讀MBA的人多了 從薪酬來看CEO級人才卻依然供不應求

During most MBA programs, business school students read numerous case studies, evaluating the strategies of many different kinds of companies, analyzing the cost of bringing new product lines to market and novel methods to cut expenses. You would think that, after all that training, MBA grads would be the perfect candidates to halt the runaway growth of CEO pay. But, in an ironic twist, could the rising number of MBAs be pushing the perceived value of a CEO ever higher?

持有MBA學位的人越來越多，是商界極少數能與高管薪酬驚人增長相媲美的趨勢之一。最新數據顯示，2011 – 2012屆畢業生中，MBA學生佔碩士畢業生總人數的25%，共有191,571名學生獲得該學位。教育與計算機科學/工程專業的碩士畢業生人數分列第二和第三位，分別爲178,062和66,014人。

The MBA degree’s growth in popularity is one of the few trends in the business world that matches the extraordinary growth in executive pay. According to the most recent data, from the 2011-2012 graduating class, MBA students accounted for 25% of the total master’s handed out, with 191,571 students receiving the degree. Education and computer science/engineering students came in second and third, with 178,062 and 66,014 degree recipients, respectively.

近幾年攻讀MBA學位的人數持續增加。事實上，從1970年以來，各大院校的MBA畢業生數量增加了623%；同期教育碩士學位的增長幅度爲103%。

The MBA has grown in popularity for years. In fact, the number of MBAs issued has jumped 623% since 1970; education master’s degrees increased 103% during that time.

經濟政策研究院（Economic Policy Institute）的數據顯示，CEO薪酬開始指數級增長的時間相對較晚——始於上世紀90年代。

As the MBA-toting population has increased in general, a growing share of corporate board members and CEOs have the degree on their resumes. It makes sense. Companies want to have the best talent and, presumably, the best will have focused on how to sustain or grow a business and be willing to make tough choices to do so, which is what students learn during an MBA program.

About 40% of S&P 500 CEOs have an MBA, in any given year. It is, by far, the degree with the most representation among such executives. Between 25% and 30% of S&P 500 CEOs have another type of advanced degree, like a PhD or law degree.

Executive search firm Spencer Stuart found that 61% of new directors were current or retired chairs, presidents, or CEOs. Another 13% were active or retired executives and 20% were bankers, investors or CFOs. It’s safe to assume that a sizable portion of these executives have MBAs or other advanced degrees.

Such similarities among large company executives and board members raises concerns about diversity. If many of these people have a very similar educational background, what’s the likelihood that there will be a wide range of opinions when it comes time to talk executive pay and corporate strategy?

There’s little research on the impact of the number of MBAs in the boardroom, but a growing amount of evidence suggests that a lack of diversity can hurt a company. In a study currently undergoing peer review, researchers found a significant link between board diversity and willingness to take on risk.

“We found that the more diverse the board, the less likely [a company is willing] to take risk,” said Ya Wen Yang, assistant professor of accounting at the Wake Forest University school of business and a co-author of the study in question. “If you want to curb excessive risk taking, then add diversity to the board.”

Yang adds that there’s early evidence that diverse boards are more willing to provide investors with dividends or give money back to shareholders.

In this case, diversity was taken to mean differences in race, age, professional experience, and tenure. The researchers did not specifically examine board members’ educational background.

With all of these MBA students entering the workforce, why hasn’t the cost of the talent dropped?

Executives and board members will tell you that they view their CEO as extraordinarily skilled and nearly impossible to replicate. A degree doesn’t signify that level of talent. And they may be right, to a point. But at some level, as more talent becomes available, the amount of extraordinary talent on offer should increase. There may be an outlier or two of otherworldly talent—you could use the example of Steve Jobs (no MBA) in the CEO world—but for the most part, there will be more great talent to select from, which should cause a decrease in the salaries those people command.

CEO pay really started to rise in the 1990s. Was there a sudden drop in talent at that time, leading to a price increase for a quality CEOs? Did MBA programs stop producing quality graduates? I doubt that many alumni of America’s prestigious business schools would agree.

隨着MBA的人數增加，越來越多的公司董事會成員和CEO們都擁有這個學位。這是有道理的。公司希望獲得最優秀的人才，認爲他們會專注於如何維持或發展一家公司，並且爲了實現這個目標願意做出艱難的選擇，而這些正是MBA們學過的內容。

在任何一年，標準普爾500公司擁有MBA學位的CEO比例都在40%左右。MBA是CEO當中擁有比例最高的學位。25%至30%的標準普爾500公司CEO擁有其他高級學位，如博士學位或法律學位。

獵頭公司史賓沙（Spencer Stuart）發現，61%的新任董事是現任或已退休的董事長、總裁或CEO。另外13%爲現任或已退休的高管，20%爲銀行家、投資者或首席財務官(CFO)。所以，我們可以肯定地說，這些高管中有相當大一部分擁有MBA學位或其他高級學位。

大公司高管與董事會成員之間的相似性，引發了人們對於多元化的擔憂。既然這麼多人都有非常類似的教育背景，那麼在協商高管薪酬和公司戰略的時候，出現不同意見的可能性又能有多大呢？

很少有人研究董事會中MBA學位持有者比例的影響，但越來越多的證據顯示，缺乏多樣性會給公司造成傷害。一項正在接受同行評議的一項研究發現，董事會多元化與是否願意接受風險之間存在明顯的聯繫。

該項研究的聯合負責人、維克森林大學（Wake Forest University）商學院會計學副教授楊亞文（音譯）表示：“我們發現，董事會越多元化，公司願意冒險的可能性就越低。若想控制過度風險行爲，就應該提高董事會的多元化程度。”楊補充道，此前的證據證明，多元化的董事會更願意爲投資者提供股息，或者向投資者返還更多現金回報。

研究中所說的多元化是指不同的種族、年齡、職業經歷和任期。研究人員並未對董事會成員的教育背景進行專門研究。既然有這麼多MBA學生進入職場，爲什麼聘用一位CEO的成本卻不降反升？

高管們和董事會成員會告訴你，他們認爲該CEO能力超羣，是不可替代的。但隨着可用人才越來越多，其中出類拔萃者也應該越來越多。可供選擇的頂級人才將不斷增加，理應導致此類人羣的薪酬需求走低。

CEO薪酬其實是從上世紀90年代纔開始上漲的。是否因爲當時出色人才數量突然減少，才導致優秀CEO薪酬上漲？或者是因爲MBA課程再也培養不出優秀的畢業生？我想那些久負盛名的美國商學院的畢業生們肯定不會同意這樣的說法。