Sparklehood

Choosing the right programme

• Angel cohort: a membership for learning angel investing and co-investing. The site does not describe it as funding for startups.
• Chief of Staff cohort: for people aiming at a chief of staff or founder's office role, with three to seven years of experience as the stated ideal.
• Web3 cohort: for people new to Web3 who want a structured course and a project to pitch.
• Titan Club or Polo Club: for senior executives who meet the company-size and seniority criteria.
• Employ: for employers hiring senior leaders, not for founders looking for support.

How applications work

• Each programme has its own apply button on the programme's site.
• The Titan Club application link redirected when checked, so confirm the current form before you apply.
• Early-bird places in the Chief of Staff cohort are limited to the first 30 applicants.
• For the Chief of Staff and Web3 cohorts, a full refund is available until 72 hours before the programme starts. The Chief of Staff cohort deducts an application processing fee.
• To refer someone to the community, ask them to apply and choose Referral on the form.
• Questions can go to team@sparklehood.com.

How selection works

• Angel cohort: each application is reviewed and shortlisted. In a few cases there is an interview before the final selection.
• Titan Club and Polo Club: each application is reviewed individually against the company-size, level and team-size criteria. Applicants who do not meet the Titan criteria may be considered for the Polo Club.

What reviewers look for

• Titan and Polo: the site says every applicant is vetted to see whether they add to the community's knowledge and diversity.
• Angel cohort: the site looks for founders or senior people with a deep understanding of their market, and for people who want to learn angel investing.

Placement and expectations

• The Chief of Staff cohort offers placement opportunities through startup pitches and community support. The site says it does not guarantee placement, and that the hiring process is at the company's discretion.

Sparklehood is a learning and networking business for senior professionals, run by Plankton Technology Pvt. Ltd. Its registered office is in the CIIE Building at IIM Ahmedabad, and it sells three paid cohorts: angel investing, Chief of Staff and Web3. It also runs a members-only network for senior executives and a separate executive search service for employers.

How the programmes work

The angel investor cohort teaches angel investing through live classes, readings, founder pitches, startup teardowns and sessions with investors. Members can see deals shared by other members and co-invest with them. The site describes the cohort as fully remote and expects about two to four hours of engagement a week. Its pages give two different lengths for the first phase, so ask the team before you commit. After the first phase, membership gives access to the community for one year, and it can be extended or renewed on the terms set out on the cohort page.

The Chief of Staff cohort runs live interactive sessions over the first eight weeks. They cover the fundamentals of the Chief of Staff role, project management and performance management. Participants also meet hiring pitches from startups and work on a capstone project set by high-growth startups. The site says placement help continues for ten months after the live sessions, and it states that placement is not guaranteed.

The Web3 cohort runs for twelve weeks. The first eight weeks cover the foundations of Web3, including decentralisation, identity and ownership, decentralised finance and business models built on decentralised organisations. In the last four weeks, participants work on an idea of their own and produce an article, a whitepaper or a pitch deck. They also pitch to venture capital investors and industry experts at the end. The site expects eight to twelve hours a week from participants.

Who can apply

The angel cohort is aimed at current or past founders and senior operators who want to learn angel investing, at angel investors looking for better deals, and at people starting their angel investment journey. The site expects participants to keep their day jobs and invest on the side.

The Chief of Staff cohort is aimed at visionary leaders, founders and people seeking senior roles. The site says work experience of three to seven years is ideal, and that freshers are generally not the first preference.

The Web3 cohort is open to students, entrepreneurs, Web3 enthusiasts and anyone who wants to learn. The site says no prior experience is needed, and that willingness to learn is enough.

The Titan Club and Polo Club are communities for senior executives. Eligibility depends on company size, the number of levels below the CXO, team size and title. The two clubs carry the same privileges, and the split is there to keep discussions relevant. Each application is reviewed individually.

Who runs it

The company is Plankton Technology Pvt. Ltd., which operates the Sparklehood website. The cohort pages list speakers who hold roles such as Chief of Staff at Indian companies, angel investor, and DAO educator, with their roles as the site states them.

Employ

Employ is the executive search arm of the company. It serves employers, not founders. The site says it partners with industry leaders to reach passive candidates for senior roles, and that it aims to help employers hire within 30 days.

Scale

The site gives different member counts on different pages, and its angel pages give different counts for the angel community. This page does not quote a single figure for either. Claims about the size of its communities are the company's own.

Locations

The registered office is in the CIIE Building, IIM Ahmedabad New Campus, Vastrapur, Ahmedabad. The angel and Web3 cohorts run remotely, and participants can join from anywhere.