The Launchpad · Ecommerce FDE Fellow Fellowship
Most first jobs teach you
to follow instructions.
This one teaches you to lead.
DT Fellows work full-time alongside founders and directors of ₹100–500Cr companies. Your first career shapes everything that follows. Most jobs give you tasks. Here, you solve problems, understand business context, and make your own decisions.
“Everyone at some point in life should work at DT.”
Feliza Dadachenji, Maths Asst Professor | DT Fellow, 2020
We don't look for the best candidate. We look for the most curious.
Ecommerce FDE Fellow Fellowship · 3 rounds · 96 hours · No interviews until you've seen how we work.
Why DT
Two kinds of youngsters.
India produces one. DT hires the other.
Type A · Employee Mindset
Impress. Fit into existing systems. Follow instructions. India's placement system is built to produce and hire Type A.
Type B · Intrapreneur Mindset
Creative. Innovative. Make decisions. Own outcomes. Passion-driven problem solvers.
What is DeepThought, really?
The founders who build ₹50Cr, ₹100Cr, ₹500Cr companies already think scientifically about their product. But that thinking stays stuck in one person. Product rigor next to execution sloppiness.
DeepThought closes that gap. We install Scientific Thinking into how companies operate daily. Not advice. Not workshops. A system where daily work IS hypothesis-test-learn.
15 years. Started in 2011 with Sciensation. Built PDGMS. The vehicle changed four times. The mission never did.
What Fellows Do
Decision-making power in their 20s.
Most people reach decision-making roles by their 40s. DT Fellows work alongside CEOs and Directors of ₹100–500Cr companies, driving organisational transformation and AI, from their very first full-time role.
Sravan Kumar
Chief of Staff
Pharma company, ₹200Cr+
Works directly with the MD (NASA scientist founder). Brought in AI that cut purchase-to-dispatch from 3 days to 1. Runs decisions that change how the factory floor operates.
Joined as: BBA fresher
Shagun Mishra
AI Programs Lead
India’s largest probiotic manufacturer
Led a 20-member team. Shipped 58 software modules as a fresher in 2023 — before AI tools existed. Now leads AI Programs at a company present in 60+ countries.
Joined as: BTech fresher
Jayaraj
Engagement Lead
Multiple DT client companies
Works with company Directors on growth strategy and execution. Drives organisational transformation across manufacturing and services companies.
Joined as: BTech fresher
The Architects
Tarun Ayitam
15 years of designing the scientific method. Alumnus of IISER Pune (Mathematics & Theoretical Computer Science) and TEDx speaker. Tarun encoded 32+ company implementations into PDGMS AI Platform to lower CAC and drive employee ownership.
HERITAGE
Who's been in this room
This programme has been running in different forms since 2011. Fifty participants from six countries have been through it. These are the people whose work and questions shaped what the programme is today.
Raghu Seelamsetty
Founder, Escape Velocity
2017
Nastaran Bisheban
CTO, KFC Canada
2021
Dave Snowden
Founder & CSO, Cognitive Edge
2021
Dr. Michael Lissack
President, American Society for Cybernetics
2021
Abhinav Gupta
AVP Innovation, Broadridge
2023
Humberto Schwab
Founder, Socratic Design Academy
2020
Dr. Matti Itkonen
Cultural Philosopher, University of Jyväskylä
2021
Kashyap Kompella
Hyderabad Chair, StartupGrind
2017
Jayesh Ranjan
IAS Officer, Govt of Telangana
2017
Dr. David Willows
Director of Advancement, University of Brussels
2021Designations are as on the date when the participant attended the dialogue.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
The work in action.
Roundtable
Hack Your MVP
Live session with practitioners and founders.
Socratic Dialogue
Darwin Day
Jury-style debate on scientific and business questions.
The Grid
25 cells. Every company.
Every company runs on 25 cells. Five vertical layers from Direction (V5) down to Employee (V1). Five horizontal functions from Offers (H1) through to Orders (H5). When something goes wrong in a business, it lives in one of these cells. The grid tells you where to look.
