“Let’s just say I know a guy…who knows a guy…who knows another guy.” – Saul Goodman

Can you fathom what might have happened if Saul Goodman hadn’t said these words on the hit TV series “Breaking Bad”?

While it might have saved us some tears at the season finale, it got the protagonist Walter White in touch with Tuco Salamanca, and without spilling any spoiler beans, we can safely say that it took the show to a whole new level.

In the corporate world – referral recruitment is the equivalent of that.

But what exactly is referral recruitment?

Simply put, it is a strategy where current employees of a company are encouraged to refer contacts for vacant positions within the company.

It is a tactic where companies empower employees to become brand advocates and through word-of-mouth attract top talent from their peer networks to work for the company.

This is not a new concept – referral programs have existed since the time of Julius Caesar’s rule in 55 B.C, who apparently offered 300 sestertii to any soldier recruiting another into the Roman army.

The amount was far from measly as it amounted to almost one-third of a soldier’s annual pay.

Fast forward many centuries later, companies continue to harness the power of referral recruitment to get high-potential candidates to work for them.

In this article, we will explore how referral recruitment is better than most other recruitment methods and ways in which companies can make it more efficient.

5 Benefits of having a referral program

1. Higher retention of employees

   Retention is a top concern for talent leaders all over the world. Referrals are the perfect vessels with which to wade the murky waters of talent acquisition and retention.

   This is because the turnover rate of referred employees is found to be lesser than non-referred employees who are hired through other recruitment mediums.

   Research shows that 56% of referred employees stay for over five years in their current position, and over 70% stayed in the same position as the time of hire, which indicates higher job satisfaction.

2. Higher employee productivity

   A study by Stanford found that referred employees have higher productivity compared to employees hired through alternative channels.

   They were also found to have better company fitment, which is a top priority for employers, as the referred candidates are aware of the company culture and working conditions at the time of joining the company.

3. Costs a fraction of other recruitment methods

   When your employees recruit top talent for you, you cut your talent acquisition costs significantly.

   You save on advertising costs for job boards, the cost of hiring an RPO or a staffing agency, recruitment drives, and more.

   The financial incentive that you pay employees when a referral gets hired is only a fraction of other recruitment costs.

4. Leads to higher innovation

   Yes, you read it right — referrals were found to boost innovation according to the study titled “You’d be perfect for this: Understanding the Value of Hiring Through Referrals.”

   The social synergy at a workplace where employees have more friends leads to more innovative ideas compared to a workplace with fewer referrals.

5. Saves time

   Referrals skip the Awareness and Consideration stages of the recruiting funnel (depicted below) and skip straight to the Selection or Interview stage.

   This cuts a big chunk of the total time taken to hire the candidate.

   The larger the percentage of your workforce you hire through referrals, the more time you save on recruitment.

   

   Image Source: Glassdoor.com

5 steps to improve your referral recruitment

Is referral programmes good as it sounds? In a word, yes! But it’s slightly more complex and involves examining areas that need to be enhanced to get the full benefit of employing referral programs.

1. The incentive structure for referring candidates

   The report by ICIMS titled “The impact of successful employee referral programs” shows that out of a whole range of program characteristics, one of the top areas of improvement in companies included an appropriate incentive structure for referring candidates.

   Caesar understood the importance of incentivizing the process back in his time.

   But things have changed since then. Money is no longer the chief motivator for employees to refer their peers; their motivations are more altruistic in nature.

   The biggest incentive for employees is helping their friends followed by helping the company (as seen in the image below).

   The incentive structure of a company should account for these intentions.

   While employees might appreciate small monetary perks, recognition from the company and the team for their contributions are far more likely to appeal to them and will encourage them to continue referring more talent.

   

   Image Source: Linkedin.com

2. Educating employees on the positive impact of referrals

   Employers assume that employees understand the importance of referrals, however, that might not be the case.

   It is important to let employees know the positive impact of referrals and highlight any specific contributions and recognize their efforts by giving first-hand examples from the team.

