Hackathons and Hiring – Are you Ready?
As you might expect there has been an avalanche of businesses wanting to take advantage of online demand which has seen e-commerce sales ballooning to now holding a very decent 20% share of the $22.5 Trillion worth of global retail sales.
It should also come as no surprise that there is an unprecedented surge in investment within the sector and the need to find competent talent to fill the array of roles, that are being created in the digital ecosystems, is becoming harder and harder.
Talent acquisition, therefore, is going to be of a major concern in the coming years which should spell good news for us growing our skills in the internet marketing space.
What woke me up to this, even more, was an email I received yesterday morning. The email was titled ‘I am hiring exception people, want to apply Hugh?’ The role in this tech multinational could span any of the 12 sub businesses listed. Who could avoid opening an email with such a brand and magnetic copy? The invitation went on to request that I register for the hackathon.
I thought a hackathon was some kind of dark web group desiring to get at my pennies hidden under my digital mattress. And in some instances, Black hats do this but in this instance, we are talking more about White Hats.
A Hackathon in this instance was going to be a competition where tasks are given live and candidates compete for a prize at the end. The client’s hiring team would review the candidate's performance and determine who the winners are, leading to hiring for roles ultimately.
So I wondered how a Hackathon was different from an ordinary online interview and what impact this could have on future hiring processes for individuals in this internet space.
Additionally while it seemed to be quite novel was it an improvement on the normal hiring process?: Let's see. For a Hackathon
- the catchment of candidates is unlimited since any candidate in the world, receiving the email, could pick up the offer to participate. This extensive pool could certainly expose the firm to the best talent available. Conducting formal linear online interviews with a number of people around the world would be quite challenging and take some time to complete.
- The cost of the different stages of recruitment would be removed by having one Hackathon event which would whittle the field down to final selection. This could eliminate the recruitment agency intermediaries for instance and the process of vetting cv’s. That’s certainly a plus.
- The Hackathon is usually done over several hours when teams of contestants pour over their computers to deliver tangible products and solutions to the companies needs. In exchange for the cash, the company gets the chance to leverage the possibility of several solutions with promise along with hiring the best in class candidates.
- The Hackathon by its very game design would yield a better understanding of how a candidate would problem solve; adjust to pressure; use ingenuity; respond to disagreement; assume leadership and supportive roles within unique groups that are often culturally dissimilar. This is not achievable in a classic interview.
- This approach, as it gains credence, is timely to new entrants into the workforce - Gen Z and Alphas - as the newest generations are much more comfortable and thrive in competitive gaming virtual environments.
It is likely as we move to more virtual work environments with a wider catchment of remote workers that this Hackathon approach might become much more established as a form of recruitment. Are you ready?
Looking forward to you sharing your likes on comments on your impression of Hackathons.
Blessings to all,
Hugh
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Recent Comments
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Hello Hugh! not sure If I like this hackathon, I am pretty sure this will come about some time in the future, if not now, and yes you could create such an opportunity for such people, and maybe find the right people for the job, yes I think the newer generation would be more into this.
Thank you,
I have looked at my son playing his PS4 game with several friends. They have a highly developed way of coordinating and communicating their actions. They reprimand, celebrate and plot out strategy. It is all very interesting and much more geared for his mindset. I find it quite a task to manipulate the controls and think in 3D far less do all the other tasks. So the younger generations clearly have it over us in this regard.
Hi Hugh,
This is interesting. In previous times Hackathon was a yearly event held by the government of Guyana for computer programmers to display their skills.
I have no idea if one was held last year. So much was going on I may have missed it.
Personally I love the idea because persons who can ace an interview aren't necessarily always the best candidate for the job. I know a few people who could easily outperform the others who would have been chosen based on their ability to sell themselves as well as certification. However, when candidates are forced to display their skills it could potentially open doors for persons who have the skills but aren't certified or just don't have the ability to sell themselves.
This could potentially level the playing field. Well except for those who do not perform well under pressure.
I expect the process to come will be interesting. Now all we need is for the participants to also remain anonymous so as to also remove prejudices.
Candy Benn
Hey Candy you reveal two very good points on firstly removing traditional interview bias from being a purely academic and presentation level to giving more demonstration of actual ability. And secondly that visible physical interviewer prejudices still could exist though I believe this is mitigated by having an interview panel/ team.
Good seeing you.
Hugh
I've been in a few hackathons as a programmer/developer back in the day, Hugh - as a participant and a judge. The common thread in most of them were that these team members knew each other - we were either classmates, colleagues, co-workers, etc. So you already had an idea of who was going to take charge, who wasn't, and who would be dragging behind everyone else.
Perhaps if you were going to recruit the entire team, then I can understand that you want to see how they operate under pressure and can work together to problem solve. But if we hire them, they're usually going to be working alone, on their piece of the project and have to pull their own weight - not always as a group.
I personally struggled in these events under the time constraints, but found that I strived better in a one-on-one interview, especially if it was technical. I could take my time and explain things at my own pace.
Just my thoughts, Hugh
Isaiah 😊
Thanks very much for the input, Isaiah. I was hoping to find someone that had actually gone through this process. Is the Hackathon model devolving then you think from common group to individual? And in that light is it that the type of tasks assigned catering more so for the lack of initial synergy that would be typical in a group?
Honestly - some of these group tasks could also be handled by an individual over the course of a few months. Giving it to a small group could be a way go to gauge the synergy - not just within the group, but with others. How would some of these individuals thrive in my current environment should I recruit them? That would also be a valuable metric to HR.
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What an unexpectedly comfortable relief it is to me to learn that the chances of me ever receiving the email inviting me to the digital Hunger Games are next to zero. I was, in fact, today years old when I learned that Hackathons exist.
Now I know. May the odds be ever in your favor...
Cheers,
Donna
You have me cracking up in stitches Donna. Good one!
Loved your response Donna! Here I was thinking I had a good chance of being invited to Maze Runner. You're not alone...I was today years old too! Who knew?! Cheers!
Maria
Yeah Maria you and Donna take win
Ha! I like this line of thinking too. Send out Hackathon invitations to 30 men, then in the middle of the competition, a random woman shows up and changes the course of the entire competition with one line of code. 😆
Donna, I think you're onto something here...thinking Hackathon niche with a twist. Panel of interviewers from ComicCon conventions with interviewees who must meet the criteria of having worn a fluffy character costume at least once! 😂