The Founder's Trap
The Founder's Trap
Market
Archetype
Mechanical
Natural
Tier
Developing
Trajectory Thumbprint
The Founder's Trap
What does this mean?
10-year flat revenue, below-market executive comp, and a small board. The organization survives purely on the sweat equity of a founder, making it utterly un-transferable.
The Path Forward
The Dispersal
Forces succession planning and structural maturity. It requires raising capacity-building funds to decouple the organization's survival from the founder's personal sacrifice.
The Dispersal
Institutional Health Scores
5-yr trend: The Founder's Trap ↑
Overall
48
Score
Governance
33
Score
Financial
35
Score
Program
90
Score
Title
-
Institutions
-
Avg Revenue
-
Risk Profile
Representative Institutions
Institutional Epochs
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Financial Era
Governance Era
Trajectory Era
Founders Trap
Historical Performance
| Year | Revenue | Top Comp | Comp % Rev | Score | Phase Label | Outlook | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Hidden | Hidden | 0.9% | 48 | Critical Intervention Needed | Recovery | |
| 2023 | Hidden | — | — | 52 | Governance-Stressed | Recovery | |
| 2022 | Hidden | — | — | 52 | Governance-Stressed | Recovery | |
| 2021 | Hidden | Hidden | 5.3% | 50 | Governance-Stressed | Gov Risk | |
| 2020 | Hidden | Hidden | 5.1% | 58 | Governance-Stressed | Recovery | |
| 2019 | Hidden | Hidden | 6.0% | 50 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2018 | Hidden | Hidden | 5.8% | 47 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2017 | Hidden | — | — | 49 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2016 | Hidden | — | — | 49 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2015 | Hidden | — | — | 48 | Critical Intervention Needed | Recovery | |
| 2014 | Hidden | — | — | 45 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2013 | Hidden | — | — | 62 | Governance-Stressed | Recovery | |
| 2012 | Hidden | — | — | 37 | Critical Intervention Needed | Recovery | |
| 2011 | Hidden | — | — | 49 | Fragile | Recovery | |
| 2010 | Hidden | — | — | 43 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk |
Officer compensation history
Tax year 2025
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EMMA SCHERER | EXECUTIVE DI | 3.5% of Rev | ||
| LAURA DWYER | Board Member | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| KIM FREDENBURGH | Board Member | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| REBECCA RAY | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| DR STEFANIE PRZYBYLSKA | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| GLORIA VELASCO | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| EMILY ERB | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| LAURA CHANG | Board Member | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| PERRY C ANDREWS III | Board President | — | ||
| DR STEVEN GOLDSTEIN | Vice President | — | ||
| MARY MACUKAS | Vice President | — | ||
| JUSTIN MEDRANO | Secretary | — | ||
| DAVID VAN WINKLE | Treasurer | — | ||
| KATE CARSWELL | Board Member | — | ||
| ANN DEDERER | Board Member | — | ||
| JOSEPH FASEL | Board Member | — | ||
| JOSE PEPE FIGUEROA | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM LANDSCHULZ | Board Member | — | ||
| JEANNETTE BOO MILLER | Board Member | — | ||
| IFAN PAYNE | Board Member | — | ||
| TERESA PIERCE | Board Member | — | ||
| LAURIE ROSSI | Board Member | — | ||
| RICK VAUGHAN | Board Member | — | ||
| EVERETTT ZLATOFF-MIRSKY | Board Member | — |
Tax year 2023
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DANIEL CRUPI | FORMER EXECU | 2.3% of Rev | ||
| EMMA SCHERER | EXECUTIVE DI | 1.4% of Rev | ||
| KIM FREDENBURGH | Board Member | 0.4% of Rev | ||
| DR STEFANIE PRZYBYLSKA | Board Member | 0.4% of Rev | ||
| REBECCA RAY | Board Member | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| ANNE EISFELLER | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| EMILY ERB | Board Member | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| PERRY C ANDREWS III | Board President | — | ||
| DR PENELOPE PENLAND EDD | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| STEVEN GOLDSTEIN MD | Treasurer | — | ||
| JUSTIN MEDRANO | Secretary | — | ||
| DR RANDALL BALMER | Board Member | — | ||
| BRUCE BRADFORD | Board Member | — | ||
| JOSE FIGUEROA | Board Member | — | ||
| GARY LUTZ | Board Member | — | ||
| MARY MACUKAS | Board Member | — | ||
| JEANNETTE BOO MILLER | Board Member | — | ||