   A great way to do this is to set reminders to discuss any examples or reinforce the positive impact of referrals in team meetings or during one-on-one sessions.

   Referrals must be proactively encouraged by employees to attract passive top talent in their networks who might not be looking to switch roles or jobs.

3. Leveraging technology to support the referral process

   While companies recognize the importance of tracking via technology, this is an area where they are severely debilitated according to the ICIMS report.

   Companies need to invest in applicant tracking systems (ATS) with a built-in employee referral program that keeps tabs on the hiring process.

   These systems also track the financial incentives paid to employees when referrals become new hires.

   To get true ROI from this technology, consider investing in one that also gathers important statistics, such as the tenure of new hires within the company.

   Some companies are also implementing out-of-the-box solutions to track the referral process better.

   Dropbox, for instance, built an app where employees can enter their referral into the system and can track the various stages of the hiring process using the app.

   Integrate with marketing

   The report by LinkedIn titled Global Recruiting Trends 2016 showed how talent acquisition needs to partner with marketing to get brand excellence.

   This will help increase awareness and educate employees and passive candidates about the company culture and brand.

4. Timely communication with the referral

   The biggest reason for referrals not converting to hires is “untimely communication.”

   While passive candidates might not mind waiting for an organization to tell them of their progress, candidates who are actively looking for opportunities have a higher chance of accepting competing offers and prefer a company that keeps them informed on their application status.

   Timely communication at every stage of the hiring process is key to retaining the interest of referrals.

5. Ensure the talent pool is diverse

   According to LinkedIn’s report on Global Recruiting Trends 2017, recruiting more diverse candidates is one of the top three important trends that will define the future of global recruiting.

   When it comes to referral recruiting, companies must be careful not to recruit a homogenous workforce as there is a chance that people would refer to others who are most like them.

   So, companies that don’t have a diverse workforce, to begin with, might not have a diverse employee referral pipeline and might end up with a more standardized workforce.

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Referral recruitment is old but not obsolete

Referral recruitment has not lost its luster in the recruiting world as almost 48% of the world’s talent leaders get quality hires using employee referrals, as per LinkedIn’s report on Global Recruiting Trends 2017.

In India, at least 65 percent of recruiters are reported to be using employee referral programs to attract quality talent.

This is a trend which might have started centuries earlier but is here to stay as 26% of employers considered employee referral programs to be a long-lasting trend.

To provide true ROI though, employers must ensure that they have a robust system in place to educate and empower employees and a system to track the referral process while striving to make the process more transparent and convenient for them.

Hire talent in your pipeline unbiased with HackerEarth Recruit

A vestige of a by-gone colonial era, our modern-day education system, with its outdated teaching methodology and questionable assessment modules, is in dire need of an overhaul.

Although it permeates our everyday lives, technology in education is yet to impact our systems in an effective and meaningful manner.

If one were to compare today’s classrooms to those 20 or 30 years back, there wouldn’t be any substantial difference in the way subjects were taught or the assessment methodologies adopted to gauge its effectiveness.

The latter in particular has been completely unaffected by technology, and we are going to explore the reasons behind this.

Why the unwillingness to adopt online assessment in education?

A majority of professors use technology in education primarily to better plan their lessons and make more engaging presentations.

When it comes to tests or assessments, however, they opt for the same antiquated pen-and-paper routine.

While it is understandable that you shun technology to assess a literature paper, it is difficult to understand why technology is not judiciously used to assess students of engineering or similar technical streams.

Let’s look at some of the reasons and possible solutions to address them.

1. Lack of training

   According to a 2006 study by Hew and Brush, one of the primary obstacles to adopting technology in education was inadequate knowledge and skills.

   A prerequisite for using traditional software tools was a fair amount of technical know-how and skill.

   Those unfortunate ones who weren’t in possession of such skills had to be trained to use these tools, which was a time consuming and expensive affair and might explain the reluctance that most educational institutions have towards adopting such technology extensively.

