Many of us have ideas, but how many of us have actually tried to make their ideas a reality? While often seen as tech events for coders, Hackathons offers tremendous value – more than meets the eye. Hackathons are a framework used by CEOs, educators, community leaders, and marketers across all sectors – including healthcare, automotive, and music, to name a few. Hackathons foster creativity, networking opportunities, and provide an avenue to deliver practical solutions to real-world challenges. Hackathons are ultimately time-constraint, pressurized competitions where ideas are formulated and put into action.
“Ideas are useless, execution is priceless”
Angela Bee Chan, Founder of Hackathons International
Hackathons are also not just about ideas, they’re also about formulating progress which is put into action. People do not only go to Hackathons to network with like minded individuals, they learn different skills from others, get immersed in the local community, and ultimately find and develop new ways to make a positive difference in our world.
People from all walks of life come to Hackathons because each individual’s unique experiences and expertise can make lasting contributions to the creation of something very valuable! Generally, we categorize participants as ‘hustlers’, ‘hipsters’ and ‘hackers’. We call this the Minimum Viable Team (MVT), the title which has been attributed towards the complimentary skills required to build a desirable, feasible, and viable products in a short and pressurized time frame.
Hackathons International hosts #HackTN every year where hundreds of innovators come together to find ways to grapple with the problems which arise as our city grows bigger and bigger. Participants of Hackathons use our unique framework to unite several local community groups to identify problems, develop innovative ideas, and implement concrete forward-thinking solutions. The gathering of creative minds from a variety of skills and different unique backgrounds allows participants to share their knowledge and expertise, while also providing an opportunity to converse with people from all walks of life.
The Evolution of Hackathons
Companies alike are also noticed Hackathons International’s blueprint to successful Hackathons, by using our framework to source, empower, and retain emerging talent. Hackathons provide a unique way to engage with high potential talent, share new and innovative products, and find people who like to think outside the box!
What makes Hackathons International events unique is that they have put in a lot of thought behind making sure everyone who participates feels like it’s a safe and inclusive environment to experiment and expand on intellectual capabilities that push the boundaries of innovation. In fact, they say that every participant should have the capacity to try new things, ask questions, experiment with different business models, processes, tools, and technologies, and also flex their creative muscles!
Angela describes this distinct framework as ‘FLEARN’ing – failing fast, failing forward, and learning. Failures are a crucial part of innovation because they allow a person and a team to learn from mistakes, quickly pivot, and use reflections and previous experiences as key drivers to contribute to long term success. Having grit and perseverance transforms setbacks into stepping stones. Failures are never the final destination. Those who embrace this mindset often outperform competitors by developing adaptive capabilities and psychological safety that encourages experimentation. Hackathons provide the space for this type of innovative progress.
Since moving to Nashville from Australia, Founder Angela Bee Chan has been a strong advocate for uplifting talent from a variety of backgrounds through Hackathons. Angela strives to support those who have relocated to Nashville by providing a place for them to network, develop their skills, and get integrated into the local community.
‘A team effort is the best effort’
Angela Bee Chan
