Alpha Program Pipeline Template
Turn alpha programs into a visible pipeline
Alpha programs fall apart when goals live in docs, candidate lists live in spreadsheets, and feedback hides in Slack threads. This template turns Instaboard into your alpha command center: duplicate the locked Alpha Candidate and Alpha Scenario Brief cards, assign owners, and drag work across Define Goals & Target Cohort through Close Out & Transition. Because everything sits on a visual canvas, stakeholders can see cohorts, severity labels, and progress at a glance instead of piecing it together across tools. Labels such as P0 blocker, Design partner, and External pilot keep priorities visible, while attachments hold NDAs, logs, and recordings directly on the cards. The result is a repeatable flow you can reuse for every new alpha round without rebuilding your system.
- Keep goals, cohorts, and release candidates on one alpha board
- Assign owners, due dates, and labels to every participant and scenario
- Capture feedback with duplicate-locked cards tied to evidence files
- Move alpha work left to right so product, success, and executives see participant status and blockers without extra status meetings
- Reuse the same pipeline by duplicating the board for each new alpha round instead of rebuilding spreadsheets or docs
Start in Define Goals & Target Cohort
Open the Getting Started section, then jump to the Define Goals & Target Cohort lane. Duplicate the Alpha Candidate template card for each account you are considering, fill in company, contact, use case, and environment, and assign an owner for the relationship. Use labels like Design partner, External pilot, or Internal dogfood so you can filter cohorts later. Add a due date for when you want the cohort locked and attach any background decks or briefs so context travels with the card. This light setup makes the rest of the alpha feel intentional instead of ad hoc.
Pro tip: Filter the lane by label to decide which candidates become design partners first.
Recruit and approve the right participants
Move into Recruit & Approve Participants and duplicate Alpha Candidate or Participant Exit Summary cards as outreach advances. Turn key outreach items into tasks, assign owners from product or success, and set due dates for responses or contract milestones. Attach draft invite emails, NDAs, or security one-pagers directly on each card so legal and buyers share the same artifact. Apply labels such as Security/privacy or High impact when reviews are needed. Once an account signs on, drag its card into Onboard & Environment Setup so provisioning can begin.
Pro tip: Update the card description or pin a comment so anyone scanning the board knows what is blocked without leaving the board.
Onboard accounts and wire up environments
In Onboard & Environment Setup, duplicate Alpha Scenario Brief cards for each combination of account and scenario you plan to test. Assign engineers, designers, or success managers to provisioning tasks and set due dates for enabling feature flags, creating workspaces, or loading sample data. Attach setup runbooks, credentials, or checklists as files on the cards so nobody digs through wikis when issues occur. Use labels like Security/privacy and Telemetry gap to flag flows that need extra scrutiny or instrumentation. When an account is ready to use the feature, drag both the scenario and account cards into Run Alpha & Capture Feedback.
Pro tip: Add checkboxes directly on provisioning task cards for steps like enabling flags, validating data, and confirming access so you do not need a separate spreadsheet.
Capture feedback and turn it into fixes
During live testing, work from the Run Alpha & Capture Feedback stage and duplicate Feedback Item cards whenever a tester hits an issue or makes a meaningful request. Write a short summary, note where it happened in the flow, and tag severity using P0 blocker, High impact, or Nice to have labels. Attach logs, screenshots, or recordings so engineers and PMs see exactly what happened without asking for more context. Group related feedback by dragging cards near each scenario or design partner. As patterns emerge, pull the most important cards into Triage & Ship Fixes and assign owners plus due dates for the next release candidate.
Pro tip: Use the board’s filter by label to drive weekly alpha review meetings straight from the pipeline.
Close the loop and transition to beta
When a batch of fixes lands, move cards into Triage & Ship Fixes and fill Release Candidate Note templates with what changed, what risks remain, and who owns the go or no-go decision. Attach performance or reliability reports directly to the decision card so leadership can review quickly. After the alpha round completes, drag cards into Close Out & Transition and use Participant Exit Summary cards to record outcomes, wins, and follow-ups for each account. Tag Design partner accounts you want in future advisory boards and add due dates for promised follow-up betas or case studies. This keeps every alpha loop closed with a clear record and lets you archive the board, then duplicate it as the starting point for the next round.
What’s inside
Cohort planning lane
Define goals, shortlist candidates, and duplicate Alpha Candidate templates so every potential design partner has the same fields for use case, environment, and notes, then filter by Design partner or External pilot labels to compare cohorts side by side on the canvas.
Participant recruitment tracker
Track invites, approvals, and NDAs in Recruit & Approve Participants with task cards that show owner, due date, and whether an account is external pilot or internal dogfood, and attach invite copy or legal docs so nobody has to hunt through email threads.
Onboarding and environment setup
Use Onboard & Environment Setup to assign provisioning tasks, attach setup guides and credentials, and keep security-sensitive work labeled so nothing slips, with checklists living on the same cards that hold access details.
Live alpha feedback log
Run alpha cycles from Run Alpha & Capture Feedback using Feedback Item templates that record severity, context, and attached clips or traces, then drag cards near each design partner’s cluster to see per-partner patterns faster than in a flat spreadsheet.
Triage and close-out rail
Move issues into Triage & Ship Fixes and Close Out & Transition so decisions, release notes, and partner follow-ups live on the same cards that collected the signal.
Why this works
- Connects cohort planning, onboarding, testing, and follow-up in one alpha pipeline
- Keeps every issue and request tied to evidence so prioritization debates stay grounded
- Surfaces P0 blockers and design partner work through labels instead of status meetings
- Makes each alpha round repeatable by reusing micro-template cards and lanes
- Documents decisions and participant outcomes so future betas start on stronger footing
FAQ
Who is this alpha program template for?
This board is built for product managers, PMMs, and success leads running early access programs with a small number of highly engaged customers or internal dogfood teams.
Can I run multiple alpha rounds in parallel?
Yes—create header cards or apply a custom label per cohort or feature, then use the board’s filter-by-label view to focus on one alpha round at a time, or duplicate the entire board when a new alpha program is large enough to need its own pipeline.
How do I keep sensitive data safe during alpha?
Apply the Security/privacy label to cards that involve production data, attach SOC2 or security docs instead of sharing ad hoc links, and keep ownership and approval due dates on those cards so sensitive work stays visible on a single board instead of scattered across email.
What happens after alpha ends?
Use Close Out & Transition to summarize results, record Participant Exit Summaries, and move the most important work items into your beta or general release plans so nothing learned in alpha is lost.