   However, the newer breed of technology tools, with their intuitive designs and interface, and faster onboarding experience makes it effortless to adapt and adopt.

2. Pressure to confirm

   The brave souls who do try to do things differently are almost always frowned upon by traditionalists, who are reluctant to change their ways.

   There are two possible outcomes to being subjected to this sort of pressure — they either keep fighting the good fight till others see merit in their newer ways, or they succumb to the pressure and give up.

   However, a technology that is effortless to operate can help in turning even the hardest cynics into supporters of technical assessments

3. Changes needed at a policy level

   In any classroom, there are typically two forms of assessments conducted — formative, conducted over the course of teaching to monitor student learning, and summative that are the standard tests or exams conducted at the end of a term or semester to evaluate student learning by comparing it against a benchmark.

   While colleges or schools can take liberties by conducting formative assessments to gauge how well a student understands a concept, it cannot substitute a tech assessment with a summative one that is conducted in accordance with the board of education, unless thus approved by the board.

   Changes at a policy level to technically transform traditional assessment, however, can ensure that our students are assessed effectively and comprehensively.

4. Test-centric mindset needs to change

   At a very fundamental level, we define academic achievement by how well someone does on a standardized test.

   Our education system is also designed to help achieve better test results rather than helping students understand a concept clearly.

   Introducing a tech assessment model requires a shift in mindset where we assess the student to better understand his weak areas and strengths and then use those parameters to design teaching to be most effective.

   Most technical assessment tools come built-in with data-driven analytics that allows its users to comprehensively analyze the progress made by each student.

   Such comprehensive and relevant reports can go a long way in convincing our educators to change their approach towards assessments in general.

Benefits of online assessment tools in education

Creating assessments for the entire class, not once or twice a year but repeatedly year after year is a tedious routine that our teachers/professors undertake.

However, their work doesn’t end there.

After creating these assessments in a variety of forms, the next task is grading them and providing appropriate feedback for the entire class and that too, in a timely manner.

It is in this context that digital tools come in handy.

Authors Ros Smith and Lisa Gray’s 2016 guide on enhancing assessment through technology explains the lifecycle of assessment and feedback.

According to them, most educators use technology mostly during the ‘Supporting’ stage of the lifecycle, whereas, technology can add considerable value at the ‘Submitting’, ‘Marking and production of feedback’ stages as well.

For instance, during the submitting stage, not only can the software give reminders of upcoming submission date, but students can also conveniently submit their assignment online without having to physically hand-in their assignments.

During the marking and feedback stages, educators are presented with the advantage of not having to carry around the bulky bundles of assessments, and instead access it online anywhere.

Tech assessments also ensure consistency in marking, along with the option to provide written, audio or video feedback comments.

Let’s explore a few other advantages of using online assessment tools.

1. Built-in flexibility to assess an array of skills and competence

   The design flexibility that most tech assessments come with, presents educators with the opportunity to assess a wide range of skills and competency in their students that are far and beyond what any standardized test can offer.

   Apart from testing students on a range of skills, this type of online assessment tool closely simulates real-world scenarios.

2. Transparency in marking

   Tech assessments typically come programmed with the option to specify marking criteria, based on which tests are typically graded.

   These criteria are transparent to all and make for an unbiased and impartial grading system.

3. Delivery schedule can be timed

   Online assessments tools can be customized to deliver assessments as per a specific schedule (bimonthly or weekly, for instance) with minimal input from teachers, thus offloading a lot of their workload.

   Apart from a delivery schedule, these assessments can be customized to automatically mark or grade the submissions, further reducing the workload for the teachers and making the grading system more efficient.

4. Enables deeper learning

   Thanks to the efficiency of such assessments coupled with its precise feedback, students, and teachers can target both strengths and weakness and promote deeper learning of concepts.

   This form of learning builds genuine interest to pursue a subject which also reflects in improved results in subsequent assessments.

