To say this conclusion strikes a nerve is an understatement. Commenter markneustadt had this to say: "I can't imagine why the Chronicle decided to give media space to such an obviously flawed tool. It only takes a few minutes with the "interactive website" to see that the Bain process has yielded ridiculous results. And I don't understand why the folks at Bain weren't embarrassed to release this table. In any event, business leaders and politicians may love this report and it may be quoted many times. Looks to me like another example of extremely shoddy work by a high profile consulting firm." Others will, I'm sure, be equally critical. There's no denying there may flaws in the approach and the veracity of some of the conclusions offered by Bain.
However, the article as well as Bain's analysis and white paper, all circle around a common subject in Higher Education. Administrators are all well aware that their financial futures are murky to say the least. In many colleges and universities, real estate is the single largest asset class, and thoughtful analysis is essential in the management of those assets.
Those of us who are in the consulting business of advising clients how to do that best are smart to appreciate the context of their activities. In Higher Education, stemming the the extraordinary rise in tuitions recently has become a cause celebre. I try to appreciate the nuance of what's going on with the bigger picture as I look at buildings.
For reference, see http://goo.gl/q5ALr and http://goo.gl/mpcsM.
