Answer: needless spending gets cut.
That is happening at the University of Oklahoma, where David Boren’s retirement led to the appointment of a 65-year-old alumnus who had a highly successful career in the oil business, James Gallogly. In today’s Martin Center essay, Brandon Dutcher of the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs writes about Gallogly’s frugal approach to his new job.
On his first day as president, he got rid of six top administrators. Off to a flying start!
As Gallogly studied the budget, he found lots of spending that was not properly accounted for and many items that couldn’t be justified. That bespeaks a previous complacency about spending — the sort of complacency that you get when old leaders decide that their jobs are easier if they don’t rock the boat.
Rather than griping that the state isn’t giving the university more money, Gallogly is intent on cutting costs, while keeping tuition level.
Dutcher writes that Gallogly appears to be the “transformative” leader that Oklahoma needs. Other colleges and universities should consider efficiency-minded business execs if they want to cut the fat out of their operations.