5. Customizationfor students with disabilities or learning difficulties

   Technology can make it simpler for students with disabilities or learning difficulties to perform better during assessments by customizing it as per their needs or requirements.

   For instance, one can opt to take the assessment in an audio/visual format, or customize the presentation of the assessment by tweaking the font, text size, etc as per individual need, thus ensuring a level playing field for all those involved.

6. Other benefits of online assessment tools

   Apart from the above-mentioned benefits, tech assisted assessments also gives students the opportunity to access it from anywhere or anytime.

   Ease of customization also ensures that based on statistics of performance, each course module can be tweaked as required.

   The timely manner in which results are published also enables teachers to review their lessons and courses much more effectively.

Using the right online assessment in education for the right purpose at the right time

While the merits far outweigh any drawbacks that this form of online assessment has, the main concern many expresses is regarding the technical support required in an event of a software issue cropping up.

This would delay a scheduled assessment from taking place and throw a spanner into a process that has been set in motion.

There is also some concern about how technology can bring about a more pronounced student-teacher gap because of the high levels of automation possible in these tools.

But what we all need to realize is that technology is a double-edged sword, there are bound to be several concerns over such a large-scale implementation, but if used judiciously and with discretion, it has the power to unlock a gold mine of opportunities.

While top companies like Amazon, Walmart, Accenture, and other fortunes 500 companies are building campus recruitment strategies.

It is essential for school and universities to train their students for the assessment of futures.

Learn how HackerEarth had helped Universities develop their learning and development program with online Assessment

"...chances are high that recruiting and retaining talent end up in the top three challenges an organization faces.” – Sachin Gupta, HackerEarth CEO and co-founder

Consciously or unconsciously, hiring bias is often attached to decisions we make.

Making the right hiring decision is crucial—it determines whether the new hire will align with the required skills, team attitude, and company culture.

Technology and data now play a huge role in helping recruiters make informed choices.

Despite these tools, final decisions are still made by people—vulnerable to emotions, assumptions, and personal experiences.

As an HBR researcher said, “bias causes us to make decisions in favor of one person or group to the detriment of others.”

Recruiters often unconsciously favor candidates based on age, race, gender, or background—leading to missed opportunities to hire the best match for the job.

Do’s

• Look for knowledge and talent
• Match the necessary skills
• Select for attitude

Don’ts

• Check the gender of your candidates
• Focus on age, race, or ethnicity
• Look for similar backgrounds

7 Types of Hiring Bias

1. Confirmation Bias

   Occurs when recruiters form an assumption (e.g., Ivy League education = top performer) and seek data to support that belief, ignoring contradictory evidence.

2. Affinity Bias

   When recruiters favor candidates with similar education, hometowns, or experiences, often at the cost of the right skills or qualifications.

3. Halo and Horns Effect

   The halo effect assumes someone good at one thing is good at others. The horns effect does the opposite—focusing only on faults based on a bad first impression.

4. Expectation Anchor

   A recruiter is biased toward a favorite CV during interviews, unintentionally comparing all others to that one.

5. Intuition

   Relying on gut feeling without complete data can lead to risky and inaccurate hiring decisions.

6. Beauty Bias

   Assuming good looks equal capability. For instance, 60% of U.S. CEOs are over 6 ft tall while only 15% of the population is—this suggests aesthetic bias.

7. Effective Heuristic

   Judging candidates based on appearance, body type, or tattoos. Research shows this bias underestimates obese candidates and overestimates those of average build.

How to Avoid Hiring Bias

According to Harvard Business Review, bias can be reduced by:

• Simplifying and standardizing interview questions
• Going blind during resume review (ignore demographic info)
• Giving a work sample test to objectively measure skills

Also read: Enabling workplace diversity through blind recruitment

Role of Talent Assessment Software (TAS)

Most hiring bias stems from first impressions or personal assumptions. To avoid this:

• Use blind pre-screening
• Use work sample tests

Technology and data can help recruiters make better decisions. Talent assessment software removes unconscious bias by evaluating only skills and qualifications before a candidate’s background is revealed.

