Form 990 for tax year 2023

Totals

Total revenue

$583,743

Total expenses

$708,746

Contributions and grants received

$556,451

Grants paid

$0

Program service revenue

$0

Investment income

$27,292

Other revenue

$0

Total assets, end of year

$819,243

Total liabilities, end of year

$37,718

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$781,525

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$504,220

Management and general expenses

$108,812

Fundraising expenses

$95,714

Program service expenses (Part III)

$504,220

Program services were 71.1% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Mission and programs · 2023

• CONVENE MEMBERSHIP TO FOSTER COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION.HRA IS AN INCLUSIVE AND DIVERSE COMMUNITY THAT PROVIDES A FORUM FOR SHARING EFFECTIVE PRACTICES AND TOOLS, ALONG WITH A SAFE SPACE FOR LEARNING FROM FAILURES. LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER ULTIMATELY HELPS MEMBERS IMPROVE THEIR ORGANIZATIONS AND BUILD THEIR CAPACITY. HRA CONVENES BOTH IN-PERSON (HYBRID) AND VIRTUAL MEMBERS MEETINGS. INCLUDING REMOTE ATTENDEES IN OUR IN-PERSON (HYBRID) MEETINGS, AND HOSTING COMPLETELY VIRTUAL MEETINGS, ENABLES PARTICIPATION BY MEMBERS WHO WOULDN'T NORMALLY HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND IN-PERSON, RESULTING IN AN INCREASE FROM ABOUT 100 ATTENDEES AT IN-PERSON MEETINGS TO ZOOM MEETINGS WITH 200 MEMBERS ATTENDING SOME OF THE SESSIONS. WE HOST A MEMBERS MEETING TWICE A YEAR, AND THE AGENDAS ARE CREATED BY A PROGRAM COMMITTEE, MADE UP OF HRA MEMBERS AND SUPPORTED BY HRA STAFF. THE PROGRAM COMMITTEE DEVELOPS SESSIONS FOR MEMBERS MEETINGS THAT FOSTER COLLABORATION AND ADDRESS IMPORTANT AND CHALLENGING ISSUES FOR PHILANTHROPY AND THE BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH SECTOR. THESE SESSIONS OFTEN ALIGN WITH OUR "LEARNING COMMUNITIES," TO BRING IN EXTERNAL EXPERTS AND HIGHLIGHT DISCUSSIONS AROUND DEI, SUSTAINABILITY OF THE RESEARCH WORKFORCE, OPEN SCIENCE, AI/LLM, HOSTING PATIENT REGISTRIES, AND OTHER TOPICS HRA MEMBERS DISCUSS YEAR-ROUND. THE PROGRAM COMMITTEE ALSO DEVELOPS MEETING SESSIONS AROUND BROADER TOPICS LIKE STRATEGIC PLANNING, EFFECTIVE COLLABORATION STRATEGIES, OR PATIENT ENGAGEMENT, WHICH ARE JUST AS URGENT FOR FUNDERS TO TACKLE, AND THOSE SESSIONS GARNER A MUCH MORE DIVERSE AUDIENCE THAN THE SPECIFIC TOPICS ADDRESSED BY THE LEARNING COMMUNITIES. IN ADDITION TO OUR MEMBERS MEETINGS, WE ALSO PERIODICALLY HOST REGIONAL MEETINGS LED BY HRA MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS AND SUPPORTED BY HRA STAFF. WE CONTINUE TO HOST VIRTUAL CEO ROUNDTABLES SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR WHICH LEAD TO OTHER ACTIVITIES SUCH AS HOSTING TARGETED WEBINARS AND CREATING RESOURCES THAT OFTEN DEAL WITH HUMAN RESOURCE ISSUES WHERE CEOS FIND LEARNING FROM THEIR PEERS INVALUABLE. UPON RECOMMENDATION FROM THE CEOS, WE NOW HAVE A PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM FOR STAFF AT HRA MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS, WHICH HOSTS WEBINARS INTENDED TO INCREASE STAFF CAPACITY IN AREAS SUCH AS COMMUNICATION, LEADERSHIP, AND NETWORKING.

