Business Council for International Understanding Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
136161195
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2124900460
Rating
65
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$10,243,570
Expenses
$10,232,895
Assets
$4,200,193
Liabilities
$3,991,729

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

51 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PETER J TICHANSKY (PRESIDENT AND CEO)
  • GINELLE BAUGH (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND TREASURER OF THE BOARD)
  • MEGHAN HAGBERG (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT)
  • NINA KUNDRA (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT)
  • MATTHEW LOWENBRAUN (VICE PRESIDENT, MEMBERSHIP)
  • MAX HORWITZ (VICE PRESIDENT, BCIU VENTURES)

Highest reported compensation

  • PETER J TICHANSKY (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $349,784 total reported compensation
  • NINA KUNDRA (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT): $316,828 total reported compensation
  • MEGHAN HAGBERG (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT): $312,607 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The business council for international understanding, inc. (bciu) was organized to promote dialogue and action between the business and government communities for the purpose of expanding international commerce.

What it reported doing in 2024

Commercial training: design and deliver commercial training courses for u.s. Foreign service and u.s. Foreign commercial service personnel. These courses are a series of formal instructional programs offered in conjunction with the u.s. Dept. Of state and commerce. Aimed to offer support to and strengthen effectiveness of an american embassy's role in promoting u.s. Business interests in overseas markets.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 51
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 76.6%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 76.2%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.93 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 97.6%; rating input score 98; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 44
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.1%; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.41; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.95; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 26.8%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.1% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 76.6% of revenue deployed · 76.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 40 of 41 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $7.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $350K · 51 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $332K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 11 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 33/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 12/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 7/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.