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
55
Score
Governance
58
Score
Financial
50
Score
Program
60
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
Financial Era
Governance Era
Trajectory Era
Founders Trap
Historical Performance
| Year | Revenue | Top Comp | Comp % Rev | Score | Phase Label | Outlook | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | — | — | 2.4% | 55 | Fragile | Stable Watch | |
| 2022 | — | — | 3.5% | 55 | Fragile | Stable Watch | |
| 2021 | — | — | 3.3% | 55 | Fragile | Stable Watch | |
| 2020 | — | — | 3.9% | 55 | Fragile | Recovery | |
| 2019 | — | — | 3.6% | 47 | Financially Distressed | Decline Risk | |
| 2018 | — | — | 2.7% | 49 | Financially Distressed | Decline Risk | |
| 2017 | — | — | 2.2% | 51 | Fragile | Decline Risk | |
| 2016 | — | — | 2.4% | 51 | Fragile | Decline Risk | |
| 2015 | — | — | 2.0% | 55 | Fragile | Stable Watch | |
| 2014 | — | — | 1.4% | 55 | Fragile | Stable Watch | |
| 2013 | — | — | 2.0% | 55 | Fragile | Recovery | |
| 2012 | — | — | 2.0% | 53 | Fragile | Decline Risk | |
| 2011 | — | — | — | 45 | Fragile | Stable Watch |
Officer compensation history
Tax year 2023
Tax year 2022
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WILLIAM M GRISWOLD | Board President | 0.7% of Rev | ||
| COLLEEN R CRISTE | DD & CHIEF PHILANTHROPY | 0.3% of Rev | ||
| HEATHER J LEMONEDES BROWN | Artistic Director | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| EDWARD W BAUER END 122020 | Treasurer | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| JANE ALEXANDER | CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| HEIDI STREAN | DIR EXHIBITIONS & PUBLICATIONS | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| LISA S CODISPOTI | CHIEF OPERATING & PEOPLE OFFCR | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MARJORIE L WILLIAMS END 421 | LEADERSHIP GIVING OFFICER | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| DIANE M STRACHAN | DIR PLANNED GIVING | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MARY SUZOR END 62021 | DIR COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MARICA C STEELE | SNR CONSERVATOR PAINTINGS | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| SUSAN E BERGH | Artistic Director | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| RUSSELL J KLIMCZUK | Treasurer | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| AGNES GUND | Board Member | — | ||
| CYNTHIA AMES HUFFMAN | Board Member | — | ||
| NANCY F KEITHLEY | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM P MADAR | Board Member | — | ||
| MILTON MALTZ | Board Member | — | ||
| SCOTT C MUELLER | Board President | — | ||
| STEPHEN E MYERS | Board Member | — | ||
| JULIA POLLOCK | Board Member | — | ||
| PETER E RASKIND | Board Member | — | ||
| DANIEL P WALSH JR | Board Member | — | ||
| LEIGH HAYES CARTER | Board Member | — | ||
| KATHERINE TEMPLETON O'NEILL | Board Member | — | ||
| PAUL E WESTLAKE JR | Board Member | — | ||
| DOMINIC OZANNE | Board Member | — | ||
| R STEVEN KESTNER | Board Member | — | ||
| ALFRED M RANKIN JR | Board Member | — | ||
| ELLEN STIRN MAVEC | Board President | — | ||
| JAMES A RATNER | Secretary | — | ||
| SARAH S CUTLER | Board President | — | ||
| MICHELLE JESCHELNIG | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD P STOVSKY | Board Member | — | ||
| VIRGINIA N BARBATO | Board Member | — | ||
| FREDERICK E BIDWELL | Board Member | — | ||
| STEPHEN W BAILEY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHRISTOPHER GORMAN | Board Member | — | ||
| CHARLOTTE FOWLER | Board Member | — | ||
| JOHN WALTON | Board Member | — | ||
| LOYAL M WILSON | Board Member | — | ||
| EDWARD HEMMELGARN | Board Member | — | ||
| JON H OUTCALT | Board Member | — | ||
| FELTON THOMAS | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM LITZLER | Board Member | — | ||
| REV JAWANZA K COLVIN | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD H FEARON | Board Member | — | ||
