8 ms·

Could you point me to non politician, non regulator, non government official receiving a market rate of $300k a speech? I hear you can get Zuckerberg or Gates

Could you point me to non politician, non regulator, non government official receiving a market rate of $300k a speech? I hear you can get Zuckerberg or Gates for that kind of money, but they make more than that in an hour just from their existing wealth.

runako 6y ago
There are websites that post pricing, and the "Please call" numbers will surprise you. But $300k is not outside the ballpark for what people make for speaking. It's fine to be outraged by that, but it is fair to call it "market".
- michael_j_ward 6y ago
  I asked for examples. The only reason outrage seems justified is that the demographics of those that can charge $300k a speech appears overwhelmingly dominated by government officials. I'm open to being shown otherwise with explicit links.
  - runako 6y ago
    There are links in peer comments. But you are correct that the people that can command high dollars for speaking engagements are widely known. Reaching a high post in government fits the bill, as does being a top actor, entertainer, athlete, etc.
mortehu 6y ago
Celebrity commencement speakers, for example https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/04/02/matthew-mcconaugheys-pricey-commencement-speaker-fee-not-out-norm https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/04/02/matthew-mccon...
- michael_j_ward 6y ago
  Are you insinuating that Janet Yellen is not getting paid for her knowledge / advice but instead because of her status?
  - mortehu 6y ago
    I was only answering your question, but why can't it be both? Companies like to have celebrities talk to their employees, and rich companies have to pay well. Citadel probably paid way more for their employees to listen than for her to speak, in terms of wages.
  - twicetwice 6y ago
    To be honest, yes, I think that's exactly what's happening. As with the former presidents as well. These companies are happy to shell out a few hundred grand because that's chump change for them and now their employees get to brag to their friends that they heard a talk from Janet Yellen last Tuesday. Celebrity speakers (and I have no doubt that in the world of finance Yellen is a celebrity) are a nice employee perk. I could be wrong here, what do I know. But that's my read on the situation, and it's why this sort of thing doesn't bother me that much.
    - mattkrause 6y ago
      Goldman Sachs posts their talks on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIyiGQywEp655v2qh-3mxm2AT12EKkr6h https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIyiGQywEp655v2qh-3mx... They're often interesting, but they're fairly anodyne: a famous author talking about their recent book, a CEO talking about their successes or new focus on sustainability/diversity/etc, some broad perspective on current events. You can see how Goldman folks might benefit a little bit from knowing about (say) the likely timeline for vaccine roll-outs, but you could get much of the same info from an hour of NPR. However, meeting the person seems like a nice perk or recruiting/marketing tool.
  - runako 6y ago
    If you have to entertain a room full of millionaires who - all have an interest in finance - are varying ages (so may not enjoy the same music) - are from various countries (so may not be into the same sports) and you have the budget, someone like Yellen is absolutely a substitute good for e.g. having a private Ludacris concert. It's entertainment and continuing education in one. Plus your staff get to brag about the private event to their millionaire peers who did not get that perk.
mattkrause 6y ago
This site's categories top out at >$200k, but that category includes Aaron Sorkin, Alec Baldwin, 2 Chainz, Brett Farve, Criss Angel, Dara Khosrowshani, Gordon Ramsey, and James Dyson (I got bored of scrolling but there were a lot more too). https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/searchfee.php?fee=6 https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/searchfee.php?fee=6
- michael_j_ward 6y ago
  So all of these fall into the category of quasi-advertising / brand building. I'm not inviting Alec Baldwin for his knowledge / advice. Are you saying Yellen is not being paid for her knowledge / advice?
  - CubsFan1060 6y ago
    Charles Koch? I am struggling to think that there are any examples that you won't dismiss, no matter how applicable. Dan Schulman, Dara Khosrowshahi, Dr. Helmut Panke. And now I'm bored of scrolling through.
    - michael_j_ward 6y ago
      Charles Koch falls in the bin of "earns more on their wealth during that time." There is another bin that is "paid for brand-building advertisement." - i.e. celebrities. The proposition is that ex-government officials are just getting paid market rate for her knowledge and insight. If that's the case, it should be trivially easy to find non government officials people getting paid $300k a speech for their knowledge. You've identified listings - which is better than I thought there would be ! - but not sales. Yellen earned $7.2m in two years. If all three of those combined earned half as much in speaking fees over that same time, I'd be definitely convinced that it's ho-hum
    - michael_j_ward 6y ago
      Adding here because I can't reply to my own link If you're a motivated research reading this interested in answering this empirically, I'd suggest trying to find organizations that both pay this level of fees and have to disclose it to the public when they do (I'm hoping this might be the case for public companies under SEC regs, but that's just a hope)

runako 6y ago

There are websites that post pricing, and the "Please call" numbers will surprise you. But $300k is not outside the ballpark for what people make for speaking. It's fine to be outraged by that, but it is fair to call it "market".

