What Makes a Great Hackathon? Here Are Six Tips on How to Get It Right (And Why It’s Worth It)

Hackathons bring together teams to solve problems, build solutions, and push ideas forward fast. When structured well, they spark innovation and turn ideas into action. Notably, over 80% of Fortune 100 companies use hackathons as a strategy to fuel innovation, according to Forbes.

Over the past year, we’ve hosted multiple hackathons with Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), as well as our internal one, xPrize. We’ve witnessed breakthrough ideas, unexpected collaborations, and solutions with significant business impact. If you want yours to drive similar results, here’s what you need to know.

Why You Should Run One

Still unsure? A well–run hackathon can:

• Spark innovation by bringing fresh perspectives to business challenges.
• Drive team collaboration across departments and expertise levels.
• Identify new talent and upskill existing teams.
• Rapidly test and validate ideas before committing to full–scale development.

The Fundamentals of Running a Hackathon

Whether in–person or virtual, every hackathon follows a similar structure:

1. Preparation: Define clear objectives, select relevant themes, and handle logistics such as venue selection and scheduling. If you’re working with AI, for example, you could structure the hackathon around themes like AI for Good (solving societal challenges), AI for Industry (advancing solutions specific to your sector), or AI for Your Business (optimizing internal process and driving efficiency).
2. Team Formation: Encourage diverse skill sets in teams to foster creativity and innovation. We strongly advise including non–technical participants as well – designers, strategists, marketers, and other business professionals who bring valuable perspectives but often feel discourage from joining. A mix of skills leads to better, more well rounded, and practical solutions.
3. Problem–Solving and Building: Provide necessary resources and mentorship to guide teams as they brainstorm, develop, and iterate on their ideas. This phase is crucial for transforming concepts into tangible prototypes.
4. Presentations and Awards: Give teams a platform to showcase their solutions, receive feedback, and be recognized. After all this hard work, winning participants deserve meaningful rewards – whether it’s prizes, funding for further development, or leadership support to bring ideas to life.

6 Expert Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Hackathon

Beyond the fundamentals, these strategies ensure your hackathon creates lasting value.

1. Judges often pick the most exciting pitch, not the best solution. Structure scoring to avoid this bias.

   A slick, well–rehearsed presentation can overshadow a more practical or innovative idea. To counter this, create a weighted scoring system that prioritizes feasibility, originality, and real–world impact. Consider using blind evaluations for certain criteria so judges focus on the solution, rather than solely on the delivery.

2. Have ‘wild card’ judges (People from outside your industry) to challenge assumptions.

   Internal experts can miss disruptive ideas because they’re too close to existing ways of working. Bringing in judges from completely different sectors adds fresh perspectives. These judges ask critical questions that industry insiders might overlook, helping teams refine their ideas beyond “business–as–usual" thinking.

3. Require teams to explain implementation. Feasibility is as important as creativity.

   Many hackathon ideas sound great in theory but fall apart in execution. To ensure real impact, require teams to outline an implementation roadmap, including technical feasibility, budget, and potential roadblocks. Instead of asking, “What’s your idea?” push them with, “How will this actually work?”

4. Have a plan for ‘second–place winners’–many strong ideas don’t take first place but still deserve development.

   Some of the best hackathon solutions don’t win simply because they don’t fit the competition’s immediate priorities. Create a pathway for non–winning ideas to be developed further – whether through mentorship, funding, or connecting teams with the right internal stakeholders. A structured “runners–up” program can ensure great ideas don’t get lost.

5. Keep a ‘no dead ends’ policy – every team should leave with feedback, connections, or next steps.

   Similarly, too many hackathons end with teams walking away feeling like their work disappeared into a void. Give every team something valuable to take forward. That can be detailed judge feedback, an internal sponsor interested in their idea, or an invitation to present their solution elsewhere. Even teams that don’t win should leave with a sense of progress.

6. Track participant retention. Are the same people joining each time, or are you attracting new talent?

   This one applies if you’re planning to run multiple hackathons (but we trust you will)! So, a strong hackathon ecosystem doesn’t bring back the same people – it continuously attracts fresh perspectives. Measure how many participants are returning versus how many are new and adjust your outreach to ensure a diverse and evolving pool of talent.

A hackathon is an opportunity to drive change.

The best hackathons don’t follow a rigid formula – they test ideas, push teams to think differently, and compress weeks of innovation into days. These are our insights, but it’s your hackathon. Take what works, adapt what you need, and make it your own!