Read: 5 reasons you should use talent assessment tools

With platforms like Recruit, you can test technical skills, generate performance data, and make decisions based on merit—free from prejudice.

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Why You Need to Avoid Hiring Bias

Legal-Based Reasons

• Equal Employment Opportunity laws protect candidates and require unbiased hiring.
• Violation of corporate ethics policies may lead to lawsuits and damage employer branding.

Performance-Based Reasons

• Bias-free hiring fosters diversity, which enhances team performance.
• Unbiased decisions lead to more accurate job-candidate matches and reduce hiring errors.

Bias is common—but it’s manageable. Rethink your recruitment process and use assessment software to remove subjectivity and evaluate what truly matters—skills.

Use HackerEarth to recruit without bias

It wouldn’t be too presumptuous to say that half the population considers their jobs are just to get them by. Forbes says 52.3% are unhappy at work, and 63% are not engaged in their jobs. People who are over 35 (says Robert Half) seem to be more listless and unhappy than their younger colleagues who still have some of the stardust in their eyes. Alright, so most people don’t enjoy their jobs. Not news, is it?

Engineers don’t have a better story to tell either. The ennui or disillusionment seems to be a part of their work lives. Even as we are moving from a reactive economy to a predictive one, engineering remains one of the more coveted professions. It now offers degrees that are quite versatile, with enough job roles waiting for you to try. However, many engineers have voted for job dissatisfaction for various reasons, in informal polls .

What makes them unhappy?

Overworked, over-enthusiastic

Most engineers will agree that they tend to feel burned out faster because of a number of hours they put in, especially in the initial days of the job. Long work hours can take a toll on their personal lives, fitness, health, and mental well-being. Although some people simply aren’t willing to put in more than 40 hours a week, there are a few eager beavers trying to impress management or the truly passionate ones who spend a lot of focused hours at the office. The upside is that these engineers who “outwork” their colleagues do typically get ahead quicker. The downside is that they can become disenchanted in no time if they don’t see any tangible results, not to mention becoming unwell over time.

What the company can do:

Appreciate the engineers who show up early and stay late, doing productive work to meet deadlines. But encourage a healthy work-life balance for all your employees by providing exercise access, company outings, recreational areas, community engagement activities, flexible schedules, team building events, training or workshops, and childcare facilities. In the long run, your company will be more attractive to potential hires. Also, you can improve employee retention and be home to loyal, better-quality workers.

Conduct accurate coding assessments with HackerEarth.

Underpaid, undervalued

Engineers in big tech firms may not identify with this because they tend to enjoy several benefits above-market compensation brings. On the whole, we recognize the engineering profession as one that guarantees financial security. And many engineers feel that they are, more or less, being paid adequately for the job they do. But in fledgling firms, this isn’t always the case. Apart from the insane hours, engineers are on their toes all the time trying to fix issues, whether it is complex machinery or code, before they escalate. The young engineering graduates often complain that their appraisals follow a bell-curve. In this infographic, 50.4% of engineers said they were qualified enough to make more money.

What the company can do:

Offer qualified engineers a decent compensation; a griping lot will negatively impact productivity and company morale. As an engineering firm, ensure that you have proper work scheduling and project management in place. In startups, engineers often feel that they are grossly underpaid (some are overpaid!) after working almost 70 to 80 hours per week. Losing skilled tech talent to the competition is easily avoided by ensuring fairness in your hiring practices and in your efforts to retain, recognize, and reward.

Under-prepared, confused

Young graduates come into jobs excited and hoping to become Q (from James Bond) and change the world. But in reality, they become disgruntled by having to deal with dull tasks like checking for inconsistencies in sheet numbers across design drafts. Some of them even quit the profession few months after realizing that either they were ill-informed or that engineering was much better at the Uni. According to Michael MacRae (ASME), engineers are “tasked with projects that require technical skills without also providing an environment offering collaboration, problem-solving, and other perks that satisfy the engineering mind and soul.”This is also cited as a reason, because these graduates are not prepared enough for all that the job requires them to do.

