Future Leaders Business Hackathon

sherloc sparc

A national programme for real-world business decision making

Bringing together students, universities, and the SME ecosystem, the programme immerses participants in the realities of running a business in today’s volatile environment.

Through high-intensity simulation and structured challenges, students move beyond theory and develop the judgement, resilience, and decision-making required to lead under pressure.

Why the sherloc SPARC Future Leaders Business Hackathon

sherloc sparc

Preparing students to run and scale SMEs in uncertain times..

Experiential learning for a volatile world

The world students are entering is defined by volatility.

Supply chain shocks, rising costs, cyber threats, and geopolitical instability are no longer edge cases, they are the operating environment. Traditional case studies cannot replicate this.

sherloc SPARC does.

The Programme

The sherloc SPARC Future Leaders Business Programme combines high-intensity simulation with structured learning to bridge the gap between theory and real-world execution.

It is built around TWO CORE components:

SPARC Hackathon

Two-day, high-intensity business simulation

Students take control of a fictitious SME and navigate a series of escalating real-world challenges, including:

Customer demand shifts
Supply chain disruption
Energy cost spikes
Cyber security incidents

Powered by sherloc’s real-time decision engine, participants must make financial and strategic decisions under pressure and defend them to a panel of founders, investors, and business leaders.

This is not a pitch competition.

It is a leadership and decision-making challenge.

SPARC Curriculum Module

Faculty-delivered, scalable learning

Universities can deliver the SPARC experience in-house through a fully licensed curriculum module.

The programme includes:

Crisis scenarios and challenge cards
Teaching guides and lecture slides
Assessment frameworks and rubrics
Real-world artefacts including loan templates and equity models
Scoring systems and decision frameworks
Access to sherloc for students and faculty

Designed for flexible integration across MBA, MSc, and undergraduate programmes.

Who Can Apply

The programme is open to all university students, regardless of discipline or background.

You can apply as an individual and be placed into a team or apply as part of a team of four to six.
We are not looking for prior experience. We are looking for how you think, how you collaborate, and how you approach challenges.

Curiosity, judgement, and a willingness to engage with complexity matter far more than what you have done before.

What Students Gain

Cash prizes (subject to T&Cs)

Decision-making under uncertainty
Financial literacy in real-world conditions
Cross-functional leadership experience
Scenario-based strategic thinking
Structured communication and justification
Practical readiness for complex business environments

What Universities Gain

A flagship experiential learning module
A clear differentiator across programmes
Improved student satisfaction and engagement
Enhanced employability outcomes
Scalable, repeatable delivery
A direct bridge between academic theory and real-world complexity

For universities: Get your
students involved

We partner with universities that want to offer students meaningful, real-world experience beyond the classroom.

The programme is designed to complement academic learning, not add to teaching burden.

Why universities participate

A high-quality, experiential learning opportunity with clear educational value
Direct exposure for students to founders, investors, and SME leaders
No requirement for teaching delivery or assessment
Strong alignment with entrepreneurship, employability, and innovation priorities

Ways to engage:

Promote the hackathon to students
Embed it as an enrichment or co-curricular activity
Contribute academic or practitioner representatives to the jury

Book a Meeting

Download the Universities information pack

For sponsors: Support talent and
Build early relationships.

The hackathon gives sponsors early, meaningful access to future founders, operators, and SME leaders, at a stage where their thinking, behaviours, and preferences are still forming.

This is not brand visibility alone.

It is direct engagement with high-potential talent in a decision-making environment.

Book a Meeting

Download the Universities information pack

Judges and Advisors: Support the next generation of decision-makers

We bring together experienced professionals to form a multidisciplinary jury, including:

Venture capital and private equity
Corporate innovation and strategy teams
Incubators and accelerators
Founders, operators, and SME leaders

Why join the jury:

Direct exposure to emerging, high-potential talent
The opportunity to influence how future leaders think and make decisions
Visibility within a national, multi-partner ecosystem
A focused, time-efficient commitment with meaningful impact

Book a Meeting

University-specific editions

The sheroc SPARC Future Leaders Business Hackathon (c) runs in partnership with universities. Each institution has its own student cohort, communications and local ecosystem involvement.