The Lean Program Team: What Roles You Actually Need (And When)

I was reviewing a program budget with a first-time accelerator director last year.

She'd mapped out her dream team: Program Director, two Program Managers, a Community Manager, an Operations Coordinator, a Marketing lead, a Fundraising Advisor, and a part-time Finance person.

Eight people. For a 15-founder cohort.

I asked: "What's your budget?"

She showed me. It didn't even cover half those salaries.

"So what do I cut?" she asked, deflated.

Wrong question.

The right question is: "What do I actually need right now to run a great program?"

Because here's the truth: most accelerators over-hire or under-hire. They either build bloated teams that burn through runway, or they try to run everything with one overstretched person who burns out in six months.

The best programs? They build lean, focused teams. They hire for the work that actually needs doing—not for the org chart they saw at Y Combinator.

And they scale their team strategically as the program grows.

Let me show you how.

The Common Hiring Mistakes

Before I tell you what works, let me show you what doesn't.

Mistake 1: Copying another program's structure

You look at TechStars or 500 Global and think, "They have X roles, so I need X roles."

Bad idea.

Their programs are mature, well-funded, and serve different founders than you do. What works for them might not work for you.

Your team should be designed for your program—your founders, your stage, your budget, your goals.

Mistake 2: Hiring for future scale, not current needs

"We're only running one cohort this year, but we plan to scale to three next year, so let's hire for three cohorts now."

Result? You're burning salary on people who don't have enough work. And when you can't afford to keep them, you're back to square one.

Hire for the work you have today. Scale your team as your program scales.

Mistake 3: Hiring generalists when you need specialists (or vice versa)

Some programs hire a "Program Manager" who's supposed to do everything: recruitment, curriculum, founder support, operations, mentor management, marketing, and reporting.

That's not a job. That's five jobs.

Other programs over-specialize too early. They hire a dedicated "Demo Day Coordinator" when they're running one demo day per year. That's 10 hours of work stretched into a full-time role.

You need to know what type of work you're hiring for—and whether it's a full-time role, part-time, or something you can outsource.

Mistake 4: Under-investing in operations

Most programs hire for the "sexy" roles first: Program Director, Community Manager, Marketing lead.

Then they wonder why nothing gets done. Applications sit in inboxes. Data doesn't get tracked. Founders don't get onboarded properly.

Operations isn't glamorous. But without it, everything else falls apart.

Mistake 5: Not defining roles clearly

"We're all just figuring it out together!"

Sounds collaborative. Actually creates chaos.

When everyone's responsible for everything, no one's accountable for anything. Work falls through the cracks. People duplicate effort or step on each other's toes.

You need crystal-clear role definitions from day one.

The Lean Team Framework: What You Actually Need

Alright, so what should your team look like?

Here's the framework I recommend:

Stage 1: MVP Program (1 cohort, 10-20 founders)

You're just starting. You don't have much budget. You need to prove the model works.

Core team:

1 Program Lead (full-time)

This is you (or someone senior). Responsibilities:

• Program strategy and design

• Funder/stakeholder management

• High-touch founder support (coaching, connections, strategic guidance)

• Mentor recruitment and management

• Curriculum design and facilitation

1 Operations/Admin person (part-time, 15-20 hrs/week)

Handles the stuff that doesn't require deep domain expertise:

• Application processing and scheduling

• Onboarding logistics (contracts, tool access, welcome emails)

• Session scheduling and calendar management

• Data entry and basic tracking

• Vendor/platform management

That's it.

Two people. One full-time, one part-time.

This is enough to run a solid first cohort without burning out or overspending.

What you DON'T need yet:

• Dedicated marketing/recruitment person (you can outsource content and ads)

• Dedicated community manager (you can manage Slack and events yourself)

• Full-time operations coordinator (part-time is enough at this stage)

What you might need (outsourced or fractional):

• Bookkeeping/finance support (a few hours/month)

• Marketing/brand help (freelance or agency for website, content, ads)

• Legal/compliance support (as-needed for contracts and structure)

Stage 2: Established Program (1-2 cohorts per year, 15-25 founders per cohort)

You've run 2-3 cohorts. The model works. You're ready to professionalize.

