NCInnovation

Legal name: Ncinnovation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
844902334
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2020
Location
Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
Phone
9194247262
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Nonmonetary Support N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$272,126,634
Expenses
$19,108,008
Assets
$534,287,080
Liabilities
$11,327,855

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

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • J BENNET WATERS (PRESIDENT & CEO)
  • ERICA SHRADER (Vice President, Corporate Affairs)
  • ERIN HOPPER (Vice President, Grants & Research)

Highest reported compensation

  • J BENNET WATERS (PRESIDENT & CEO): $684,580 total reported compensation
  • MICHELLE BOLAS (EVP & CIO): $465,864 total reported compensation
  • JOSH HOWARD (SVP & CHIEF RISK OFFICER): $329,672 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To turn North Carolina’s research strength into real economic opportunity

What it reported doing in 2024

As authorized under n.c. General statute sec. 143-728, ncinnovation advanced statewide program development in fy2025 by awarding research commercialization support grants through a spring cycle in may 2025 and a fall cycle in december 2025. The organization also continued supporting all unc system universities by supporting and building the research capacity of each institution through nci's statewide regional hub networks program.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 92% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 67% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 31
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 87
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 10.3%; rating input score 10
  • Program expense ratio: 76.8%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 93%; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 27.96; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 94.4% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 73.3% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 80.7% per year; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 10.3% of revenue deployed · 76.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $14.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $685K · 23 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.1M reported
  • Consistency: 46 of 46 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 31 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 22 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 10/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 1/100.