Hackathons/Handbook
 | This handbook was created to improve documentation for hackathon organizers, however this documentation can be used for any type of event (not limited to hackathons!). We hope you will use it and build upon it! Please refer to the talk page for more information. |
Basics
- Organizer team
- Team roles and responsibilities.
- Finances and sponsors
- Sample budgets, how to find and approach sponsors
- Venue and wifi
- How to choose the right venue and how to set it up. From room sizes to help desk to sockets.
- Prepare for emergencies
- Make sure everyone knows what they should do when something goes wrong.
- Diversity
- What you can do to encourage diversity and inclusivity in the community.
- Food, drinks, snacks
- So important that they get their own chapter.
- Timeline
- A year of Hackathon planning.
Participants
- Manage participants
- Registration, scholarships, visa, travel, accommodation, payment process.
- Newcomers
- How to reach new participants and create an awesome experience for first-time attendees.
- Volunteer roles
- Give participants the option to contribute to the event in different ways, from venue setup to mentoring to blogging.
- Stakeholders
- How to get MediaWiki power-users and people who use MediaWiki in their business involved in the event.
Communications + Outreach
- Promotion and press
- Make your event known within the community and beyond, and find stories for the press.
- Design and print materials
- Everything from name badges and T-shirts to banners and info posters.
- Communicate with participants
- When to reach out to your participants and in what way. Email templates, Telegram channel, etc.
Schedule + Program
- Program and sessions
- Scheduling content and sessions before and during the event.
- Social events
- Karaoke, quiz night, dancing party or wine tasting – fun activities before and during the event.
- Suggestions for future hackathons
- Get inspired by a couple of new ideas from both participants and organizers, just waiting to be tried out.
Mentoring
- Design Your Mentoring Program
- Ideas and tips to help design a mentoring program that works for your own event and community
- Mentoring Program Examples
- Specific examples of past or ongoing mentoring programs & buddy programs
- Mentoring Tips
- Ideas, tips and lessons for mentors themselves
The Big Day(s)...
- Event week
- Show time! Prepare as best as possible by creating a plan of action and a packing list (general supplies).
... and what comes after
- After the event
- Wrapping up with participants, feedback, documentation and reporting.
More tips
| Please help to add any useful content from these pages into the above documentation! |
Wikimedia specific
| Page | What's on the page? | Is all relevant content on this page already included in the documentation on /Hackathons and its sub-pages? |
|---|---|---|
| m:Learning patterns/Writing a production schedule of event | Tips for making a spreadsheet listing all logistics, roles, and tasks that need to take place during an event. | Please link from somewhere |
| m:Wikimania_Handbook | Big Handbook for all Wikimania organizers. | YES |
| m:Wikimania_checklist | A brief checklist as an addition to the Wikimania handbook. | YES |
| m:User:Phoebe/Wikimania#Things_to_consider_and_tips | Started by User:Phoebe, There are some great tips in there. | If you find useful tips here that aren't in the handbook already, please merge them into the correct section/chapter of the handbook! |
| User:Jean-Frédéric/Hackathon handbook | A handbook started by User:Jean-Frédéric in 2014, after the London Wikimania Hackathon, before the major documentation for hackathon organizers was put into place. | If you find useful tips here that aren't in the handbook already, please merge them into the correct section/chapter of the handbook! |
| m:Category:Hackathon_learning_patterns | Learning patterns. | If you find a useful pattern that's not linked already, please link it in the according section/ chapter of the handbook! |
| m:Category:Event_patterns | Learning patterns. | If you find a useful pattern that's not linked already, please link it in the according section/ chapter of the handbook! |
| m:Events/Checklist | A small list of things to have during the event, not maintained, not complete. It could maybe me moved or redirected. | YES |
| m:Events_kit | A small selection of resources (not complete). | YES |
| outreach:Event_planning_process
plus the Learning Pattern that breaks this down: |
A link to this is included in /Hackathons/Before you start planning. | YES |
| m:Events/FAQ | Very brief, concerns stands and exhibitions booths. *not* targeted at hackathon organizers. | YES |
| https://www.harihareswara.net/sumana/2011/09/01/0 | Personal experience + Tips from Wikimedia hackathon organizer Sumana | If you find useful tips here that aren't in the handbook already, please merge them into the correct section/chapter of the handbook! |
| https://lists.gt.net/wiki/foundation/312412 | [Wikimedia-l] Run a local tech training event - I can help you start (2012-11-11) | If you find useful tips here that aren't in the handbook already, please merge them into the correct section/chapter of the handbook |
External guides
- https://hackdaymanifesto.com/
- https://hackathon.guide/
- 18f
- https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/wordcamp-organizer/
- https://www.nyc.gov/html/hackathon/html/index.html
- https://medium.com/@kaiiyer/making-our-physical-events-more-environmental-friendly-8d4a3ba162f0
- What Do Women Want At Hackathons? NASA Has A List