In a world of constantly busted apps with unwieldy UX, the Wikimedia Foundation excels with Wikipedia, a simple trove of information for any question you might have.
But the greater internet is abuzz with another question, per Business Insider: Do its executives deserve their high salaries?
The numbers
This whole debate began when X user @nyaaasen posted a screenshot of Wikimedia’s 2021 IRS filings, showing that:
- Former CEO Katherine Maher earned $789.5k.
- Former COO Janeen Uzzell pulled in $503.8k.
- Other execs, including Wikimedia’s CFO and chief creative officer, earned ~$344k-$396k each.
Some of these earnings included severance for departing execs — e.g., Maher left the company in April 2021, earning $600k+ in severance.
Surprise: Tech execs make bank
But unlike other tech organizations, Wikimedia is a nonprofit. Wikipedia’s pages are composed by volunteers, and it frequently asks users for donations (occasionally with drama).
This led the OP to call Wikipedia a “massive grift,” while others were quick to point out these salaries are actually low among tech companies, especially considering how widely used Wikipedia is — Semrush ranks Wikipedia as the fifth-most-visited website in the world.
So, it’s complicated
Let’s just dial in on Maher’s 2021 salary of $789.5k.
Among CEOs of S&P 500 companies, who, in 2022, averaged annual salaries of $16.7m, it’s low. Consider these 2022 salaries:
- Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, $225.9m
- Pinterest CEO Bill Ready, $122.6m
- DraftKings CEO Jason Robins, $47.4m
Among nonprofit CEOs, whose annual salaries averaged $166.9k in 2021-22, it’s high — but not when compared to the CEOs of larger nonprofits. In 2021:
- American Red Cross CEO Gail McGovern earned $640.4k.
- Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot earned $969.3k.
Ultimately, it may be better to look at how a nonprofit spends its total funds.
Charity Navigator gives Wikimedia 4/4 stars, noting its program expense ratio (program expenses divided by total expenses) of ~75%.
Charity Navigator only awards four stars to nonprofits with a program expense ratio of 70%+, while the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance recommends 65%+. BTW: Who cares about CEOs? The average US salary is currently $59.4k.