  Expenses $114,217

• SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURE AND PRACTICES TO SHARE RESEARCH, DATA, AND ANALYSIS. HRA'S CURRENT STRATEGIC PLAN SETS OUT 4 GOALS AND STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED TO ACHIEVE THOSE GOALS STRATEGIES WE CONTINUE TO IMPLEMENT AND USE TO EVALUATE PROGRESS TOWARD THE PLAN. MANY OF THE STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED INVOLVE SUPPORTING HRA'S INFRASTRUCTURE AND PRACTICES TO SHARE RESEARCH, DATA, AND ANALYSIS. FOR EXAMPLE, HRA ANALYZER IS HRA'S PROPRIETARY DATABASE THAT PROVIDES DATA-DRIVEN ANALYSIS ENABLING MEMBERS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT OF THEIR GRANTMAKING PRACTICES, AS WELL AS PERFORM LANDSCAPE ANALYSES TO UNDERSTAND THE BROADER BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH FUNDING LANDSCAPE. HRA HOSTS FREQUENT "LUNCH AND LEARN" SESSIONS TO HELP HRA MEMBERS UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF HRA ANALYZER. THESE PERIODIC WEBINARS INCLUDE LEARNING HOW TO UPLOAD DATA; USING THE DATABASE FOR GAP ANALYSES TO BETTER TARGET LIMITED FUNDS; EVALUATING PROGRESS AND DEVELOPING NEW PROGRAMS TO ADVANCE A MORE EQUITABLE BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH WORKFORCE; IDENTIFYING COLLABORATING ORGANIZATIONS OR REVIEWERS; AND MANY OTHER USE CASES. WE WORK WITH GRANTS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS SUCH AS PROPOSALCENTRAL AND SMARTSIMPLE TO FACILITATE EASIER DATA UPLOADS INTO HRA ANALYZER. WE ALSO EMPLOY A CONTRACTOR TO HELP ORGANIZATIONS UPLOAD DATA AND USE THE ANALYTICAL FUNCTIONALITY IN HRA ANALYZER FOR THEIR OWN USES. HRA OFTEN USES THE ANALYTICAL TOOLS IN HRA ANALYZER DATA ON BEHALF OF MEMBERS TO HELP THEM FIND COLLABORATING ORGANIZATIONS OR IDENTIFY AREAS OF UNDERFUNDING TO EXPLORE. IN ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HRA'S POWERFUL INFRASTRUCTURE, HRA OPEN IS A PLATFORM DEVELOPED BY HRA TO ENABLE PUBLICATIONS AND OTHER RESEARCH OUTPUTS TO BE MADE OPEN AND FREELY ACCESSIBLE - NOT ONLY TO THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY BUT TO ANYONE. HRA OPEN FOSTERS OPEN SCHOLARSHIP ACROSS HRA MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS AND THEIR RESEARCHERS, WHICH CONTINUES TO BE AN IMPORTANT STRATEGY TO IMPACT INVESTMENT IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH. IN ADDITION TO ENABLING MEMBERS' OPEN SCIENCE POLICIES, HRA OPEN IS A POWERFUL RECRUITING TOOL. IT HAS LED NEW FUNDERS TO JOIN HRA MAINLY TO BE ABLE TO USE THIS INFRASTRUCTURE. HRA ALSO SURVEYS OUR MEMBERSHIP ANNUALLY TO UNDERSTAND CHALLENGES TO FUNDRAISING AND OTHER IMPACTS ON REVENUE, AS WELL AS ISSUES RELATED TO GRANTMAKING AND PROGRAMMING. WE MAKE THOSE DATA AVAILABLE TO HRA MEMBERS AND PERIODICALLY PUBLISH THAT ANALYSIS MORE WIDELY. FINALLY, HRA USES THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF OUR WEBSITE AS A CENTRAL REPOSITORY OF CURATED RESOURCES, AND TO PUBLICIZE EVENTS.

  Expenses $157,477

• GATHER AND DISSEMINATE KNOWLEDGE TO FOSTER INNOVATIVE GRANTMAKING AND ADDRESS CHALLENGES IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH. GOAL 2 OF HRA'S STRATEGIC PLAN "DRIVE INSTITUTIONAL LEARNING TO INCREASE MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS' EFFECTIVENESS" SPECIFICALLY TARGETS THIS ACCOMPLISHMENT, THOUGH MANY OTHER PARTS OF THE PLAN CONTRIBUTE AS WELL. HRA GATHERS AND DISSEMINATES KNOWLEDGE TO FOSTER INNOVATIVE GRANTMAKING AND ADDRESS CHALLENGES IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH BY PROVIDING LEADERSHIP, KNOWLEDGE, TOOLS, AND OPPORTUNITIES TO COLLABORATE AND IDENTIFY EFFECTIVE GRANTMAKING STRATEGIES. WE USE HRA'S LISTSERV AS A FORUM FOR HRA MEMBERS TO SEEK GUIDANCE, ASK QUESTIONS, AND POSE CHALLENGES TO FELLOW MEMBERS OUTSIDE OF FORMAL GROUPS OR MEETINGS. HRA'S "LEARNING COMMUNITIES" ALSO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP, KNOWLEDGE, TOOLS, AND OPPORTUNITIES ON TOPICS THAT ARE CRITICAL TO THE BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH FUNDING SECTOR. LEARNING COMMUNITY TOPICS INCLUDE AI/LLM, CLINICAL TRIALS, DIVERSITY, EQUITY, & INCLUSION, DRUG AND OTHER THERAPY DEVELOPMENT, GRANTS ADMINISTRATION, MISCONDUCT AND ETHICS, OPEN SCIENCE & DATA SHARING, PROGRAM EVALUATION, REGISTRY AND BIOREPOSITORY, AND RESEARCH WORKFORCE AND EARLY CAREER DEVELOPMENT. THE COMMUNITIES WORK BY CONVENING REGULARLY VIA ZOOM, CREATING TOOLS, AND COLLECTING EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES TO SHARE WITH THE MEMBERS. THESE COMMUNITIES DIVE DEEP INTO ISSUES THAT IMPACT OUR MEMBERS, AND DEVELOP RECOMMENDATIONS, IDENTIFY RESOURCES, OR FACILITATE DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT HRA AND HRA MEMBERS CAN IMPLEMENT OR SUPPORT TO MAKE PROGRESS IN VARIOUS AREAS. COMMUNITIES ARE CREATED WHEN A NEED ARISES BUT ALSO SUNSET WHEN THE APPLICABILITY TO HRA MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASES. WE ALSO HOST ON HRA'S WEBSITE A FREQUENTLY UPDATED GRANTMAKING HANDBOOK FOR HRA MEMBERS AND THE COMMUNITY (INCLUDING "HOW TO'S" FOR BIOMEDICAL GRANTMAKING).

  Expenses $232,526

As filed on the 2023 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Provenance

Return type

form_990

Tax year

2023

Filed

13 August 2024

IRS schema version

2023v5.1

Source object

202412359349301621

Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.

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