| H1 Offers | H2 Capability | H3 Capacity | H4 Experience | H5 Orders | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V5 Direction | V5×H1 The board decides what to offer the market. Which segments to enter, which bets to place, which products to build or kill. | V5×H2 The board sets the capability agenda. What skills, R&D investments, and knowledge does the company need? | V5×H3 The board decides the scale at which the company operates. Production philosophy, plant investments, make-or-buy. | V5×H4 The board defines what the customer experience should feel like. The promise the company makes. | V5×H5 The board sets revenue targets. How much, from whom, by when. The number the entire grid works backward from. |
| V4 Strategy | V4×H1 Strategy translates direction into market moves. Pricing, positioning, competitive response. | V4×H2 Strategy designs the capability roadmap. Which technologies, processes, and people to develop. | V4×H3 Strategy plans infrastructure and production. Build vs buy, capacity planning, supply chain design. | V4×H4 Strategy designs the service and fulfillment model. Channels, support tiers, satisfaction benchmarks. | V4×H5 Strategy designs the sales architecture. Account targeting, pipeline design, deal structures. |
| V3 Plan | V3×H1 The program manager plans the go-to-market. Launch timelines, campaign specs, channel priorities. | V3×H2 The program manager runs R&D and training programs. Investigate, hypothesise, experiment, standardise. | V3×H3 The program manager plans production schedules and delivery timelines. Work breakdown, resource allocation, bottleneck removal. | V3×H4 The program manager plans the fulfillment process. Delivery workflows, quality checkpoints, escalation paths. | V3×H5 The program manager plans the sales pipeline. Territory assignments, deal stages, forecast cadence. |
| V2 Supervisor | V2×H1 The supervisor manages the team doing market research, customer interviews, competitive analysis. | V2×H2 The supervisor manages engineers, trainers, R&D teams. Root cause analysis, process experiments, quality checks. | V2×H3 The supervisor manages the floor. Production, logistics, throughput, daily delivery targets. | V2×H4 The supervisor manages customer-facing teams. Support, service, complaint resolution. | V2×H5 The supervisor manages sales reps. Daily call targets, proposal reviews, deal coaching. |
| V1 Employee | V1×H1 The employee does the research, talks to customers, drafts the offer documents. | V1×H2 The employee builds, prototyping, testing, learning, documenting. | V1×H3 The employee does the work. Manufacturing, shipping, coding, delivering. | V1×H4 The employee serves the customer. Handles complaints, ensures satisfaction, closes the loop. | V1×H5 The salesman sells. Calls, proposals, negotiations, closes. Cash enters the system. |
Case Files
A 3-day purchase to dispatch cycle. Every department did their job, but the handoffs were unowned.
The company mapped the actual flow and redesigned the protocol between departments, setup Microsoft CoPilot AI automations.
“3 days became 1 day, recovering 200+ days of capacity per year”
The Proof
DeepThought helped us in deploying and managing high performance elastic teams. DT runs continuous improvement, which means Project2 is better than Project1 and Project3 is better than Project2
Pharma & Biotech Transformation
Selection Process
4 rounds. Each one teaches you something.
DT doesn't look for experience or qualifications. We look for a mindset. We look for a candidate with a “fire in the belly.”
Role-Specific Assignment
For You
You understand the role through a simulation
For Us
We understand your skillset
48 hours
Video Reflection & Mindmap
For You
You understand DeepThought and PDGMS AI Platform
For Us
We understand if you connect with our vision
48 hours (with R3)
Career Roadmap Reflection
For You
You understand how this aligns with your career
For Us
We understand your mindset
48 hours (with R2)
Virtual Tour
For You
You experience the work culture first-hand
For Us
We understand if you can endure the rigor
6 days (after shortlisting)
This process is rigorous and most applicants are rejected. Proceed only if challenges fuel you.
Your Journey
3 rounds. 96 hours. Step by step.
The clock starts when you send the consent message on Internshala.
Hour 0
Hour 48
Hour 96
Send Consent
Start · Internshala chat · Receive R1 link
Round 1: Assignment
0-48h · Internshala · Receive R2 + R3
Round 2: Mindmap
48-96h · Internshala (photo) · Submit immediately
Round 3: Career Roadmap
48-96h · Form + Internshala · Wait for shortlisting
Shortlisting
After close · Internshala · Zoom link for tour
Virtual Tour
Tue / Fri · Zoom 5-9 PM · Interview
Round 1
Role-Specific Assignment
Complete a simulation for the role you've applied for.
Timeline
48 hours from receiving the assignment
Submission
Assignment + hand-drawn sketch of your thought process
Guidelines
- You may use AI to complete the assignment. Set guardrails against AI hallucination.
- DO NOT use AI for the hand-drawn sketch. It must show YOUR thought process.
- Read the detailed guidelines in the shared repository carefully before starting.
Round 2
Video Reflection & Mindmap
Watch the 38-minute video below. Take detailed notes. Then draw a hand-drawn mindmap capturing how the ideas connect.
Timeline
48 hours (shared with R3, after R1)
Video
38-minute walkthrough of DT mission, CARR, and PDGMS
Deliverable
Hand-drawn mindmap on paper (submit photo on Internshala)
Guidelines
- Take detailed notes while watching. 3-4 pages minimum with finer arguments, not just headlines.
- Do not ignore unfamiliar words. Google them or ask AI to explain in your mother tongue.
- Hand-drawn only. NO AI. If we find AI usage in the mindmap, you will be eliminated. If your goal is fitness, you don't take a car.you actually run.
- Analytical detail matters. The bar is high. Many get eliminated due to mindmaps that lack detail. This is a map of how ideas relate, not a summary.
