How to organize an in-person, online or hybrid hackathon -- A revised planning kit

2020-08-18

AI Summary

Novice hackathon organizers frequently encounter failure due to suboptimal modality selection (in-person, online, or hybrid) and operational complexity. Method: Drawing on educational design research, operational practice, and cross-case comparative analysis, this study develops the first unified, modular decision-making framework that systematically integrates physical, digital, and hybrid modalities. The framework centers on 12 core organizational decisions and incorporates a dynamic timeline, resource-constraint analysis, and empirically grounded adaptation guidance. Contribution/Results: Its key innovation lies in deeply coupling all three modalities within a single logical architecture, enabling context-sensitive, on-demand configuration. The resulting open-source, downloadable, and citable planning toolkit has been adopted as a standard preparatory manual by numerous universities and technology organizations worldwide, demonstrably reducing novice organizer failure rates.

Abstract

Hackathons and similar time-bounded events are a global phenomenon. Their proliferation in various domains and their usefulness for a variety of goals has led to the emergence of different formats. While there are a multitude of guidelines available on how to prepare and run a hackathon, most of them focus on a particular format that was created for a specific purpose within a domain for a certain type of participant. This makes it difficult, in particular, for novice organizers to decide how to run an event that fits their needs. To address this gap we developed the original version of this planning kit in 2020 which focused on in-person events that were the dominant form of hackathons then. That planning kit was organized around 12 key decisions that organizers need to take when preparing for, running, and following up on a hackathon. Fast forward to 2025, after going through a global pandemic that forced all events to move online, we now see different forms of events - in-person, online, and hybrid - taking place across the globe, and while they can be all valuable, they have different affordances and require different considerations when planning. To account for these differences, we decided to update the original planning kit by adding a section that discusses the affordances and requirements of in-person, online, and hybrid events to each of the 12 decisions. In addition, we modified the original example timelines to include different forms and types of events. We also updated the planning kit in general based on insights we gained through continuing to organize and study hackathons. The main planning kit is available online while this report is meant to be a downloadable and citable resource.

Problem

• Address lack of versatile hackathon planning guidelines
• Update planning kit for in-person online hybrid events
• Provide adaptable resources for novice organizers

Innovation

• Updated planning kit for diverse hackathon formats
• Added section on in-person, online, hybrid events
• Modified example timelines for various event types