
Having served as a volunteer of local charity Make-A-Wish Singapore since its inception and board chairman since 2007, and being a past chairman of Make-A-Wish Foundation International, I have been involved in many discussions on this issue of CEO remuneration and benefits.
The argument that charity leaders should not be motivated by financial benefits is a lofty ideal, but is it realistic in today's society, and what is fair and reasonable compensation?
Let us look at the principal duties and responsibilities of a charity chief executive:
Ensure that the charity mission is carried out well and meets the needs of its beneficiaries;
Ensure the highest standards of governance within the organisation, so as to comply with the strict code of governance for charities;
Initiate and implement fund-raising and financial stewardship programmes so that there are sufficient funds;
Inspire and organise volunteers;
Maintain relations with the community and media; and
Manage office staff, oversee human resource policies and serve as a link between board members and office staff.
Such a multi-faceted and multi-tasking individual, with great many responsibilities, also needs to have the warm, engaging personality expected of a charity leader.
Such a person is not easily found, even in the highest echelons of for-profit organisations or multinational corporations.
A recent survey of CEO compensation for 2008-2009 by ASAE - The Centre for Association Leadership, an organisation representing more than 11,000 trade associations and voluntary organisations in 50 countries, indicated that for an organisation with an annual budget of US$1 million (S$1.3million) to US$2.5 million, the average annual salary for CEOs is between US$134,000 and US$154,000.
Is this applicable as a benchmark for Singapore? For a First World country, with a cost of living, gross domestic product and property prices among the highest in Asia, these figures are surely something for us to ponder.
Furthermore, if we apply the same argument that ministers, who give up lucrative careers in the private sector for the higher calling of serving the nation, should be fairly and reasonably compensated for their sacrifice, then we need to change our mindset about the salaries of our charity leaders.
As the oft-repeated saying goes: 'If you pay peanuts, you get...'
Dr Keith Goh
http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_634602.html
CHARITY LEADERS' SALARIES
If you pay peanuts, you get...
MR VICTOR Looi's letter ('Avoid paying big salaries to hire charity leaders'; last Friday) raises the issue of what really constitutes hefty pay.
Having served as a volunteer of local charity Make-A-Wish Singapore since its inception and board chairman since 2007, and being a past chairman of Make-A-Wish Foundation International, I have been involved in many discussions on this issue of CEO remuneration and benefits.
The argument that charity leaders should not be motivated by financial benefits is a lofty ideal, but is it realistic in today's society, and what is fair and reasonable compensation?
Let us look at the principal duties and responsibilities of a charity chief executive:
Ensure that the charity mission is carried out well and meets the needs of its beneficiaries;
Ensure the highest standards of governance within the organisation, so as to comply with the strict code of governance for charities;
Initiate and implement fund-raising and financial stewardship programmes so that there are sufficient funds;
Inspire and organise volunteers;
Maintain relations with the community and media; and
Manage office staff, oversee human resource policies and serve as a link between board members and office staff.
Such a multi-faceted and multi-tasking individual, with great many responsibilities, also needs to have the warm, engaging personality expected of a charity leader.
Such a person is not easily found, even in the highest echelons of for-profit organisations or multinational corporations.
A recent survey of CEO compensation for 2008-2009 by ASAE - The Centre for Association Leadership, an organisation representing more than 11,000 trade associations and voluntary organisations in 50 countries, indicated that for an organisation with an annual budget of US$1 million (S$1.3million) to US$2.5 million, the average annual salary for CEOs is between US$134,000 and US$154,000.
Is this applicable as a benchmark for Singapore? For a First World country, with a cost of living, gross domestic product and property prices among the highest in Asia, these figures are surely something for us to ponder.
Furthermore, if we apply the same argument that ministers, who give up lucrative careers in the private sector for the higher calling of serving the nation, should be fairly and reasonably compensated for their sacrifice, then we need to change our mindset about the salaries of our charity leaders.
As the oft-repeated saying goes: 'If you pay peanuts, you get...'
Dr Keith Goh
http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_634602.html