Core team:

1 Program Director (full-time)

Strategic oversight. Less day-to-day execution, more:

• Fundraising and funder relationships

• Program evolution and curriculum strategy

• Ecosystem partnerships

• Team management

1 Program Manager (full-time)

The "run the program" person. Responsibilities:

• Day-to-day founder support and check-ins

• Mentor matching and relationship management

• Workshop facilitation and curriculum delivery

• Founder progress tracking and intervention

1 Operations Coordinator (full-time)

Handles everything behind the scenes:

• Application pipeline management

• Onboarding and offboarding logistics

• Data tracking and reporting

• Tool/platform management

• Event logistics (demo day, workshops, etc.)

• Process documentation and improvement

Optional (if budget allows):

1 Community/Alumni Manager (part-time or full-time)

If post-program engagement is core to your value prop:

• Alumni network management

• Events and programming for alumni

• Peer learning and cross-cohort connection

• Post-program tracking and support

What you DON'T need yet:

• Multiple program managers (unless you're running 3+ cohorts or 30+ founders per cohort)

• Dedicated marketing team (outsource this until you hit scale)

• In-house finance/legal (fractional or outsourced is fine)

Stage 3: Scaled Program (3+ cohorts per year, 20-30+ founders per cohort)

You're running a well-oiled machine. Multiple cohorts, strong brand, proven impact.

Core team:

1 Executive Director or Program Director (full-time)

High-level strategy and stakeholder management:

• Fundraising and funder relationships

• Board management

• Strategic partnerships and ecosystem building

• Team leadership

2-3 Program Managers (full-time)

Each "owns" 1-2 cohorts or a specific stage of the founder journey:

• Founder recruitment and selection

• In-program support and mentorship

• Curriculum delivery and facilitation

1 Operations Manager (full-time)

Owns all systems and infrastructure:

• Process design and automation

• Data systems and reporting dashboards

• Tool stack management

• Team workflows and documentation

• Budget tracking and vendor management

1 Community Manager (full-time)

Owns the founder and alumni experience:

• Community engagement and programming

• Alumni network and events

• Peer learning initiatives

• Post-program founder support

Optional (based on needs):

1 Marketing/Content lead (full-time or fractional)

If you're doing significant founder recruitment or building a media presence:

• Content strategy and creation

• Founder sourcing and recruitment campaigns

• Brand and storytelling

• Website and social management

1 Fundraising/Partnerships lead (full-time or fractional)

If you're constantly raising money or building complex corporate partnerships:

• Funder prospecting and relationship management

• Grant writing and reporting

• Corporate partnership development

Stage 4: Mature/Complex Program (Multiple programs, geographies, or verticals)

You're running a multi-program org. Different cohorts, different models, maybe different cities or sectors.

At this stage, your structure needs to be modular. You can't have a flat team anymore.

Typical structure:

• Executive Director (strategy, fundraising, board)

• Head of Programs (oversees all program delivery)

  • Program Managers for each cohort or vertical (founder support)

  • Curriculum leads (design and facilitate sessions)

• Head of Operations (systems, data, process)

  • Operations Coordinators (logistics and admin)

  • Data/Analytics lead (tracking, reporting, insights)

• Head of Community (founder experience, alumni)

  • Community Managers by geography or vertical

• Head of Partnerships (corporate, mentor, ecosystem)

  • Partnership Managers by focus area

This is the "enterprise" version. You're probably at 10-15+ full-time employees. Budget: $1M+/year.

Most programs never need to get here. But if you do, you'll need real org structure and management layers.

The Build vs. Buy Decision: Full-Time vs. Contractors

Not every function needs a full-time employee.

