12-week apprenticeship-to-ownership
Paid apprentice,equity-holding owner.
Twelve weeks from intake to first PO. Capital deployed, crew on payroll, pledge countersigned, bid under the new entity, anchor buyer signed. Stepsmith graduates equity-holding employers — not a permanent subcontractor underclass.
- Paid from week 1
- 60% local-hire pledge
- Equity-holding owner at W 12
The four phases
Four phases. Twelve weeks. Every gate on paper.
The pipeline runs on paperwork, not vibes. Every week produces an artifact that has to be filed before the next week starts — license, plan, note, payroll, pledge, bid, PO, equity.
License, books, market read.
Pull the founder-apprentice trade license, run a market-grade pricing benchmark, and confirm the inner-city census tract clears the 60% local-hire geography.
Plan, packet, banking.
Stand up the legal vehicle, draft the business plan, and assemble the licensing packet. Open the operating bank account and the bookkeeping system so the first dollar has somewhere to land.
Capital + tools + crew + pledge.
Disburse the principal note, issue tools and equipment, hire the first crew onto payroll, and countersign the 60% local-hire pledge. This is the densest block — four weeks, no skipped gates.
PO, equity hand-off, graduation.
Bonding prep, anchor-buyer walk-throughs, bid submission, and the first signed PO. Equity grant document drafted, signed by both parties, and filed. Cohort graduates into the buyer network.
The 12-week timeline
Week by week, what gets done and what gets filed.
Each week produces a concrete on-paper deliverable. The next week doesn't start until the artifact is signed, filed, or disbursed. No vague milestones, no aspirational gates.
- W 1Phase 01Intake interview + trade verification
Founder-apprentice meets the Stepsmith program lead and the journeyman mentor assigned to their trade. Trade license pulled and verified against the state board; city market zone confirmed against the Stepsmith service geography.
Outcome · Verified active license (or in-process) on file.
- W 2Phase 01Diagnostics + pricing benchmark
AI-assisted diagnostics run the local pricing, capacity, and competitive-read benchmarks. The founder reviews the report with the Stepsmith program lead and signs off on a target tier (01 Starter, 02 Growth, or 03 Scale).
Outcome · Tier selection + diagnostics sign-off documented.
- W 3Phase 02Legal vehicle + EIN
LLC or corporation formed in the founder's home state; EIN issued; operating agreement drafted with revenue-based-note covenants written in by the program lead. Bank account opened.
Outcome · Legal entity formed + EIN + operating account open.
- W 4Phase 02Business plan + license packet
12-month business plan written with the journeyman mentor: revenue ramp, crew build-out, equipment list, bonding path. Licensing packet assembled for any remaining city/county permits.
Outcome · Signed business plan + license application filed.
- W 5Phase 03Principal note signed and drawn
Revenue-based note executed with the CDFI allocatee. Royalty rate, cap, term, floor, and security position all per the tier selected in week 2. First disbursement hits the operating account within 48 hours.
Outcome · Principal note signed + first draw disbursed.
- W 6Phase 03Tools and equipment issued
Tier-appropriate tools, specialty gear, and (for tier 02+) a vehicle or lift delivered and titled to the operating entity. UCC-1 and equipment lien filed against the financed assets.
Outcome · Equipment on the books + liens perfected.
- W 7Phase 03First hires onto payroll
Crew of 1–2 (tier 01), 3–6 (tier 02), or 7–15 (tier 03) hired. Founder does the interviews with the mentor in the room; Stepsmith funds the first 60 days of payroll through the note.
Outcome · Crew on payroll with W-2s issued.
- W 8Phase 03Local-hire pledge countersigned
60% local-hire pledge executed by the founder and filed with the program lead. Philanthropic match letter of intent converted to a committed tranche tied to the first-PO milestone.
Outcome · Pledge on file + match tranche committed.
- W 9Phase 04Bonding letter + bid prep
Bonding application submitted to the program lead's network of surety partners; bid templates, estimating spreadsheet, and unit-cost cards built from the diagnostics report. Mentors review the first three sample bids.
Outcome · Bonding letter in file + bid templates approved.
