Sarah Jane Morris is a developer community manager who has helped organize over 200 hackathons since 2011. She discusses how developer communities differ from consumer communities in focusing on knowledge exchange and problem solving. Morris outlines different types of hackathons from collegiate to independent themed to social good. She provides tips for hosting a successful hackathon, including starting small, having clear judging criteria, and ensuring it is inclusive and fun.

1. BUILDING DEVELOPER
COMMUNITYTHROUGH
HACKATHONS
@SarahJaneMorris
Developer Community Manager
Intel Services/Mashery
#cmxseries
😍💻 📱

2. @SarahJaneMorris?
• Marketing and community for 10+ years
• Developer community building for the last 5 years
• Built out an early stage developer community at Context.IO in
Montreal
• Moved to SF in 2012 to manage Intel Mashery’s community of
342,000 devs.They’ve built over 99K active apps! <3
• Sponsored, helped to organize and/or produced over 200
hackathons since 2011

3. How do Developer
Communities Differ from
Consumer Communities?

4. SOLUTIONS FOCUSED
Developers engage in community in an effort to discover
tools, exchange knowledge and solve problems.
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries
How delighted is she!

5. KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE
For both online and offline community building:
solid docs, sample apps, lightning fast tech support, forum presence and knowledge
gathering/sharing@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries
My man Rex St. John sharing his skillz

6. SWAG! STARDOM! <3!
Developers love the spotlight too, and they love free stuff!
img courtesy:TechCrunch
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries
<3 Neil <3

7. PROTIP:
If they’re spelling it Hack-a-thon, think long and hard about
participating@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries
What Makes a Great Hackathon?

8. COLLEGIATE
Large scale, 1000+ students. Great for recruitment, tinkering
and engaging with upcoming developers to build community
img courtesy:TechCrunch
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries

9. BRAND HACKATHONS
Anywhere from 80-300 developers and designers, building
apps around specific branded APIs and partners. Large prizes.
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries

10. INDEPENDENT/THEME
Anywhere from 80-300 developers, usually brand agnostic w/ a handful of sponsors and
a theme. Great for open-minded devs,API adoption and a fun weekend!
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries

11. http://truthforhumanity.com

12. SOCIAL GOOD HACKATHONS
50-200 developers hacking for a cause
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries

13. FOR PROFIT HACKATHONS
Sometimes charge developers to attend, large cash prizes,
major sponsorship fees
img courtesy: BrightSideofNews
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries

14. HOWTO GAUGE
HACKATHON SUCCESS?
• How much feedback did you gather from
developers?
• How many API keys/new accounts were created?
• How many applications built leveraged your
technology?

15. SO,YOU WANTTO HOST A
HACKATHON?• Start small: one location, one targeted
group
• MVPs/functional prototypes only! No
PowerPoint!
• Icebreaking: Developers can be introverts.
Plan to help with team formation
• Minimize Friction: simple/noT/Cs, clear
judging criteria
• Fun prizes! Experiential, unique and
tangible always beats cash
• Hackathons are at their best with your
API/Tech tool friends
@SarahJaneMorris
#cmxseries
• DON’T ALLOW EXISTING CODE
• Make it so much fun, and make it comfy!
• Make it inclusive and remember to be professional

16. THANKYOU!
@SarahJaneMorris
http://sarah-janemorris.com
morrissarahjane@gmail.com
@HerbieTLPug
facebook.com/herbiethelovepug