Boardsource

What it reported doing in 2025

Thought leadership: boardsource's research and thought leadership highlight the importance of effective board leadership, addressing the challenges facing nonprofit leaders and identifying opportunities for greater sector impact. We focus on trends impacting nonprofit leadership performance and effectiveness, generating evidence-based recommendations for board practice. Boardsource's purpose driven board leadership (pdbl) model, introduced in 2021, enables boards and the organizations they serve to better achieve their organization's purpose and mission. In 2025, boardsource continued to offer trainings and resources to help the field operationalize this framework and implemented a new theory of practice that enables the organization to create richer and more tailored resources to better meet governance needs across the sector. Boardsource is committed to listening and learning from our community of nonprofits and foundations to center the collective wisdom of the sector, bringing together our 35+ years of governance experience with the innovation of our sector's leaders to enhance our nonprofit ecosystem. Membership and other fee for service programming: over the course of 35+ years of direct engagement with boards and executives, boardsource has become the go-to governance resource for nonprofit organizations. We inspire, challenge, educate and support a growing community of members nationwide, and are committed to serving organizations of all sizes by providing affordable and scalable resources. Through membership, boardsource provides a range of practical supports that meet the needs of organizations and boards at different stages of their development, including training programs, written resources on a range of leadership topics, technical support and access to a vibrant online community. Membership programs include the board support program (our core offering) for nonprofits as well as tailored programs for corporations, foundations, federated networks and individual nonprofit executives. Members can access boardsource's library of nonprofit board leadership resources which include publications and tools on a broad range of topics relevant to nonprofit executives, board leaders, and practitioners. In 2025, hundreds of thousands of nonprofit leaders from across the country accessed information on boardsource.org as well as viewed and/or downloaded online resources. We also continued an internal review of our resources to ensure that they reflect the latest thinking and practices for a strong sector. Assessments are a critical tool to enable strong governance and nonprofit board leadership. Boardsource's assessment services assist organizations identify core issues in performance and development of their boards and chief executives. Boardsource's professional development programs provide training and supports for governance consultants who work directly with boards, as well as direct leadership development for executives and board members. In addition to presentations and trainings, boardsource offers a certificate of nonprofit board education and a certificate of nonprofit board consulting.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 66.3%; rating input score 66
• Fundraising efficiency: $0.63 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -73.4%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.98; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 25.3%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -4% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -3% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings