Top Charity Leaders Merit Their High Salaries

To the Editor:

A few months ago, our company announced a two-year, $5-million partnership with Junior Achievement.

The process that led us to Junior Achievement was exhaustive. One key component was the organization’s professionalism and businesslike approach to its mission and to our company. This is due to many factors, but certainly one is its ability to attract the right people and, more importantly, to retain them by offering a competitive salary.

Utilizing that as my guideline, I can tell you that Jim Hayes, president and C.E.O. of Junior Achievement, is underpaid. His ability to excite business people about Junior Achievement is a gift. His extensive and successful professional background and contact list would be a significant asset to any organization, profit or non-profit. Finally, his business and management skills are worth every penny that the organization invests in his salary.

True, the salary of every C.E.O., president, executive director, or coach in your survey (“Salaries Rise Modestly at Charities,” September 24) is not justified. However, to those who would say that even the good ones are overpaid, pause for a moment. Not every leader is as talented as Jim Hayes, but the majority are an asset to their non-profit, and keeping them around by recognizing their value is significantly better than the alternative. Take it from someone who writes the checks.

Daniel J. Evans, Jr.
Vice-President for Public Affairs
The Ackerley Group
Seattle