“Hackathon” is something of a buzzword in the tech industry, much like a “webinar” is in the age of remote working. Hackathons are a well-established tool in tech, so much so that many of the features you use on your favourite social networks and apps were brainstormed and workshopped at hackathons.
A hackathon is a special session of designated time where developers and coders work together in one room to solve a particular challenge or problem. These events are also great tools for those working in tech, for several reasons.
The first reason is that they bring together team members who may usually work in isolation. This breaks the boredom of everyday routine and allows workers to approach challenges with a fresher mindset. The second is that it creates a fun and free environment where team members can collaborate and learn from each other by riffing off each other’s skills and experience.
Solving new and old challenges
Bringing diverse groups together allows technical teams to come up with innovative new solutions to challenges that may have left individuals or businesses stumped for some time. As the adage goes, two heads are indeed better than one. Besides providing an opportunity to overcome old challenges in new ways, hackathons present the chance to brainstorm new and innovative ideas by leveraging the diversity of knowledge and experience present, as team members feed off one another’s ideas and energy.
This is great for new product development within a business, but it also helps to grow and promote company culture. It’s the perfect environment in which to develop patches and to troubleshoot and refine existing or soon-to-be-launched software.
Creative freedom while having fun
Hackathons are also a great way to allow coders the creative freedom to work on projects or issues that they just haven’t had time for. This also allows coders to keep working, while enjoying the mental break of doing something completely different.
Developing and growing together as a team is an invaluable benefit of hosting an event like a hackathon. At Boxfusion, we pride ourselves on ensuring that our teams have the opportunity to grow and innovate, because in the end, everyone wins if we can make great, award-winning solutions.
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