The Enterprise Center Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
200062024
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Chattanooga, TN, USA
Phone
4236613300
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Urban, Community Economic Development

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,529,008
Expenses
$6,665,140
Assets
$3,149,220
Liabilities
$962,398

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

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DEB SOCIA (PAST PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • MONIQUE KUYKENDOLL QUARTERMAN (PAST PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • SAMMY LOWDERMILK (INTERIM PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • DEB SOCIA (PAST PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $173,504 total reported compensation
  • MONIQUE KUYKENDOLL QUARTERMAN (PAST PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $82,386 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 enterprise center unites people, organizations, and technology, to build an advanced and inclusive future for our community.

What it reported doing in 2024

Workforce development & innovation: the enterprise center supports a resilient, growing economy driven by innovation: through a variety of strategies. The innovation district of chattanooga, established in 2014, encompasses established businesses and startups clustered with educational and cultural institutions in the heart of downtown chattanooga. The enterprise center provides a multi purpose, free and public event spaces within the district, supporting a vibrant and collaborative ecosystem of community leaders and partners, as well as visits from other cities across the country. The enterprise center's vision is that the space will bring together community members to share ideas and create projects, businesses, art, and innovative solutions of all kinds. The enterprise center also supports the small business and entrepreneurial ecosystem through the business resource collaborative, chattanooga entrepreneur week and tools like resiliencychecklist.com. The enterprise center further invests in workforce development and mobility through efforts like tech goes home, the advanced technology initiative and the learning agility accelerator.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 100% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 83
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 94%; rating input score 94
  • Program expense ratio: 92.1%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2.1%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.47; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.8%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.1% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.6% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 94% of revenue deployed · 92.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $6.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $174K · 23 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $853K reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 26/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 16/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Audit committee oversight not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 34/100.