Here's when to hire full-time vs. when to outsource or use contractors:

Hire full-time when:

• The work is ongoing and high-volume (e.g., founder support, operations)

• The work requires deep institutional knowledge (e.g., program strategy, mentor relationships)

• The work is core to your value prop (e.g., if you're a hands-on, high-touch program, you need full-time program managers)

Use contractors/freelancers when:

• The work is episodic or seasonal (e.g., demo day production, website redesign)

• The work is specialized but low-volume (e.g., legal, bookkeeping, video editing)

• You're testing something new and don't want to commit to full-time headcount

Outsource to agencies when:

• You need a full capability but can't afford a full team (e.g., marketing, PR)

• You want to move fast without hiring and onboarding (e.g., branding, ad campaigns)

• The work is technical and outside your core competency (e.g., platform development, compliance)

Role Definitions: Be Crystal Clear

One of the biggest mistakes programs make? Vague role definitions.

"You'll wear many hats!" sounds exciting in the job description. In practice, it means confusion, duplication, and burnout.

Here's how to define roles properly:

For each role, document:

1. Primary responsibilities (the 3-5 things this person owns)

2. Key deliverables (what success looks like)

3. Decision-making authority (what can they decide independently vs. what needs approval)

4. Collaboration points (who they work with and on what)

Example: Program Manager role definition

Primary responsibilities:

• Founder support and coaching (weekly check-ins, intervention when founders are stuck)

• Mentor matching and relationship management (ensure every founder has relevant mentors)

• Workshop facilitation (design and deliver 60% of curriculum)

• Progress tracking and reporting (maintain founder dashboards, identify trends)

Key deliverables:

• 90%+ founder satisfaction with 1:1 support

• Every founder matched with 3+ relevant mentors by Week 3

• Weekly progress updates for program director

• Quarterly outcome reports for stakeholders

Decision-making authority:

• Can independently: match founders with mentors, adjust session content, make founder-specific introductions

• Needs approval for: major curriculum changes, mentor budgets, founder interventions (e.g., asking someone to leave)

Collaboration points:

• Works with Operations Coordinator on logistics and scheduling

• Works with Community Manager on alumni engagement strategy

• Reports to Program Director on strategic decisions and founder outcomes

See the difference? This is clear, actionable, and sets expectations.

When to Hire Your Next Person

You're running lean. Things are working. But you're starting to feel stretched.

When do you actually hire?

Hire when:

1. A critical function is consistently falling through the cracks

Example: You keep meaning to follow up with alumni but never have time. Founder outcomes aren't being tracked. This is a Community Manager or Ops hire.

1. You're spending >30% of your time on low-leverage work

Example: You're a Program Director but you're spending 15 hours/week on scheduling, onboarding, and data entry. Hire an Operations Coordinator.

1. You're turning down opportunities because you don't have capacity

Example: You could run a second cohort, but you're maxed out. Or you have mentor interest but no one to manage onboarding. That's a sign you need another Program Manager or Ops person.

1. Quality is suffering because you're stretched too thin

Example: Founder check-ins are becoming less frequent. Mentor relationships are slipping. You're reactive instead of proactive. Time to hire.

Don't hire when:

• You're just "feeling busy" but can't point to specific bottlenecks (optimize your workflow first)

• The work is seasonal or episodic (outsource instead)

• You're hiring to feel more "legitimate" or because other programs have bigger teams (terrible reason)

The Bottom Line

Your team should be designed for the program you're running right now—not the program you wish you were running or the program you saw on Twitter.

Start lean. One or two people is enough to run your first cohort.

Add strategically as you scale. Hire for bottlenecks, not for optics.

Define roles clearly. Vague job descriptions create chaos.

And remember: the goal isn't to have the biggest team. It's to have the right team.

The programs with the best outcomes? They're not always the ones with the most staff.

They're the ones with the most clarity about what work actually needs doing—and who's doing it.

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Building your team? I've created a Team Structure Template with role definitions, hiring timelines, and budget calculators for programs at every stage. Download it here.

You might also find the Role Definition Worksheet useful—it's a fillable template for creating clear, actionable job descriptions and responsibilities. Grab it here.

This post is part of a series on program operations for accelerators, incubators, and startup studios. If you found this useful, you might also like: "Scaling from 1 to 3 Cohorts Per Year" and "Managing Up and Sideways: How Program Managers Can Lead Without Authority."