The Founder's Trap
The Founder's Trap
The Founder's Trap Market Archetype Mechanical Natural
Tier
Priority Review
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
The Dispersal
Institutional Health Scores
5-yr trend: The Founder's Trap
Overall
37
Score
Governance
58
Score
Financial
5
Score
Program
60
Score

Institutional Epochs

2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Financial Era
Governance Era
Trajectory Era
Founders Trap

Historical Performance

Year Revenue Top Comp Comp % Rev Score Phase Label Outlook Details
2024 Hidden Hidden Unknown
2023 2.5% 37 Financially Distressed Decline Risk
2022 2.6% 49 Fragile Stable Watch
2021 2.9% 49 Fragile Recovery
2020 5.7% 44 Financially Distressed Recovery
2019 3.0% 41 Fragile Stable Watch
2018 3.4% 41 Fragile Stable Watch
2017 3.2% 41 Fragile Recovery
2016 3.7% 35 Financially Distressed Stable Watch
2015 3.8% 35 Financially Distressed Recovery
2014 3.9% 34 Critical Intervention Needed Stable Watch
2013 4.1% 35 Financially Distressed Stable Watch
2012 2.4% 35 Financially Distressed Recovery
2011 32 Critical Intervention Needed Recovery
2010 18 Critical Intervention Needed Stable Watch

Officer compensation history

Tax year 2025

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
DANIEL INKLEY EXECUTIVE DIR. 3.7% of Rev
JASON BURNINGHAM Board Member
FRED HALE Board Member
STERLING JENSON Board Member
DAN LILJENQUIST Board Member
CLARK WILKINSON Board Member
JOHN REDD Board Member
PAUL CUTLER Board Member
SHAWN BEUS Board Member
KENDALYN HARRIS Board Member
JAMES AHLSTROM CHAIRMAN
MICHELLE FALK Board Member
TAMI FILLMORE Board Member
CRIS HOGAN Board Member
JEN LALLI Board Member
CLAY MONROE Board Member
JR MOORE VICE CHAIRMAN
STEVE TERRY Board Member
STEVE FORSYTH Board Member
LEE WRIGHT Board Member
TYLER HANSON Board Member
KRISTIN HODSON Board Member
PAUL LILJENQUIST Board Member

Tax year 2023

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
JANSEN DAVIS EXECUTIVE DIR. 2.9% of Rev
JASON BURNINGHAM Board Member
FRED HALE Board Member
STERLING JENSON CHAIRMAN
DAN LILJENQUIST Board Member
CLARK WILKINSON Board Member
CATHLEEN GILBERT Board Member
JOHN REDD Board Member
PAUL CUTLER Board Member
KENNETH CUTLER Board Member
SHAWN BEUS Board Member
KENDALYN HARRIS Board Member
JAMES AHLSTROM VICE CHAIRMAN
MICHELLE FALK Board Member
TAMI FILLMORE Board Member
CRIS HOGAN Board Member
JEN LALLI Board Member
CLAY MONROE Board Member
JR MOORE Board Member
STEVE TERRY Board Member

Tax year 2021

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
JANSEN DAVIS Executive Dir. 2.6% of Rev
JASON BURNINGHAM Board Member
FRED HALE Board Member
STERLING JENSON Vice Chairman
LOWELL LEISHMAN Board Member
DAN LILJENQUIST Board Member
CLARK WILKINSON Board Member
CATHLEEN GILBERT Board Member
JOHN REDD Board Member
LEE WRIGHT Board Member
PAUL CUTLER Chairman
GAYLA GALLACHER Board Member
KENNETH CUTLER Board Member
SHAWN BEUS Board Member
KENDALYN HARRIS Board Member
KRISTY WOODWARD Treasurer
Officer contact details, exact compensation figures, and active litigation are available to verified members.
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Score breakdown

Score breakdown

Financial resilience
5 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
58 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
60 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
37 / 100
Priority Review

The three components combine into a single 0–100 score weighted as shown. Full methodology →

Peer comparison

Compared to 81 other orgs in UT with NTEE prefix A6.

Most-divergent component: program score sits 31 points above the peer median (60 vs. 29).

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.

What's driving this score

What would change this score

The two changes that would most improve this score:

  1. 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.