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How can we help you?
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Marija Mijic
HR & Office Allrounder
T +43 660 383 95 46
office@craftworks.at
craftworks GmbH
Schottenfeldgasse 20/6a
1070 Vienna
The secrets behind
winning a hackathon.
Lifelong learning is deeply embedded in our DNA. We learn every day. We get better. And one of our favorite ways to learn is through do-it-yourself hackathons.
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Behind the Scenes
reading time: 5 min
SIMON GRABHER
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This is where we outgrow ourselves, innovate, and work together as a team to achieve a common goal in a short amount of time.
The main idea of a hackathon is to develop working solutions within a relatively short period of time. All within a maximum of 48 hours. An intense time that demands everything from the team – but also brings out the best in them.
Highest ambition, good spirit, unrestrained motivation and the unbroken will to win has already led us to success 9 times in total. But what else does it need to win a hackathon?
The Vision.
Every project starts with a clear goal and vision – especially for a hackathon. What should be achieved in the short time available? How can we use our expertise to offer the customer the best possible outcome for his problem? A clear vision points the way and provides orientation.
The Planning.
Often the challenge is not known in advance. Therefore, it is particularly difficult to actually prepare for the challenge or to think one’s way into the topic in advance. Additionally, there is a very short time to actually work. For these reasons, quick decisions and a perfect, meaningful visualization of the end result are essential for success.
Stay focused!
Focus is needed during working hours. The clock is ticking and if you are going too deep on one particular feature you may have problems finishing it and end up with nothing to show for it - which is not an option. Also, keep in mind that pair programming costs one person - it’s not about quality here, it’s about speed. There are many distractions during the event. It’s best to ignore them and focus on achieving the vision.
The Grand Finale.
At the end of a hackathon there is usually the grand finale: the presentation! Keep in mind that the judges are mostly managers – meaning 80 % of them are not ML or software development professionals. It will be very hard to present subjects like “99,9 % accuracy” or “the best full-text search” to people, who are not so familiar with the difficulties of these challenges, and keep them excited for five to seven minutes.
Therefore, from our experience, the more features presented, the better. Because then you earn praise in the sense of “...and you did that in 2 days? We – in our big corporation – would have spent the time only with meetings”. It also helps the presenter a lot, if there is a “killer” or “fun” feature at the end of the presentation, to finish off with a memorable ending that blows the minds of the judges on what’s possible.
Long story short. To win a hackathon, you need one thing above all: TEAM SPIRIT.
But also perseverance, focus and the right attitude for the competition. When we participate in a Hackathon we aim to win! We put in all our passion and energy and try to create something innovative and unexpected.
And let’s be honest: Winning the contest is much more rewarding than just having been a part of it. But something you gain every time you participate is experience, new skills, and a great time.
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