What the company can do:

Remember to outline the exact responsibilities that define a role at the outset. Make them understand that along with interesting tasks, some gray jobs will be part of the position. Tell them what opportunities for upward mobility exist. Clearly chalk out a plan for advancement for technical staff. Create a positive work environment with helpful, patient senior staff or experts to smoothen any wrinkles. Invest in your employee, and you will see how their appreciation translates into personal and company growth. Also, remember to have dedicated personnel to liaise with the engineers and other non-technical staff to minimize conflicts and lack of clarity between requirements and expected solutions.

Apart from these, what else can companies do to keep their engineers happy?

Cultivating a cooperative and positive workplace atmosphere

Encourage professional growth and skill advancement among your team. Foster a climate that prioritizes teamwork and the exchange of knowledge to resolve conflicts and boost collaboration. Establish an environment grounded in mutual respect, where each member feels appreciated and supported. Promote transparent and collaborative communication within the team. Explore literature like “Radical Candor” by Kim Scott, and “Extreme Ownership” by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin for further inspiration.

Elevating code quality and sustainability

Begin by instituting code review methodologies (such as mob/pair programming or pull requests) to guarantee adherence to best practices and superior code quality. Prioritize automated testing to identify issues early and confirm code accuracy. Plan for ongoing enhancements and allocate time for substantial refactoring and addressing technical debt to boost code sustainability. Encourage, or even mandate, comprehensive documentation in everyday tasks to improve clarity and ease of ongoing maintenance.

Refining recruitment and interview techniques

Recognize that many engineers struggle with conducting interviews. Select and train a group specifically for interviewing, focusing on effective and impartial methods. Develop a structured interview process that assesses candidates on relevant skills and problem-solving capabilities, steering clear of irrelevant challenges. Always offer constructive feedback to applicants to guide their development, regardless of hiring decisions.

Advocating for work-life harmony and employee wellness

Promote a culture that values the balance between work and personal life, and supports employee well-being. This includes refraining from late-night communications and offering flexible working conditions, especially as many in software engineering find remote or adaptable work more productive and enjoyable. Encourage breaks, physical activities, and screen-free time in innovative ways, such as scheduling meetings for slightly shorter durations. Provide support and resources for mental and physical health.

Encouraging ongoing improvement and learning

Highlight the significance of innovation, experimentation, and staying informed about industry developments. Build a learning-focused culture, offering groups for skill development, book clubs, and open training sessions. Motivate staff to embrace new technologies and enhance their abilities, potentially incorporating learning into performance reviews. Ensure there are methods to objectively evaluate and recognize continuous learning and skill development.

Streamlining operations and minimizing bureaucracy

Assess and refine internal processes to cut down on unnecessary meetings, bureaucratic hurdles, and inefficient practices. Give teams more autonomy in decision-making and reduce unnecessary approval steps, handoffs, reviews, or other procedural inefficiencies. Adopt agile methodologies to foster a more flexible, efficient, and adaptable work environment.

Championing diversity and inclusivity

Work towards creating a welcoming atmosphere for people from various backgrounds. Actively pursue diversity and inclusivity within the organization. If not already in place, implement policies and practices that ensure equal opportunities for all employees.

Although the perks and compensation for tech-related jobs in big companies can be really attractive, cookie-cutter corporate environments may not work for some. Respect your engineers and empower them. Along with flexible work schedules, give them some autonomy and listen to their opinions. Give them the freedom to solve problems via innovative approaches in a results-driven culture. Groom them for leadership roles and train them on the managerial skills required to climb the ladder. Support their work-related interests and give them opportunities for career progression via access to and training on new tools and technologies. Conduct internal hackathons and other challenges to boost employee engagement by helping employees showcase their skills and foster collaboration and innovation. Recognize their contributions and ensure they see what difference their work is making to the company or the community.