| LAUREN RICH FINE | Board Member | — | ||
| DOUGLAS KERN | Board Member | — | ||
| KASHIM SKEETE | Board Member | — | ||
| HELEN FORBES FIELDS | Board President | — | ||
| MANISHA SETHI BEG 122020 | Board Member | — | ||
| STEPHEN J KNERLY JR | Secretary | — |
Tax year 2021
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WILLIAM M GRISWOLD | Board President | 0.7% of Rev | ||
| HEATHER J LEMONEDES BROWN | Artistic Director | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| CYRA LEVENSON END 32020 | DIR PUBLIC & ACADEMIC ENGMNT | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| JOHN EASLEY | DIR PHILANTHROPY (END 11/2019) | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| EDWARD W BAUER | Treasurer | 0.2% of Rev | ||
| JANE ALEXANDER | CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| JEFFREY STREAN END 122019 | DIR DESIGN & ARCHITECTURE | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MARJORIE L WILLIAMS | LEADERSHIP GIVING OFFICER | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| HEIDI STREAN | DIR EXHIBITIONS & PUBLICATIONS | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| MARY SUZOR | DIR COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT | 0.1% of Rev | ||
| NANCY F KEITHLEY | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM P MADAR | Board Member | — | ||
| MILTON MALTZ | Board Member | — | ||
| SCOTT C MUELLER | Board President | — | ||
| STEPHEN E MYERS | Board Member | — | ||
| JULIA POLLOCK | Board Member | — | ||
| PETER E RASKIND | Board Member | — | ||
| DANIEL P WALSH JR | Board Member | — | ||
| LEIGH HAYES CARTER | Board Member | — | ||
| KATHERINE TEMPLETON O'NEILL | Board Member | — | ||
| PAUL E WESTLAKE JR | Board Member | — | ||
| DOMINIC OZANNE | Board Member | — | ||
| R STEVEN KESTNER | Board Member | — | ||
| ALFRED M RANKIN JR | Board Member | — | ||
| ELLEN STIRN MAVEC | Board President | — | ||
| JAMES A RATNER | Secretary | — | ||
| SARAH S CUTLER | Board President | — | ||
| MICHELLE JESCHELNIG | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD P STOVSKY | Board Member | — | ||
| VIRGINIA N BARBATO | Board Member | — | ||
| FREDERICK E BIDWELL | Board Member | — | ||
| STEPHEN W BAILEY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHRISTOPHER GORMAN | Board Member | — | ||
| CHARLOTTE FOWLER | Board Member | — | ||
| JOHN WALTON | Board Member | — | ||
| LOYAL M WILSON | Board Member | — | ||
| EDWARD HEMMELGARN | Board Member | — | ||
| JON H OUTCALT | Board Member | — | ||
| FELTON THOMAS | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM LITZLER | Board Member | — | ||
| REV JAWANZA K COLVIN | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD H FEARON | Board Member | — | ||
| LAUREN RICH FINE | Board Member | — | ||
| DOUGLAS KERN | Board Member | — | ||
| KASHIM SKEETE | Board Member | — | ||
| HELEN FORBES FIELDS | Board President | — | ||
| ROBERT W GILLESPIE | Board Member | — | ||
| STEPHEN J KNERLY JR | Secretary | — | ||
| AGNES GUND | Board Member | — | ||
| CYNTHIA AMES HUFFMAN | Board Member | — | ||
| SUSAN KAESGEN | 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
50 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
58 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
60 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
55 / 100
Developing
The three components combine into a single 0–100 score weighted as shown. Full methodology →
Peer comparison
Compared to 10 other orgs in OH with NTEE prefix A5.
Most-divergent component: financial score sits 6 points above the peer median (50 vs. 44).
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 47 → 55 over 5 years (improving by 8 points).
What's driving this score
- Comp-to-revenue ratio of 2.4% sits within the sector's healthy band (18–22%).
What would change this score
No specific high-impact levers identified — this org's score is balanced across components.
Improving governance is a board decision. These are the levers.