Your party should (ideally) consist of:
2 Operators (Max, Deena from starting heroes, Mormish/Golgy/whoever you find)
1 Fighter (Gork from starting heroes, Ken, etc.)
1 Runner (Sara from starting heroes, Skroig, Golgy, etc.)
From the starting heroes, Max is 1st choice, followed by whoever you want.
Starting off, build Industry --> Food --> Science
Later levels, you may want Food --> Industry --> Science
Do NOT Operate science modules past floor 4 unless absolutely necessary. Operate on food/industry for the most part.
Whoever is your Operator should be rushed to level 3/4 at once (it's okay if the other person is level 1). Start them off Operating your Industry module at first (since you will need to build modules/defenses starting on every floor).
Research priorities:
1st: Neurostun Module, Dust Gen, Pepper Spray
2nd: Suppressive Firebot, Tear Gas, Bio-organic Transference
3rd: Holohero, Viral Injector, Prisoner Prod, Mechanical Pal, Autodoc Shards
4th: Everything else.
Runners should open doors (of course), but also have a minor safe area to run back to. These are different than actual chokepoints in their setup. These are mainly areas to fight any enemies that will not pass by your chokepoint.
A runner's 'camp' (with 3 minor module spots): Prisoner Prod, Suppressive Firebot, Neurostun
A Chokepoint: Dust Gen, Bio-Organic Transference, Neurostun