Compensation Escalation Cycle
Compensation Escalation Cycle
Compensation Escalation Cycle Market Archetype Mechanical Natural
Tier
Priority Review
Trajectory Thumbprint

Compensation Escalation Cycle

What does this mean?

Revenue grows modestly, but top officer compensation grows consistently for 5 years, breaching danger zones. The executive is negotiating aggressive raises against a compliant board.

The Path Forward

The Steward

Re-establishes board supremacy over executive extraction. It freezes compensation and mandates that all future financial rewards be tied strictly to verifiable mission expansion.

The Steward
The Steward
Institutional Health Scores
5-yr trend: Compensation Escalation Cycle
Overall
27
Score
Governance
42
Score
Financial
30
Score
Program
15
Score

Institutional Epochs

2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Financial Era
Governance Era
Trajectory Era
Compensation Escalation

Historical Performance

Year Revenue Top Comp Comp % Rev Score Phase Label Outlook Details
2025 Hidden Hidden Unknown
2024 Hidden Hidden 47.8% 27 Critical Intervention Needed Gov Risk
2023 43 Fragile Recovery
2022 34.1% 30 Critical Intervention Needed Gov Risk
2021 32.0% 30 Critical Intervention Needed Gov Risk
2020 39.9% 34 Critical Intervention Needed Gov Risk
2019 39 Fragile Recovery
2018 29 Critical Intervention Needed Decline Risk
2017 43 Fragile Recovery
2016 39 Fragile Decline Risk
2015 41 Fragile Recovery
2014 37 Financially Distressed Recovery
2013 33 Critical Intervention Needed Decline Risk
2012 37 Financially Distressed Stable Watch

Officer compensation history

Tax year 2025

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
Fred West Board Member 44.9% of Rev
Elliot Kraber Secretary 2.8% of Rev
Tom Sharp Board President
Olivia Sohn Board President
Sylvain Slaton Treasurer
Steve Bauck Board Member
Greg Bishop Board Member
Beth Loots Board Member
Dale Rector Board Member

Tax year 2023

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
Fred West Board Member 42.8% of Rev
Donna Austin Board President
Tom Sharp Secretary
Kris Zawisza Treasurer
Steve Bauck Board Member
Emily Keeney Board Member
Dale Rector Board Member
Sylvain Slaton Board Member
Olivia Sohn Board Member
David Wakil Matthews Board Member

Tax year 2022

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
Fred West Board Member 40.8% of Rev
Donna Austin Board President
Tom Sharp Board President
Julie Eriksen Secretary
Kris Zawisza Treasurer
Lila Henderson Board Member
Dale Rector Board Member
Sylvain Slaton Board Member

Tax year 2021

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
Fred West Board Member 38.9% of Rev
Donna Austin Board President
Tom Sharp Board President
Julie Eriksen Secretary
Kris Zawisza Treasurer
Dale Rector Board Member
Randy Otto Board Member
Sylvain Slaton Board Member
Lila Henderson Board Member
Wendy Zieve 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
30 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
42 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
15 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
27 / 100
Priority Review

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

Peer comparison

Compared to 236 other orgs in WA with NTEE prefix A6.

Most-divergent component: program score sits 17 points below the peer median (15 vs. 32).

5-year trend: Compensation Escalation Cycle

Revenue grows modestly, but top officer compensation grows consistently for 5 years, breaching danger zones. The executive is negotiating aggressive raises against a compliant board.

What's driving this score

What would change this score

The two changes that would most improve this score:

  1. Reduce top-officer compensation from 47.8% to under 22% of revenue — would move governance score by ~40 points.
  2. Separate signing authority from fundraising authority when both are held by one person — removes the concentration penalty (~12 points).

Improving governance is a board decision. These are the levers.