# 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.

Canonical URL: https://worldenterprise.org/journey/onboarding-checklist/
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 list collects what a founder can have to hand for each program step. Each linked item points to a template, a guide or a tool that is already on this site. WE makes no promise of funding.

## Where to go next

Open the [tools](https://worldenterprise.org/tools/), read the [playbooks](https://worldenterprise.org/playbooks/) or browse the [library of templates and checklists](https://worldenterprise.org/library/). The [resources hub](https://worldenterprise.org/resources/) lists everything in one place.

## 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 items do I already have, and which could I start before I apply?

## Checklist

> This checklist is guidance. It is not a condition of applying.

- [Write the problem on one page: who has it, what they do today and what you have seen.](https://worldenterprise.org/library/one-page-problem-brief/)
- [Plan your conversations with people who have the problem, and keep your solution out of them.](https://worldenterprise.org/library/customer-interview-guide/)
- [Decide what the first release leaves out, and write the cut line down.](https://worldenterprise.org/library/mvp-cut-line-worksheet/)
- [Read the two fit lists and judge your own fit before you apply.](https://worldenterprise.org/program/who-its-for/)
- [Read what the application asks, so your answers describe the idea, the founder and the stage you are at.](https://worldenterprise.org/program/how-we-decide/)
- [Note the service lines you think the company needs, and what you expect each one not to cover.](https://worldenterprise.org/services/)
- [Sketch the roles your team needs and how many people each one needs.](https://worldenterprise.org/tools/team-composer/)
- Plan to read the written agreement with your own counsel before you commit.
- Choose the goal you would give a first cycle, so the plan has something to start from.
- [Choose the numbers you would track, and test them in the metrics calculator.](https://worldenterprise.org/tools/metrics-calculator/)
- [When you start to prepare evidence for investors, work through the investor readiness checklist.](https://worldenterprise.org/fundability/investor-readiness-checklist/)