Because labor costs comprise 60% to 70% of operating budgets, few institutions can significantly impact costs without addressing labor. However, too many institutions have resorted to indiscriminate and often across-the-board labor cuts, which can hurt staff morale, disrupt work processes, and draw negative press.
Moreover, labor cuts often backfire, as the scramble to repair self-inflicted damage causes costs to quickly rebound to previous levels. Rather than enacting painful and ineffective cuts, institutions should pursue immediate savings.
This compendium offers 100 rebasing tactics across nine categories. Not every tactic is applicable for each institution because of unique logistical, cultural, or legal hurdles. So, to help executives evaluate and choose the tactics best suited for their institutions, each tactic is evaluated on three factors:
- Savings potential
- Employee tolerance
- Whether the tactic is outside the scope of most collective bargaining agreements (CBAs)
More Resources
Understanding the Revenues and Costs of Higher Education
The High Costs of Using Campus Space Inefficiently
