In 2015, the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded pilot grants to 10 States--California, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington--to test innovative strategies for providing employment and training services through Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training (SNAP E&T). Most grantees spent roughly the first year of the pilot in a planning phase, which included establishing new partnerships, creating service models, developing new activities, and hiring pilot staff. Grantees began enrolling individuals between January and April 2016, depending on the pilot. This brief presents five implementation challenges and the resulting lessons learned from a cross-pilot analysis of the planning and early implementation periods from March 2015 through July 2017. The implementation-related lessons identified in this brief are based on analysis of qualitative data collected through telephone calls and in-person interviews with pilot staff from State agencies, partners, and providers, and focus groups conducted with individuals participating in the pilot.