Program Management Guide: Lean Startup & Customer Discovery for Entrepreneurs & Startups

1. Program Introduction & Benefits

This 3-month intensive training program is designed to equip entrepreneurs and startup teams with the practical frameworks of Lean Startup and Customer Discovery. The core essence is to move participants from untested assumptions to validated learning through a structured, iterative cycle of building, measuring, and learning. The program provides a scientific approach to entrepreneurship, reducing risk and increasing the likelihood of building a sustainable business by focusing on customer needs from the outset.

Strategic Benefits for Entrepreneurs & Startups:

1. De-Risk Product Development: Shift from building based on gut feeling to developing based on quantifiable customer feedback, minimizing wasted time and resources on unwanted features.
2. Accelerate Time-to-Learning: Implement rapid experimentation cycles (Build-Measure-Learn) to gather actionable insights faster than traditional product development cycles allow.
3. Cultivate Customer-Centricity: Embed a deep understanding of customer problems and needs into the company's DNA through structured discovery and interview techniques.
4. Foster Strategic Agility: Develop the mindset and analytical skills to make informed "pivot or persevere" decisions, adapting the business model based on evidence rather than attachment to an initial idea.
5. Build a Foundation for Scalability: Establish data-driven decision-making processes and a culture of experimentation that supports sustainable growth beyond the program duration.

2. Program Expansion Strategy

Evaluation: This is a Training Program, not a Mentorship or Coaching program. The primary goal is to "Learn and apply lean startup and customer discovery methodologies." While the core training provides the framework, the application of these methodologies in the unique, high-stakes context of a startup greatly benefits from personalized guidance.

Proposed Supplemental Mentorship Layer:

Adding a structured mentorship component would significantly improve outcomes by providing real-time, contextual advice as participants apply learned concepts to their specific business challenges. Mentors—experienced entrepreneurs or startup advisors—can help navigate the emotional and strategic hurdles of pivoting, provide accountability for conducting customer interviews, and offer practical shortcuts based on their own experiences.

• Value Addition: Mentorship bridges the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical execution. It addresses key audience challenges like "Attachment to Initial Product Vision" and "Uncertainty" by providing a trusted sounding board, enhancing learning retention, and increasing the probability of successful program completion and business model validation.
• Implementation Note: Integrate a 1:1 or small-group mentorship model. Pair each startup team with a vetted mentor for bi-weekly check-ins throughout the 3-month journey. These sessions should focus on reviewing collected data, challenging assumptions, and planning next-step experiments. A kickoff and a closing session with all mentors and mentees would foster community and shared learning.

3. Implementation Roadmap

Launch Phase Checklist

• ✓ Program Design Finalization: Lock curriculum, module timelines, and session formats (e.g., workshops, lectures, peer reviews).
• ✓ Mentor Recruitment & Onboarding: Recruit experienced entrepreneurs/startup advisors. Provide them with program goals, participant profiles, and mentorship guidelines.
• ✓ Participant Application & Selection: Open applications, define selection criteria (e.g., startup stage, team commitment), and select cohorts to ensure peer learning dynamics.
• ✓ Platform & Tool Setup: Configure the Learning Management System (LMS) and any supplemental tools (see Section 4). Load all content and create participant accounts.
• ✓ Kickoff Communication: Send welcome packs, program schedules, pre-work (e.g., initial hypothesis drafting), and introduce mentor-mentee pairs.
• ✓ Kickoff Session: Host a live virtual or in-person session to align expectations, introduce core concepts, build cohort cohesion, and begin Module 1.

Tracking & Operations

• Weekly Cadence: Deliver core training content via the LMS (videos, readings, templates). Host a live weekly workshop or Q&A session for the entire cohort.
• Bi-Weekly Cadence: Facilitate scheduled mentor check-ins. Program managers should have visibility into meeting notes or key takeaways via the mentorship platform.
• Milestone Reviews: At the end of each month, require teams to submit a brief milestone report (e.g., "10 customer interviews completed," "MVP prototype built") via the LMS.
• Cohort Community: Use the Internal Social Network feature to create a dedicated space for peer support, resource sharing, and discussion forums moderated by program staff.
• Program Manager Role: Monitor participant progress, nudge lagging teams, gather feedback from mentors, and troubleshoot logistical or content issues.

Success Measurement

• Quantitative KPIs:
  • Participant Completion Rate: Target >85%.
  • Average Number of Customer Interviews/Team: Target 15-20.
  • MVP Launch Rate by End of Month 2: Target >90%.
  • Mentor-Mentee Meeting Adherence: Target >80% of scheduled sessions completed.
  • Post-Program Survey Score (Net Promoter Score or satisfaction): Target >4.0/5.0.
• Qualitative KPIs & Feedback:
  • Quality of Final "Pivot/Persevere" Presentation: Assess depth of validated learning and cause-and-effect reasoning via a panel review.
  • Mid-Program and End-of-Program Feedback Surveys: Collect open-ended feedback on content applicability, mentor value, and program structure.
  • Mentor Feedback Reports: Quarterly surveys from mentors on participant engagement and challenges.
  • Longitudinal Tracking (Optional): Follow up with teams 6 months post-program to track business progress (e.g., secured funding, achieved product-market fit, continued iteration).

4. Approved Tools List

1. LMS (Learning Management System): Primary Tool. This is non-negotiable for a training program. It will host all video modules, reading materials, assignment submissions (e.g., interview transcripts, MVP plans), milestone trackers, and facilitate quiz completion. It centralizes the learning journey.
2. Mentorship Software: Critical for Expansion Strategy. If implementing the supplemental mentorship layer, dedicated software is essential for matching mentors/mentees, scheduling meetings, providing session agenda templates, tracking meeting frequency, and capturing high-level notes to ensure the relationships are productive and aligned with program goals.
3. Internal Social Network: Highly Recommended. Fosters a community of practice among the entrepreneur cohort. Provides a space for peer-to-peer problem-solving, sharing of resources (e.g., survey tools), and general camaraderie, which is vital for morale during the challenging process of customer discovery and potential pivots.

Justification: An Onboarding Platform is too narrow in scope. Coaching Software is designed for professional coaching relationships, not the experience-based advising central to this mentorship model. ERG Program Software is for employee resource groups, not external entrepreneurs. A Personality Test is not core to the Lean Startup methodology's goals.

5. Resource & Content Library

General Program Content

• Video Lectures: "The Build-Measure-Learn Loop in Action," "Crafting Non-Biased Customer Interview Questions," "Defining Your Minimum Viable Product (MVP)," "Analyzing Metrics: Vanity vs. Actionable Data," "The Art of the Pivot: Case Studies."
• Readings & Articles: Excerpts from The Lean Startup by Eric Ries and The Startup Owner's Manual by Steve Blank. Articles on "How to Identify Your Riskiest Assumption," "Ten Templates for Customer Discovery Interviews," "Low-Fidelity Prototyping Methods."
• Templates & Worksheets: Business Model Canvas template, Customer Interview Script template, Experiment Tracking Log (Hypothesis, Test, Metric, Criteria), MVP Feature Prioritization Matrix, Pivot/Persevere Decision Canvas.
• Case Studies: Detailed breakdowns of famous pivots (e.g., Slack, Instagram). Analysis of a startup that failed due to lack of customer discovery.

Supplemental Mentoring Content Table

To support mentors in effectively guiding their startup teams, provide the following soft-skills training materials.