michael_j_ward 6y ago
I asked for examples. The only reason outrage seems justified is that the demographics of those that can charge $300k a speech appears overwhelmingly dominated by government officials. I'm open to being shown otherwise with explicit links.
- runako 6y ago
  There are links in peer comments. But you are correct that the people that can command high dollars for speaking engagements are widely known. Reaching a high post in government fits the bill, as does being a top actor, entertainer, athlete, etc.

mortehu 6y ago

Celebrity commencement speakers, for example https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/04/02/matthew-mcconaugheys-pricey-commencement-speaker-fee-not-out-norm https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/04/02/matthew-mccon...

michael_j_ward 6y ago
Are you insinuating that Janet Yellen is not getting paid for her knowledge / advice but instead because of her status?
- mortehu 6y ago
  I was only answering your question, but why can't it be both? Companies like to have celebrities talk to their employees, and rich companies have to pay well. Citadel probably paid way more for their employees to listen than for her to speak, in terms of wages.
- twicetwice 6y ago
  To be honest, yes, I think that's exactly what's happening. As with the former presidents as well. These companies are happy to shell out a few hundred grand because that's chump change for them and now their employees get to brag to their friends that they heard a talk from Janet Yellen last Tuesday. Celebrity speakers (and I have no doubt that in the world of finance Yellen is a celebrity) are a nice employee perk. I could be wrong here, what do I know. But that's my read on the situation, and it's why this sort of thing doesn't bother me that much.
  - mattkrause 6y ago
    Goldman Sachs posts their talks on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIyiGQywEp655v2qh-3mxm2AT12EKkr6h https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIyiGQywEp655v2qh-3mx... They're often interesting, but they're fairly anodyne: a famous author talking about their recent book, a CEO talking about their successes or new focus on sustainability/diversity/etc, some broad perspective on current events. You can see how Goldman folks might benefit a little bit from knowing about (say) the likely timeline for vaccine roll-outs, but you could get much of the same info from an hour of NPR. However, meeting the person seems like a nice perk or recruiting/marketing tool.
- runako 6y ago
  If you have to entertain a room full of millionaires who - all have an interest in finance - are varying ages (so may not enjoy the same music) - are from various countries (so may not be into the same sports) and you have the budget, someone like Yellen is absolutely a substitute good for e.g. having a private Ludacris concert. It's entertainment and continuing education in one. Plus your staff get to brag about the private event to their millionaire peers who did not get that perk.

mattkrause 6y ago

This site's categories top out at >$200k, but that category includes Aaron Sorkin, Alec Baldwin, 2 Chainz, Brett Farve, Criss Angel, Dara Khosrowshani, Gordon Ramsey, and James Dyson (I got bored of scrolling but there were a lot more too). https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/searchfee.php?fee=6 https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/searchfee.php?fee=6

michael_j_ward 6y ago
So all of these fall into the category of quasi-advertising / brand building. I'm not inviting Alec Baldwin for his knowledge / advice. Are you saying Yellen is not being paid for her knowledge / advice?
- CubsFan1060 6y ago
  Charles Koch? I am struggling to think that there are any examples that you won't dismiss, no matter how applicable. Dan Schulman, Dara Khosrowshahi, Dr. Helmut Panke. And now I'm bored of scrolling through.
  - michael_j_ward 6y ago
    Charles Koch falls in the bin of "earns more on their wealth during that time." There is another bin that is "paid for brand-building advertisement." - i.e. celebrities. The proposition is that ex-government officials are just getting paid market rate for her knowledge and insight. If that's the case, it should be trivially easy to find non government officials people getting paid $300k a speech for their knowledge. You've identified listings - which is better than I thought there would be ! - but not sales. Yellen earned $7.2m in two years. If all three of those combined earned half as much in speaking fees over that same time, I'd be definitely convinced that it's ho-hum
  - michael_j_ward 6y ago
    Adding here because I can't reply to my own link If you're a motivated research reading this interested in answering this empirically, I'd suggest trying to find organizations that both pay this level of fees and have to disclose it to the public when they do (I'm hoping this might be the case for public companies under SEC regs, but that's just a hope)