Benefits of a Hackathon for Developing Your Company’s Talent

With ever-increasing technological advancement, you want to ensure that your employees are staying up-to-date with what’s new in your industry. Employees constantly challenged to bring out their best and tap into their creativity are always more productive in the long run. 

One way to drive creativity and initiative among talent in your company is by organizing team competitions. It enhances their spirit of accomplishment and recognition, improves their knowledge, and helps them grow and develop. 

Organizing a hackathon provides such an opportunity. Hackathons build competitive spirit and help your employees learn new skills. They get to develop their capacity, express hidden potential, and win fantastic prizes while at it.

Hackathons also allow employers to observe the skills and talents of their employees. They provide an opportunity to find the best man for a new role or help you see the unique strengths of your workers.

In this article, we will be looking at what a hackathon is and the benefits that a hackathon holds for developing your company’s talent.

What Is a Hackathon?

A hackathon is a competitive event put together by tech companies. This event allows industry enthusiasts to unite in one place, form teams, and use their knowledge and skills to solve problems or develop new technology. 

Asides from being competitive, hackathons are a perfect opportunity to connect with like-minded people and make new friends. It is an opportunity for employees to display their skills and even land their next big tech job. 

Most hackathons usually last between 24 to 72 hours. Within this time, teams are supposed to come together to brainstorm and solve the challenge the organizers put forward. After the work is done, the participating teams present their work in front of a crowd and in front of judges in the hopes of winning the grand prize.

Virtual hackathons are growing more popular these days with advancements in technology. So people no longer need to gather physically before the event can be held. Hackathon software can help organizers and participating teams manage the event from start to finish. 

The hackathon software allows participants to connect with other team members and hold virtual team meetings and brainstorming sessions. They can share regular updates on the project’s progress, submit projects, and view results. Using the Hackathon software makes it easy for teams to collaborate effortlessly regardless of where they are from the start of the project to the end.

How a Best Hackathon Software Can Benefit Your Company’s Talent

Although most people typically enter hackathons in hopes of winning the grand prize, there are many other ways a hackathon can help develop your company’s talent.

1. Improving Creativity and Problem-Solving Skills

There is no better way to get your employees’ creative genius to speak than organizing a contest with a prize attached. A hackathon software involves putting skills and expertise together to solve an actual problem.

So participating in hackathons allows your employees to get creative . as they try to figure out a solution to the problem or generate new technology. This way, their problem-solving skills get built up and strengthened. 

2. Improving Their Skills and Expertise 

Hackathons usually involve an array of individuals with different skills and expertise. This means that participants get to interact with not just their peers but experts and mentors in the industry. This provides a perfect opportunity to learn and grow.

Sharing ideas and work progress on the hackathon software allows participants to see what others are doing, benefit from their expertise, and improve their skills. Whether or not they win the grand prize, hackathon participants often come out of the event better and more experienced. 

3. Strengthening Collaboration and Teamwork 

During a hackathon, participants often find themselves in teams with people that they probably have never worked with previously. This helps to improve their team-building spirit and enhance their ability to work with others. In trying to collaborate to figure out the solution to the problem or create new technology, team members learn to trust each other and rely on the help and input of others.  

This team spirit is a valuable resource you can count on for projects in the future. Using the best accounting software will allow hackathon participants to collaborate with each other virtually and exchange ideas in real-time, regardless of where they are. 

4. Improving Presentation Skills and Confidence

To complete a hackathon, participating teams usually must present their work in front of a large audience and judges. This can be a new experience for many employees. Especially those whose normal work routine requires them to sit at a desk or in front of the computer all day. 

Presenting their work to a large audience during a hackathon will help to build their confidence in public speaking and help to enhance their presentation skills. Aside from public speaking, the event requires participants to interact continuously via the hackathon software throughout the duration of the project. 

This also helps to improve their social skills and better how they interact with others within and outside the confines of the project.

5. Improving Project Management Skills

This is another way that hackathons benefit your company and help to develop your company’s talent. A hackathon is a time-based project that could include several parts and steps. Participating in a hackathon allows employees to develop their project management skills. 

It allows them to learn how best to put units together and achieve specific targeted results within a timeframe, from planning the different details and inputs of the project and then to the actual execution of the project. A hackathon equips your employees with the necessary skills to manage time-based projects. 

6. Providing Motivation and Inspiration

Sometimes your employees can get bored from the monotonous everyday routine, affecting their overall productivity. A hackathon allows them to break the routine, try something new and come out of their comfort zone. Aside from work, hackathons provide an opportunity for your employees to mingle. 

The challenge and new experiences that come with participating in a hackathon can serve to provide motivation and inspiration for your team. Even teams that do not win come out of the experience feeling energized and motivated to try their hands at new tasks. 

Participating in problem-solving competitions also engenders a feeling of commitment and pride. This will reflect on employee morale and affect how they do their jobs going forward. 

Conclusion

Employees are the lifeblood of any organization. To remain on top, your employees need to be driven, creative and open to accepting new challenges. A hackathon provides the best avenue to do this. 

Aside from challenging their creativity and genius, hackathons can greatly benefit your company by showing your employees how to work together and collaborate in teams. Hackathons expose your talents to mentors and experts who can inspire them and help them improve their skills. 

Hackathons are also a great avenue to observe your employees in play. Here you can see hidden potential and spot valuable leaders to fill certain positions. 

On the whole, organizing a hackathon will greatly benefit your employees as they learn how to manage time better, organize and manage projects and work together. The best hackathon software will ensure you have all the resources you need to set up the event and reap maximum results.