Starter Program Coach (Contract)

Role Overview

The Starter Program Coach provides business-focused, real-world support to individuals launching new ABA practices through the Frontera Fellowship. Fellows consistently seek advice on financial models, income expectations, timelines, operations setup, and day-to-day decision-making. This role acts as a credible peer advisor, sharing expertise from having built or managed an ABA business and helping fellows navigate the critical first 6-12 months.

This position is a key differentiator for the Starter Program, offering human guidance, operational insight, and been there before mentorship.

Key Responsibilities

Founder Coaching & Mentorship

• Provide 1:1 coaching to Frontera Fellows and Starters throughout pre-launch and post-launch phases.


• Serve as a peer-level thought partner, answering questions on income timelines, realistic expectations, and business model assumptions.


• Offer consultative support on early operational decisions (pricing, staffing, scheduling, intake flow, compliance basics, etc.).


• Host office hours or group coaching sessions as needed.

Operational Guidance & ABA Business Expertise

• Advise on foundational setup elements: entity formation, payor strategy, early marketing, referral development, and patient onboarding workflows.


• Help fellows translate core ABA operational principles into practical steps they can execute immediately.


• Review basic financial assumptions (e.g., breakeven points, startup costs, cash-flow timing).

Enablement & Content Development

• Partner with internal Frontera teams to codify scalable enablement materials: FAQs, starter playbooks, templates, checklists, and sample financial models.


• Identify recurring questions that should become part of standardized program resources.

Prospect Support (Pre-close)

• When needed, meet with high-intent prospects to provide credibility, real-world insight, and reassurance based on personal experience.


• Answer candidate questions about operating timelines, practice launch readiness, and expectations.

Internal Partnership

• Work closely with the Starter Program Leads to continuously refine the curriculum and support model.


• Provide feedback on themes emerging from fellow conversations (e.g., tooling gaps, operational blockers, where additional resources are needed).


• Maintain clear documentation of interactions, trends, and recommendations.

Experience & Qualifications

Required

• 5+ years of experience building, operating, or consulting for an ABA practice.


• Strong familiarity with early-stage ABA business fundamentals: referrals, intake flows, hiring, scheduling, billing, and cash-flow cycles.


• Comfortable providing tactical, real-world coaching to emerging founders.


• Clear, empathetic communicator who can guide first-time operators.


• Ability to translate complex operational topics into simple, actionable advice.

Preferred

• Prior experience mentoring or coaching early-stage entrepreneurs.


• Exposure to tech-enabled clinical operations or virtual care models.


• Experience launching a private-pay or hybrid ABA practice is a plus.

Traits/characteristics

• Practical operator: You ve done this before and can share what actually works.


• Credible peer: Fellows feel comfortable asking you real questions.


• Builder mindset: You enjoy helping others get off the ground.


• Flexible communicator: You can meet people where they are whether theyre exploring the fellowship or actively scaling.


• Low-ego collaborator: You work well with internal teams and don t mind rolling up your sleeves.

Compensation/structure

• Hourly or retainer-based contractor engagement.


• Anticipated 10-20 hours/week, depending on volume and future program scale

Why This Role Matters

The fellowship attracts some of our strongest operators because they see themselves getting not just tools, but real mentorship. This role extends that differentiator as we scale, ensuring every fellow receives the same caliber of trusted, operational guidance that has made the program successful to date.