Hackathon: A Fair of Modern Technical World

If you are living in the technical world, then you must be aware of the word Hackathons. The hackathons have taken the world by storm and you can see many companies and colleges are using this tool to bring together innovative strangers who solve problems and also improve the world of technology.Hackathon

Initially, they were organized for fun but now they have started impacting a system in which they are addressed.

So today we are going to talk about the hackathons and how you should think of organizing one in your organization.

What is Hackathon?

A hackathon is a competitive event in which a large number of designers, developers and experts in different subjects collaborate to have a solution to a specific problem within a defined time frame.

There are many forms of a hackathon but most popular ones are offline or in physical platforms. They usually last for 24 hours or two days. They are mostly scheduled for weekends. The participants of the event are encouraged to create innovative solutions to the problem of the specific theme of the hackathon.

This is a perfect platform which can be used to explore new technology and also provide a place for the like-minded people to come together and build something advanced.

Types of Hackathons

Before organizing, the company should be aware of the types of hackathons. They are based on their objectives, the organizations can choose from the following options:

1. Internal Hackathon

The internal hackathon or also known as corporate hackathon is a kind of hackathon which is organized for its employees. There are many reasons like crowdsourcing ideas, boosting collaboration or promoting intrapreneurship and also employee engagement.

This is a great opportunity for the employee of the company as well, as it gives them a platform to think out of the box and pitch their new ideas to the senior management.

2. External Hackathon

These types of hackathons are organized by the companies to engage the people from within as well as from outside the organization.

Themes and goals are set of these kinds of hackathons by which the participants can get an influence. Through this hackathon, the organization will be able to harvest the ideas globally.

3. Online Hackathon

The companies are thinking of engaging the number of people from different geographies or time zones of the world, the online or virtual kind of hackathons are organized by them. Everything from registration to idea submission and judgment is done online in this type.

4. Offline Hackathon

These the most popular types of hackathons which are used by the company for driving the recruitment, beta testing of the existing products, gauging external developer engagement and also the innovations for the new apps.

It is conducted at a physical location. So if you are thinking or organizing these kinds of hackathons, you need to consider time, geography and also logical constraints. Workshops are organized; knowledge sharing sessions will be there along with all the tools for the hackathon theme.

No doubt, organizing the hackathon will require manpower, sleepless nights, organized chaos, a lot of planning. But what are the reasons which are making all these efforts worth? So following are some of the points which will surely make up your mind to organize hackathons for your organization.

Things to Consider for Conducting Hackathons for your Organisation

1. Brand Management

If you want your company to be the main topic of chatter in the business world, then organizing a great hackathon event will be very beneficial. These kinds of big events undoubtedly create quite a bit of conversation.

They are the public event which will help you in making a great image of the company and for its marketing as well. In this way, you can give a great competition to your fellow companies and it will also let people know the worth of the company.

2. Find New Talents

To find the great coders and talented engineers for the company is always a big task and it requires a lot of skills testing. With organizing the hackathon, hackathon organizers can give the platform for the worthy new employee and check their ability and skills on a large platform. If you want to recruit new employees, then you are halfway through the process. You can get the right talents on the platform and have great on-site recruitment.

3. Improving Skills of the Team

When the hackathon is being organized by the organization, it becomes important for the employee of the company to come forward and volunteer to take part in it. In this way, they will encourage more and more people from outside to come in the organization’s hackathon.

This, on the one hand, increases the numbers of attendants, while it also helps in providing an opportunity for the team to gain new experience in the new territories. This is helpful for the company in long term as the knowledge gained by the employee will be bound to improve the productivity of the company itself in the future.

4. New Contacts and Horizons

These hackathons are also a good platform for acquiring new contacts and business as it puts you in the news. If the hackathon event gets successful, the chances are, it will benefit your business also.

With this, you can also broaden the horizon of your company and look forward to the new opportunities which are out there. In the end, this will be beneficial for your company’s future in many ways.

Benefits of organizing a hackathon in your company can be limitless. You want to keep your company ahead of the competitors or just want to go to the simpler way; the choice is in your hands. You will able to make the diversity as your strength which is the new mantra for success in this world.

After all, the alternate perspectives will result in more and more better solutions for your company. So what are you waiting for? Grab a pen, make your team and start working in your next big event!

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