This book is designed to help leaders of higher education institutions set and negotiate compensation for academic presidents. Its central aim is to strengthen governing board decisions regarding presidential compensation, though it also focuses on other highly compensated institutional officers. The findings are based on interviews with independent and public higher education officials, legal experts, government officials, and recruitment and compensation specialists, as well as a survey of board chairs and presidents from four- and two-year public and private institutions. The study finds that the roles of college and university presidents differ from their counterparts in several respects: their responsibilities far exceed their authority, which is limited by statute, bylaws, or institutional culture; their motivation for attracting funding is to enrich the institution's mission rather than build value for shareholders; and much of their prior work as teachers and scholars does not truly prepare them for the responsibilities of the presidency. Chapters summarize major findings and 'good practice' recommendations. They also discuss the context for presidential compensation; public accountability demands; board structure and decision making; public communication strategies; using outside information and expertise; and employment contracts. Two appendixes offer additional options to consider in compensation contracts and a summary of survey results. (SM)