What Startups Really Need from Accelerators—A Curriculum Designed for Impact
- Demi Radeva, MSc
- Mar 31
- 3 min read
For many startups, joining an accelerator feels like a golden ticket—access to mentors, investors, and a structured program that promises to take them from idea to scale. But not all accelerator programs deliver real value. Too often, founders leave without clear commercialization strategies, struggling to translate their pitch decks into actual revenue.
So, what do startups really need from an accelerator? Based on our work designing accelerator curricula, we’ve identified the must-have elements that drive real impact—and where many programs fall short.
The Gaps in Traditional Accelerator Programs
While many accelerators focus on fundraising and storytelling, startups often leave without a clear go-to-market (GTM) strategy or payer engagement plan.
These are some of the most common gaps we see:
Too much focus on pitching, not enough on revenue models – Investors care about traction. If an accelerator only helps with pitch refinement but not with monetization strategy, startups will struggle post-cohort.
Lack of industry-specific expertise – Every industry has different pathways to scale. A one-size-fits-all accelerator model often leaves startups in healthcare, fintech, or deep tech without the nuanced guidance they need.
No structured customer discovery process – Many founders assume they know what their customers want, but very few accelerators push startups to conduct structured, data-driven interviews to validate their assumptions.
Insufficient focus on regulatory and compliance strategy – For sectors like healthcare, legal and regulatory hurdles can make or break a startup. Accelerators often neglect this crucial area.
What Startups Actually Need in an Accelerator Curriculum
Customer Discovery & Validation
Before launching, startups need to talk to real customers. Not just five or ten. Hundreds. The best accelerator programs:
Teach founders how to ask the right questions in customer interviews.
Push startups to validate pain points and refine their value propositions based on real-world feedback.
Ensure that the startup is solving a problem people will pay for, not just an interesting technical challenge.
Example: At Akros, we designed a curriculum where startups conducted 120+ customer interviews, leading to major pivots and better GTM strategies.
Revenue & Business Model Development
Startups must leave an accelerator with a clear path to profitability. This includes:
Defining customer segments and pricing strategies.
Learning how to structure contracts, licensing, or subscriptions.
Understanding how revenue flows in their industry (especially for regulated markets like healthcare and fintech).
Example: In a healthcare accelerator, we helped founders map reimbursement pathways, allowing them to build a more sustainable GTM strategy.
Industry-Specific Commercialization Strategies
A healthcare startup’s GTM strategy looks vastly different from a SaaS or CPG startup. The best accelerator programs tailor content based on industry-specific needs, including:
Navigating payer contracts & reimbursement models (for healthcare startups).
Understanding regulatory and compliance roadblocks.
Mapping enterprise sales cycles for startups selling into B2B markets.
Example: Akros helped a cohort of 15 healthcare startups refine their GTM strategies by integrating payer engagement workshops into the curriculum.
Access to Industry Experts (Not Just Investors)
Startups benefit most from operators, not just investors. Instead of just demo days and VC meetings, great accelerators bring in:
Regulatory experts to help startups avoid compliance pitfalls.
Successful founders & industry insiders to guide them through market-specific challenges.
Customers & enterprise buyers to provide real feedback on product-market fit.
Example: Akros brought in experts in HIPAA compliance, health economics/ROI, and reimbursement to provide startups with the real-world knowledge they needed to scale.
Final Thoughts: How Accelerators Can Evolve
The best accelerators go beyond pitch training and provide startups with the real-world skills they need to scale and generate revenue. Programs that emphasize customer validation, industry-specific expertise, and commercialization strategies will see stronger outcomes—because at the end of the day, startups don’t just need funding; they need a clear path to market success.
Are you designing or improving an accelerator curriculum? Let’s build a program that drives real impact. Reach out to Akros today.
Comments