Case Study: Nonprofit Executive Compensation

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Nonprofit executive compensation should be within a range that generously rewards the executive for meeting goals and a job well done while not taking away from the nonprofits ability to meet the needs that it serves. A good leader has not met the duties of the job if they spend extremely high amounts on travel and office supplies or personal equipment without fairly compensating their staff or while reducing benefits to the cause. When government funds are secured for a cause or people give to a charity, people often assume that the money is going directly to the cause. It is understandable that the charity has business expenses including staff compensation but there is something that doesn't feel right when you see leadership of the …show more content…

According to Charity Navigator (Are Nonprofit CEOs Overpaid?), certain industries pay more than others, specifically; an executive can earn more at an Educational charity rather than a Religious one. Geographical location typically reflects the variations in cost of living throughout the country. Naturally, charities with larger budgets can afford to provide higher compensation. The focus of an organization's mission can also have a significant impact on the amount of compensation available. The board of a nonprofit should have a documented policy for determining compensation and raises. While there are not very many charitable organization executives earning over $1 million dollars annually, it should still be of concern because such an amount is quite …show more content…

If nonprofits do not keep their goals focused and spend too much time trying to emulate big business, they will create unnecessary expenses and harm their support base as some donors may not continue to donate if funds appear to be misappropriated. High compensation does not guarantee an effective leader that will have dedication and commitment for the cause. If the compensation being considered is high enough that donors would be concerned or the board would be embarrassed if it made the news, then it is probably unjustifiably too high. It is important to attract the right candidate for leadership and the compensation plays a key role in that but it cannot be the most important

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