| TERESA M PIERCE | Board Member | — | ||
| JEFFREY ROGERS | Board Member | — | ||
| LAURIE ROSSI | Board Member | — | ||
| DAVID VAN WINKLE | Board Member | — | ||
| RICK VAUGHAN | Board Member | — | ||
| EVERETT ZLATOFF-MIRSKY | Board Member | — |
Tax year 2022
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DANIEL CRUPI | PAST EXECUTI | 3.8% of Rev | ||
| ELAINE HELTMAN | Board Member | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| DR STEFANIE PRZYBYLSKA | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| ANNE EISFELLER | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| REBECCA RAY | Board Member | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| ALAN MAR | Board Member | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MICHAEL DAWSON | Board President | — | ||
| DR PENELOPE PENLAND EDD | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| STEVEN GOLDSTEIN MD | Secretary | — | ||
| GARY LUTZ | Treasurer | — | ||
| PERRY C ANDREWS III | Board Member | — | ||
| LYNN BALDWIN | Board Member | — | ||
| DR RANDALL BALMER | Board Member | — | ||
| BRUCE BRADFORD | Board Member | — | ||
| JOSE FIGUEROA | Board Member | — | ||
| KIM FREDENBURGH | Board Member | — | ||
| MARY MACUKAS | Board Member | — | ||
| JUSTIN MEDRANO | Board Member | — | ||
| JEANNETTE BOO MILLER | Board Member | — | ||
| TERESA M PIERCE | Board Member | — | ||
| JEFFREY ROGERS | Board Member | — | ||
| LAURIE ROSSI | Board Member | — | ||
| ELLIOT STERN | Board Member | — | ||
| EVERETT ZLATOFF-MIRSKY | Board Member | — |
Tax year 2021
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DANIEL CRUPI | EXECUTIVE DI | 2.6% of Rev | ||
| ELAINE HELTMAN | Board Member | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| STEFANIE PRZYBYLSKA | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| REBECCA RAY | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| ANNE EISFELLER | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| ALAN MAR PHD | Board Member | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| RICHARD SCHACHT | Board Member | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MICHAEL DAWSON | Board President | — | ||
| DR PENELOPE PENLAND EDD | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| GARY LUTZ | Treasurer | — | ||
| SUZANNE M TIMBLE PHD JD | Secretary | — | ||
| PERRY C ANDREWS III | Board Member | — | ||
| DR RANDALL BALMER | Board Member | — | ||
| DR STEVEN GOLDSTEIN | Board Member | — | ||
| E FRANKLIN HIRSCH | Board Member | — | ||
| TERESA M PIERCE | Board Member | — | ||
| JEANNETTE BOO MILLER | Board Member | — | ||
| LAURIE ROSSI | Board Member | — | ||
| ELLIOT STERN | Board Member | — | ||
| KEVIN WAIDMANN | Board Member | — | ||
| EVERETT ZLATOFF-MIRSKY | Board Member | — |
Officer contact details, exact compensation figures, and active litigation are available to verified members.
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Score breakdown
Score breakdown
Financial resilience
35 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
33 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
90 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
48 / 100
Developing
The three components combine into a single 0–100 score weighted as shown. Full methodology →
Peer comparison
Compared to 52 other orgs in NM with NTEE prefix A6.
Most-divergent component: program score sits 57 points above the peer median (90 vs. 33).
5-year trend: The Founder's Trap
10-year flat revenue, below-market executive comp, and a small board. The organization survives purely on the sweat equity of a founder, making it utterly un-transferable.
Overall score has gone from 58 → 48 over 5 years (declining by 10 points). A multi-year directional move of this magnitude is a signal worth investigating.
What's driving this score
- Comp-to-revenue ratio of 0.9% sits within the sector's healthy band (18–22%).
- Scherer, Emma holds 6 distinct authority roles, which creates concentration risk.
- Governance score is in the bottom quartile of the sector, typically driven by compensation concentration or related authority clustering.
What would change this score
The two changes that would most improve this score:
- Separate signing authority from fundraising authority when both are held by one person — removes the concentration penalty (~12 points).
- Build cash reserves to at least 3 months of operating expenses — moves financial resilience score meaningfully (~10 points).
Improving governance is a board decision. These are the levers.