If none of these work, then ask them what they need to be happy and productive. That has to work!

Hire your first engineers who love their work for free –

Everyone wants to be a winner. However, in both life and hackathons, victory comes to those who want it the most. With limited time to solve problems and submit prototypes, a hackathon is the ultimate test of skills and endurance. Here is what you can do to win your next hackathon:

1) Plan to win

Be clear on your motive for attending the hackathon. Be hungry to win. Plan and prepare in advance. Set up templates, GitHub repositories, and components to accelerate prototype development. Research, study APIs, and explore sample apps. If the theme is available early, brainstorm with your team and be ready with practical, implementable ideas.

Conduct a mock hackathon a week before the competition. Work together, understand team strengths and weaknesses, and finalize communication channels.

2) Form a good team

Success depends on execution. Build a team with good chemistry to work efficiently under pressure. Team up with friends or previous hackathon teammates. Pitch your idea clearly and concisely if given the opportunity to form your team on-site.

Include members with diverse skills—design, frontend/backend development, business development, etc. Assign clear roles and choose a decisive leader.

3) Think through your ideas

Not all hackathon ideas are great or feasible. Filter ideas based on value and feasibility. Think like a product owner. Build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and focus on the problem statement: Who is the end user? What problem are you solving?

Estimate time and effort realistically. Sketch a prototype and assign tasks accordingly.

4) Validate concepts

Don’t assume—research. Understand what you’re building and why. Define dependencies, priorities, and checkpoints. Talk to potential users, gather feedback, and include these insights in your presentation. Validate before and after building.

5) Focus on building an MVP

To win a hackathon, focus on building a strong MVP with a clear value proposition. Avoid feature overload. Focus on 2–3 core components.

6) Set up a repository on GitHub

Create a repository for your product. Use feature branches for parallel development.

7) Know your audience

Research judges, vendors, and sponsors. Understand their criteria and tailor your project accordingly. Introduce yourself and share your vision. If mentors are assigned, use their input to refine your solution.

8) Choose the right approach

Prioritize a fully functional frontend experience. Backend development can be time-consuming and may not be necessary for demo purposes.

9) Take short breaks

Breaks help refresh the mind and improve collaboration. Use them to check progress and spark new ideas.

10) Invest time for the presentation

A good presentation is key to winning. Start early. Envision the perfect demo and work backward. Keep the message simple and highlight key features. Show how your product solves a problem and how it's different from competitors. Back claims with data. Be prepared for questions. Share your team journey and make the pitch interactive.

A great idea alone isn’t enough to win. It takes strategy, teamwork, and execution to win a hackathon.

Preparation is the key to success at hackathons. With the right strategy and preparation, your team can win any hackathon. Here are 5 things you can do before the hackathon to stay ahead of the competition:

1) Get the right people onboard

Start by forming the right team. Attract talent with a strong pitch. Clearly state the product you plan to build and the problem it solves. Mention the skills and domain knowledge you are looking for. Keep a written version of your pitch and rehearse it for clarity. Once the team is formed, assign roles based on each member's strengths.

2) Do extensive research

Prepare thoroughly before the hackathon. Research your audience, get to know the judges and sponsors, and study the APIs you’ll be using. Explore open source libraries, packages, and examples to help build your prototype faster. Useful resources include Python and Django package indexes.

3) Do a mock hackathon

If possible, run a mock hackathon with your team a week in advance. Identify and resolve potential issues early. Use this sprint to finalize your communication strategy and teamwork processes.

4) Build templates

If permitted, prepare reusable wireframes and components in advance. Use the pre-hackathon time to develop templates and standard features like login forms. These proposal templates can speed up your prototype development.

5) Brainstorm

If the hackathon theme is announced early, brainstorm potential product ideas. Generate a variety of solutions and select the most feasible ones. Finalize a product vision that can be realistically executed during the hackathon.

With these simple tips, you’ll stay one step ahead of your competition—even before the hackathon begins.