EAE News
EAE Business School’s Building Leaders Hackathon is back!
03 de June de 2020
Building Leaders Hackathon 2020: The challenge that connects students with the leading companies of the moment
Did you think that EAE would miss out on one of its most important employability and professional training events this year? Well, think again, because the Building Leaders Hackathon 2020 is taking place virtually and is ready to go on 3rd and 4th June, providing an innovative experience in which companies and participants work together to generate a solution to the challenges set in the competition.
We talk to Federica Assandria, the Career Manager and organizer of the event, who tells us everything we need to know about the Building Leaders Hackathon 2020.
Federica, how would you define the Building Leaders Hackathon 2020?
The Hackathon is a really interesting and rewarding challenge in which the participating students are on a mission to resolve certain business challenges set by the companies taking part.
When will the Hackathon be held and who is taking part?
The event runs for two days, on 3rd and 4th June. A total of 137 previously selected students and 13 companies will be taking part. The students will form groups of around five members and each company will be assigned two groups. the two groups of each company will compete to resolve the challenge in the fastest and most effective way possible.
How will the virtual version take place? What will the dynamic be?
The Building Leaders Hackathon 2020 will be held on the BlackBoard platform and, in the same way as in a physical event, there will be different meeting rooms and a well-established timetable, which runs from 16:00 to 18:00.
On the first day, 3rd June, the event starts and we meet up in a virtual room to introduce the event, announce the companies, assign the groups and present a short overview of the key information for ensuring a good business challenge.
Moreover, just like in a physical event, there will be different rooms, including the plenary room, where we all meet up and where the introductory part takes place. Each company will then go with the two assigned groups to another room to get an in-depth explanation of the challenge and clear up any doubts that the students may have. Lastly, each group meets up in a different room, just with the team members. This is where they develop the proposition to tackle the challenge that they have been set.
What about the winner? How are they picked?
The winner of the hackathon has to get through three crucial phases. First of all, they have to develop and put forward a proposal for the assigned challenge. Secondly, they have to compete with and beat the team tackling the same challenge. Last but not least, all the winners go to the semi-final, which takes place in the general room, where the overall winner is chosen based on a vote.
In your opinion, how does the Hackathon boost employability?
The companies taking part are leaders in their sector and, moreover, throughout the event, the recruiters will go around the team to see and get to know the profiles so that later, depending on what they are looking for, they can contact the participants and schedule more formal processes such as interviews and selection processes.
Lastly, why do you think that these events are important?
Firstly, because they enhance your visibility among the participating companies and, in addition, it is an opportunity to increase the likelihood of having an interview with one of the companies in the short, medium or long term. It should also be noted that this experience involves a steep learning curve, which forces you out of your comfort zone. You learn a lot of new things and develop skills related to business, decision-making and real situations.
If you are a participant in EAE’s Building Leaders Hackathon 2020, here are some general tips to make sure that you are ready and perform at 100% throughout the event. Good luck!
