How can you put your company’s passion, creativity, and capabilities to work for social good?
Host a 24-hour hackathon in collaboration with a local nonprofit to develop some creative solutions to their challenges.
In a Dec. 6 Fast Company article, Hackathons are one way a company can give back to the nonprofit sector.
A hackathon is an event usually hosted by a tech company or organization, where programmers and designers come together for a short but intense period, to create a program or prototype to solve a societal or business challenge. I
t does not even need to be tech-focused, it can put to use the diverse skill sets of a company’s employees and develop business, marketing, or innovations that help the nonprofit meet its mission.
Hackathons are often structured as competitions to generate energy and alternate solutions. For example, in 2020, Databricks sponsored its first virtual global “Hackathon for Social Good” with data teams competing to tackle climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, or issues unique to their local communities.
Hackathons also provide the company with a culture-building exercise of teamwork, craft, and creativity. It is one way a company can put its specific expertise and assets to work for the common good.
In the Fast Company article, Barry Fiske of Live Area (Merkle) suggests that the “resulting digital experiences, products, and content will prove as valuable for your own team as they are for the nonprofit”.
Now You: Have you ever participated in a hackathon?
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