Edugild Backed Gradopedia Raises Seed Funding from Dubai Based HNIs

Mumbai-based Career Intelligence startup Gradopedia has raised an undisclosed amount in seed funding from Dubai-based high net worth individuals. Launched in early 2015, Gradopedia started as a Career Discovery platform – helping graduates understand different career profiles by watching videos from professionals.

Gradopedia was a part of the first batch of Edugild, a startup accelerator programme focussed on the education sector. Other startups in this segment include iDreamCareer (iDC), Careers360, Avagmah, iProf, Meritnation, Simplilearn, etc.

The 4 month acceleration programme helped Gradopedia address the ‘personalisation’ problem where graduates really need help with understand profiles and get an idea of where they stand – and how to build their respective careers instead of following the herd.

“We are working with actual professionals across career profiles to define employability through a ‘GradoScore’ for each profile – a combination of technical skills, personality traits and other parameters. This score allows graduates to benchmark themselves and see the jobs that are available at their current level, while also highlight the tangible steps they can take (courses, workshops, mentorship, etc.) to improve their score and land a better job,” said Hitesh Awtaney, Co-founder and CEO, Gradopedia.

It also opens up an affiliate revenue model apart from charging companies for recruitment, while the product stays free of charge for graduates.

Gradopedia will use the new funds to enhance and build on the product, do some key hires in Technology and Operations and get early traction.

“We’ve tested the waters with pilots in various segments and are delighted by the response. The aim is to fill the Core Team and attain operational breakeven by the end of the financial year,” said Hitesh.

When asked about the next round, Hitesh added – “We’ve already received investor interest from various players in the education and recruitment space. We’re going to open the Angel round in January and go with the investors who can take the venture to the next level.”