The Executive Committee, comprised of President R. Gerald Turner, University Provost Paul Ludden, Vice President for Executive Affairs Thomas E. Barry, and Vice President for Business and Finance Chris Regis.
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How was Bain & Company selected?
The company was selected through a competitive process comparing several firms offering similar services. SMU leadership felt that Bain was most experienced in higher education, and the Board of Trustees approved the selection at its February 2014 meeting.
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How is the OE2C process being conducted?
The OE2C project will be conducted over the next 12-18 months, divided into 3 phases. The first phase is discovery and diagnostic, which will take place over the next 4 to 5 months. During this time, the Bain team will assess opportunities for cost savings and revenue generation, and present them to SMU for review. The next 3 to 6 months will constitute the design and planning phase of the improvements SMU selects to pursue. The third phase, over the following 6 to 12 months, will be the implementation of those changes.
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What is the intended use of the savings?
We are conducting a thorough review of ways to save operational funds so that resources can be dedicated more fully to the academic mission. Some early identified examples are an increase in funding for graduate student fellowships and for super computing to support research.
Bain & Company has a proven track record of success with similar initiatives at other highly regarded universities. Bain & Company has a reputation as a highly collaborative firm. Its analysis will take into account SMU’s unique context and culture. Bain’s role is to provide recommendations as to process, structure and best practices. It will be SMU’s responsibility to decide on a course of action and methods of implementation.