- W 10Phase 04Anchor-buyer walk-throughs
Founder meets the assigned anchor-buyer liaison (municipal, healthcare, higher-ed, or developer). Site walk-throughs on at least two active scopes; verbal indication of bid interest captured in the program CRM.
Outcome · Two anchor-buyer walk-throughs logged.
- W 11Phase 04Bid submission
First hard bid submitted under the new entity. Mentor reviews scope letter, exclusions, and unit pricing. Bond is posted if required; bid bond recorded.
Outcome · First hard bid submitted under new entity.
- W 12Phase 04First PO + equity hand-off + graduation
First accepted estimate or PO from an anchor buyer lands. Equity grant document drafted by Stepsmith program lead and signed by both parties. Cohort graduates into the buyer network at stack layer 04.
Outcome · First PO on file + equity grant signed.
Who's in the room
Five roles, every week, on the founder's side.
The pipeline doesn't run on the founder-apprentice alone. The journeyman mentor, the Stepsmith program lead, the CDFI allocatee underwriter, and the anchor-buyer liaison each carry a defined share of the work.
Note: the equity grant at week 12 is owned by the Stepsmith program lead — not by the CDFI allocatee. The note does not issue equity; the program does.
Active journeyman (or in-process)
Holds the trade license, runs the day-to-day, signs every gate document. The 12 weeks culminate with their name on the equity grant.
Senior trade practitioner, paid stipend
Reviews every bid, walks the first three jobs, and signs off on bid templates. The bridge between the founder's craft skill and the program's business discipline.
Full-time Stepsmith operator
Owns the 12-week cadence, drafts and files the equity grant document at week 12, and stays on as the founder's point of contact post-graduation.
Underwriter at the CDFI allocatee
Originates the QLICI that funds the principal note. Sets royalty rate, cap, term, floor, and security position. Does NOT issue equity.
Procurement lead at a Stepsmith partner
Lines up the week 10 walk-throughs and the week 11–12 bid pipeline. The reason a PO actually lands inside the 12-week window.
Week 12 graduation
What the graduate walks out with.
Nine artifacts, each tied to a milestone already named in the timeline. Every row is on paper; every row is filed; every row is enforceable. This is what equity-holding ownership looks like at the end of week 12.
What's NOT on this list
The note is revenue-based — capped, royalty-repaid, no equity dilution. The equity in question at week 12 is the founder's own stake in their own operating entity, formalized and filed. The founder owns the trademark, the crew, the contracts, and the cap table.
Week 12 · Graduation checklist
9 artifacts- Legal vehicle formed (LLC or corporation) + EIN issued
- W 3
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Principal note signed and drawn from CDFI allocatee
- W 5
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Tools + equipment issued and titled to operating entity
- W 6
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Crew hired onto payroll with W-2s issued
- W 7
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- 60% local-hire pledge executed and on file
- W 8
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Philanthropic match tranche committed (letter of intent converted)
- W 8
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Bonding letter in file (or bonding plan signed by surety)
- W 9
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- First accepted estimate / PO from an anchor buyer
- W 12
- Filed, signed, or disbursed in the named week.
- Equity grant document drafted by Stepsmith + signed by both parties
- W 12
- The founder walks out with their name on the cap table.
Capital layer
Cohort intake
Where we operate
Three anchor markets, parallel cohorts.
Detroit, Cleveland, and St. Louis run on the same 12-week pipeline and the same rolling quarterly intake cadence. Each city page spells out the local buyer institutions, the ZIP band the cohort serves, and the anchor-buyer walk-throughs the pipeline feeds.
Flagship market
Anchor institutions
Gateway pipeline
Frequently asked
Questions apprentices and applicants ask before they apply.
The short version. Anything longer, write to stepsmith@polsia.app.
Twelve weeks, then you own the trademark
Trade your sub role for a stake,on paper, by week 12.
Stepsmith accepts applications on a rolling basis in Detroit, Cleveland, and St. Louis. Founders with active trade experience in HVAC, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, or roofing get priority review.
Apply
Trade, city, one paragraph — that's all the intake needs to start.
Buyer network, press, partnerships — same inbox. We route fast.