Program Management Guide: The Decisive Founder

1. Program Introduction & Benefits

This 6-month coaching program, "The Decisive Founder," is designed to help entrepreneurs and startup founders systematically maintain and improve the quality of their strategic decision-making during periods of high uncertainty. Grounded in entrepreneurial decision science, it moves beyond abstract theory by combining deliberate practice with real-venture experimentation. Participants will learn to diagnose uncertainty levels, apply contingent frameworks like Effectuation and scenario planning, and embed structured learning loops around their live business decisions.

Strategic Benefits for Entrepreneurs & Startups:

1. Reduced Decision Paralysis: Founders gain a practical toolkit (e.g., affordable-loss calculations, Lean experiments) to make confident, forward-moving bets even with incomplete information, transforming uncertainty from a barrier into a structured learning agenda.
2. Increased Strategic Resilience: By learning to pre-build options with clear triggers and conduct competitive stress tests, founders develop ventures that are more adaptable to market shifts, rival moves, and unexpected events, preserving runway and strategic optionality.
3. Improved Resource Efficiency: The discipline of deliberate experimentation and effectual logic helps founders allocate scarce time and capital more effectively, focusing resources on testing high-impact assumptions and avoiding costly, over-planned commitments in ambiguous environments.
4. Enhanced Learning Velocity: The program installs reflection routines and feedback mechanisms that accelerate learning from both successes and failures, enabling founders to update their mental models and strategies faster than the competitive landscape changes.
5. Stronger Team Alignment & Governance: Founders learn to design simple decision systems and playbooks for their startups, clarifying roles, data thresholds, and processes. This reduces conflict, speeds up execution, and builds stakeholder confidence in the leadership team's decision-making process.

2. Program Expansion Strategy

Evaluation: This is a Coaching Program. The provided research data explicitly states the program should have "coaching built around participants’ live startup decisions." Therefore, a coaching layer is not supplemental but is the core delivery mechanism. The program's success is contingent on skilled coaches facilitating the application of frameworks to real-world contexts.

Coaching Layer Implementation:

• Why it Adds Value: Coaching provides the essential link between theory and practice. It offers personalized guidance, accountability, and structured reflection (e.g., using the GROW model) that helps founders internalize frameworks, confront cognitive biases, and navigate the emotional challenges of high-stakes decisions under uncertainty. The 70-20-10 adapted learning model depends on coaching to maximize learning from the 70% (live decisions).
• Implementation Note: Coaches should be trained in both entrepreneurial content (Effectuation, Lean Startup) and professional coaching techniques. The program structure should mandate regular 1:1 coaching sessions (e.g., bi-weekly) focused on applying that module's tools to a current, critical decision, supplemented by peer-coaching in small mastermind groups.

3. Implementation Roadmap

Launch Phase

1. Define & Align: Finalize program curriculum based on the 4 core modules. Secure and train coaches on the specific frameworks and the program's KPIs.
2. Participant Recruitment & Onboarding: Target entrepreneurs in early to growth-stage startups facing tangible uncertainty. Use an application that asks them to describe a current high-stakes decision.
3. Baseline Assessment: Administer pre-program assessments (e.g., decision-style profile, uncertainty tolerance) and have participants document their top 3-5 upcoming critical decisions and baseline KPIs (decision cycle time, stress levels).
4. Kick-off Workshop: Conduct a live virtual/in-person session to build cohort cohesion, introduce the program philosophy, and set expectations for coaching and deliberate practice.

Tracking & Operations

1. Weekly/Bi-weekly Rhythm:
   • Content Delivery: Release core module content (videos, readings) via the LMS.
   • Coaching Sessions: Facilitate scheduled 1:1 and group coaching sessions. Coaches document insights and decision progress.
   • Peer Accountability: Use the Internal Social Network for mastermind groups to share challenges and wins.
2. Milestone Reviews: At each key milestone (Month 1, 3, 6), facilitate structured cohort retrospectives to share learnings and review progress against KPIs.
3. Administration: Use Coaching Software to manage scheduling, session notes, and track participant engagement and progress across coaches.

Success Measurement

• Quantitative KPIs: Track per participant: Decision cycle time for major bets; Number of structured experiments run; Percentage of major decisions using a program template/framework.
• Qualitative KPIs: Use pre/post surveys on founder clarity and confidence. Coaches use rubrics to assess decision reasoning quality in sessions. Conduct stakeholder (co-founder/investor) feedback surveys at program end.
• Feedback Mechanisms: End-of-module pulse surveys in the LMS. Mid-program and final program retrospectives. Regular check-ins between program manager and coaches to identify participant struggles.

4. Approved Tools List

1. Coaching Software: Primary tool for program management. Used to schedule all 1:1 and group coaching sessions, securely store session notes and action plans, track participant attendance and engagement, and provide a centralized view of cohort progress for the program manager.
2. LMS (Learning Management System): Primary tool for content delivery. Used to host all asynchronous learning materials (video lectures, framework guides, case studies), administer pre/post assessments and surveys, track content completion, and facilitate discussion forums for module-specific Q&A.
3. Internal Social Network: Key tool for community and peer learning. Used to host private mastermind groups, foster ongoing discussion between live sessions, allow participants to share resources and experiences, and build a lasting professional network beyond the program.
4. Personality Test: Used for foundational self-awareness. A scientifically validated assessment can be integrated at the start of Module 1 to help founders understand their cognitive style, risk tolerance, and potential decision biases, providing a personalized baseline for development.

Justification: Coaching Software and the LMS are non-negotiable core tools for delivery and management. The Internal Social Network directly supports the "20%" (peer learning) from the 70-20-10 model. The Personality Test is a specific, relevant tool to operationalize the self-awareness components of the research. Mentorship Software, ERG Program Software, and Onboarding Platforms are not aligned with the intensive, cohort-based coaching model described.

5. Resource & Content Library

Training Content for Coaches

• Guide: "Coaching the Entrepreneurial Mind: A Guide to Effectuation & Uncertainty Frameworks"
• Video Series: "Facilitating Decision Labs: Techniques for Guiding Live Case Analysis"
• Article Compendium: Key research summaries on entrepreneurial heuristics, bounded rationality, and the psychology of uncertainty.
• Toolkit: Session planning templates aligned with program modules, including GROW model adaptations for strategic decisions.
• Training Workshop: "Observing and Assessing Decision Quality: Using the Program Rubrics in Real Time"

Training Content for Coachees (Founders)

• Module 1 - Self-Awareness:
  • Video: "Your Brain on Uncertainty: Heuristics & Biases in Startup Decisions"
  • Workbook: "Building Your Decision Reflection Routine"
  • Assessment: Debrief Guide for your Personality/Decision Style profile.
• Module 2 - Frameworks:
  • Interactive Guide: "The Effectuation Canvas: Mapping Your Means and Affordable Loss"
  • Case Studies: Video breakdowns of famous startup decisions using predictive vs. non-predictive logic.
  • Template: "Strategic Decision Pre-Mortem Worksheet"
• Module 3 - Experimentation:
  • Toolkit: "Lean Experiment Designer: From Assumption to Test in 48 Hours"
  • Template: "Scenario & Options Matrix with Trigger Conditions"
  • Video: "Managing Tempo: Shortening Your Learning Cycles"
• Module 4 - Systems:
  • Template: "Startup Decision Playbook Builder"
  • Guide: "Structured Debate Protocols for Founder Teams"
  • Audio Series: "Mindfulness and Resilience Practices for High-Stakes Decisions"