# The founder journey

The path from an application to a working team, in five steps, with a page for each stage. It states no durations and promises no outcomes.

Canonical URL: https://worldenterprise.org/journey/
Last updated: 2026-10-10
Publisher: World Enterprise, run by World Enterprise Group Incorporated

> **About this page**
>
> This page describes a sequence. It does not state how long any step takes.

The path starts with an application and runs through the same five steps the program pages describe. The pages below take those steps from three angles: what happens after you apply, what you see and decide along the way, and what you can prepare. WE makes no promise of funding.

Start with [what happens after you apply](https://worldenterprise.org/journey/after-you-apply/).

## Pass it on

If you know a founder who is weighing a program like this one, you can pass this page on. Copy the address from your browser and send it however you usually send a link.

An organization that helps or equips founders may send WE an enquiry through the [partner enquiry form](https://worldenterprise.org/network/partners/enquire/). Sending one creates no partnership, no referral arrangement and no commitment on either side.

## The steps

1. **Apply.** Start a readiness review: tell WE where the company stands. The application is short and asks only what WE needs to judge fit. WE then sends a one-page read of where the company sits on the business clock.
2. **Agree the scope.** WE and the founder choose which service lines the company needs and what each one will and will not cover. An NDA comes first, then draft agreements and an order form with every term written down, which you review with your own counsel.
3. **Assemble your team.** WE recruits the team for the roles the plan calls for. The team works only on your company. WE steers it, manages any subcontractors and answers for how it is run.
4. **Work in focused cycles.** The team works in short, reviewed cycles. Each cycle has a stated goal and a visible set of artifacts. WE uses its A.N.D.R.O.I.D. Ops loop to decide what a cycle contains.
5. **Review and decide.** Every week a written status, every month a service report, every quarter a business review, and an Orbit Review at each phase checkpoint. You decide what the next cycle holds, and roles change by notice as the agreement sets out.

## Questions you can ask

- Which of these five steps am I at today, and what would the next one ask of me?
- Which page below explains the step I am least sure about?
- What would I want to know from WE before I send an application?

## Journey pages

- [After you apply](https://worldenterprise.org/journey/after-you-apply/): What follows an application, in the order the program pages give it, and the questions to put to WE at each step. No durations and no outcomes.
- [The first months](https://worldenterprise.org/journey/first-months/): The five program steps from the founder's side: what you see, what you decide and what to ask, in order. No durations and no promised outcomes.
- [Onboarding checklist](https://worldenterprise.org/journey/onboarding-checklist/): A checklist to read before and after you apply, built from the program steps and the library. It is guidance, so use the parts that help.