- On the same mindmap, mark what you intend to observe about Scientific Thinking during the Virtual Tour.
- Submit on Internshala immediately after completing Round 2. Do not wait for Round 3.
Round 3
Career Roadmap Reflection
20 questions. We want to see how you handle situations. When things go wrong, do you blame the team or do you figure out what you could have done differently? That tells us more than any resume.
Most candidates get eliminated here.
Because they answer without thinking.
What most people say
“We had bad coordination.”
Tells us nothing. Who dropped the ball? Why? What would you do differently?
What we want to hear
“I didn't check on Person B's progress until two days before the deadline. By then it was too late.”
This person can trace a problem back to a specific decision they made.
You will sit with founders
If you can't honestly see your own gaps, you won't be able to see theirs. That's the job.
We want honesty, not polish
“I don't know how to fix this yet” is a better answer than “I am a team player.” We can work with honesty. We can't work with performance.
This report is yours to keep
Selected or not, you walk away knowing where you stand across 5 dimensions. That itself is worth the 20 minutes.
How to Answer
- 15-20 minutes. 20 questions. Be honest. There are no right answers, only your answers.
- Answer in your mother tongue or any language you are comfortable in. Deep questions deserve deep thinking, so pick a language where your thoughts flow freely.
- Free ChatGPT has a limit on responses, so copy-paste all answers at once. No premium subscription needed.
- Read the guidelines carefully. A trap is designed to identify applicants who take shortcuts without reading guidelines.
Execution Discipline
Submission: Two Parts
Submit your Career Roadmap Reflection via Google Form
Open Google FormWrite a reflection on Internshala in your own words (NO AI/LLM)
Go back to your 20 answers. Read them once. Then answer these three prompts:
Which answer was the hardest to write honestly?
That is probably the area where you have the most to learn. Say which question and why it was hard.
Did you notice a pattern across your answers?
Maybe you kept blaming others. Maybe you had no evidence for things you claim. Maybe you realised you never follow through. Name the pattern.
What is one specific thing you want to change about how you work?
Not a big goal. Something small. Like: “I will check on my teammates' progress every 3 days instead of assuming they are on track.”
That is your reflection. Answer these three in your own words on Internshala. Five lines is enough. Do not use AI. We can tell.
Round 4 · After Shortlisting
Virtual Tour
We show you how we work first. Interviews happen after the tour, not before.
Schedule
3 days tour + 3 days shadowing. 5 PM – 9 PM via Zoom.
Orientation Days
New cohorts start on Tuesdays and Fridays.
What You'll See
Hypothesis Framing
Real business problems framed as hypotheses, not complaints
PDGMS Workspace
Threadbuilder, Rigorbuilder, Self-Gratitude, Journal in action
Constraint Classification
Not “I’m stuck” but which type of stuck, routed to the right team
The 5×5 Grid
5 value chain functions × 5 authority levels, live
Commitment
What we ask. What we invest.
This is a full-time commitment. Proceed only if you can dedicate the required time and energy.
Schedule
10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Monday – Saturday
Duration
24 months
Full-time fellowship
Compensation
₹10,000–₹35,000/month
Ecommerce roles
L&D Investment
₹5,000/month
DT invests in your growth
Location
Work From Home
Experience: 0–4 years
Internet
High-speed required
Stable for video calls
Rules of Engagement
AI policy. Per round.
Round 1.Assignment
Use AI tools freely. Set guardrails against hallucination.
Round 1.Hand-drawn Sketch
Shows YOUR thought process. Hand-drawn only.
Round 2.Mindmap
Hand-drawn on paper. AI usage = elimination.
Round 3.CustomGPT Chat
The CustomGPT IS the tool. Use it as designed.
Round 3.Internshala Message
Your own words. No Grammarly, no LLMs.
All Communication with DT
We want YOUR thinking, not a language model's.
Consent to Proceed
Before starting, you'll reply on Internshala with:
“I understand that:
- The selection process is long, rigorous, and most applicants are not selected.
- I may be rejected even after significant effort.
- I will remain professional in all communication.
- I will not use LLM/AI tools in the chat thread.
- I will complete Round 1 within 48 hours and R1+R2+R3 within 96 hours.”
FAQs
Common questions. Clear answers.
Open Roles
Pick your path into the DT Fellowship.
Each role has a unique Round 1 assignment. The selection experience (rounds, mentorship, the work) is the same.
The Launchpad
Other jobs give you a title.
This one gives you a seat at the table.
Sravan went from BBA graduate to Chief of Staff. Shagun shipped 58 modules as a fresher. They weren't trained for it. They did the work, alongside founders, on real problems, with real stakes.
“Everyone at some point in life should work at DT.”
Feliza Dadachenji, Maths Asst Professor | DT Fellow, 2020
We don't look for the best candidate.
We look for the most curious one.
Challenges should fuel you, not frustrate you.