The big four public universities in Western Australia have posted some big corporate numbers but new vice-chancellors at UWA and Murdoch spruik a more traditional approach.
The big four public universities in Western Australia have posted some big corporate numbers but new vice-chancellors at UWA and Murdoch spruik a more traditional approach.
It is easy to think of public universities as just another business.
A look at their 2011 annual accounts provide a businesslike approach to reviewing these organisations.
The fact that the sector in Western Australia has a collective surplus of $190 million and has delivered its first $1 million remuneration package, with former University of Western Australia vice-chancellor Alan Robson apparently pushing past the mark, shows the increasing competitiveness with the private sector at CEO level.
But two of the state’s four public universities have new vice-chancellors, who appear to stand as academics first, speaking the language that reinforces why universities are different from their corporate cousins.
Both UWA vice-chancellor Paul Johnson and Murdoch University vice-chancellor Richard Higgott have more in common than English academic heritage and prior experience in university management both in the UK and Australia.
Professor Johnson ran La Trobe University in Victoria after being a deputy director of the London School of Economics and Professor Higgott was pro vice-chancellor for research at the University of Warwick.
While conscious of maintaining a robust financial record, they both speak intensely about the need for universities to focus on research and play a special role in the community.
Expect to see these two universities increasing their ties with stakeholder groups from industry to government, with UWA seeking to bolster its existing strong links and cement its leadership as the local sandstone university and Murdoch wanting to rebrand itself as more than just a destination for school leavers.
Both have challenges (see Research offers chance of post-mining future and Murdoch leader plans 'brains trust' on regional issues) but the two academics clearly believe in the opportunities that lie in running established institutions based in a healthy developed economy.
Notably, neither sees significant growth in student numbers as part of their mission.
Apart from a strong economy to work in, both leaders inherit universities with relatively solid balance sheets, good operating surpluses, recent student growth and sizeable offshore customer bases.
According to annual reports, the WA universities appear to have largely shrugged off the difficulties experienced across the tertiary sector as a result of the high Australian dollar and changes to visa rules, which hit the foreign students market.
Curtin University leads the overseas student market among the WA universities with revenue of $187 million in 2011, up from $178 million.
UWA was next with $95 million, up from $83 million. Then there was Edith Cowan University with $58 million, down slightly from $60 million, and Murdoch, with nearly $43 million, up from almost $40 million.
Beyond the overseas students sector, the local university sector’s overall strength has also delivered its first $1 million salary, albeit due to leave entitlements.
Professor Robson, who remains with the university and is widely regarded as a significant change agent at the state’s oldest tertiary institution, appears to have been remunerated above $1 million for the past two years.
University reports do not state who receives the salaries listed, nor do they provide the transparency of listed company accounts, and simply give the information about the number of executives within certain salary bands.
Similarly, Murdoch’s vice chancellor salary for 2011 was divided into three due to the exit of Professor John Yovich after three months.
He was paid about $705,000 the previous year. In 2011, the highest remuneration was about $395,000, followed by about $365,000, both of which included leave or one-off entitlements.
It is likely one of those salaries represented acting vice-chancellor Gary Martin, who left at the end of July to take over the Australian Institute of Management based in Floreat.
Curtin University vice-chancellor Jeanette Hacket appears to have been paid about $735,000, up from $695,000.
The top remuneration package at ECU, led by Professor Kerry Cox, was about $665,000, up from $625,000.
