11/23/2015
Hack.Ventera: Mobile Edition
What happens when engineers, designers, and product managers come together to hack out innovative solutions to complex problems?
On November 20th, Ventera hosted Hack.Ventera to give an opportunity to participants to conceptualize and realize their ideas about mobile-first solutions for our clients.
More than 25 Ventera employees convened early in the morning, separated into teams, and designated a conference room where they would spend the day brainstorming and developing a working idea to pitch to judges. Zach Furculo, having participated in other hackathons in the past, noted the key difference between internal and external hackathons: “One of the best things about this hackathon specifically was the level of familiarity we had with the business and mission with which we were working. It allowed us to get right into building a functioning application with some real value.” He further described the process as a “great opportunity for Ventera employees to explore ideas that they’ve had while working on current projects.”
At the end of the day, teams, judges, and fellow Ventera employees gathered to hear each team pitch their mobile apps. Incredibly within six hours, the teams developed four working mobile solutions that could be used by our clients – three were for federal organizations and one was for a private sector organization. Jeff Smith, Ventera partner and Hack.Ventera judge, noted: “All of the proposed solutions were excellent ideas with potential value. They were well thought-out, developed, and presented.” The success of each team’s concept and presentation made picking a winner tough. Jeff explained, “Each team was rated highly based on the individual merits of the submissions, making it difficult to select the ‘winner.’ Ultimately we did, but clearly all of the teams provided worthy output. It was great to see the commitment and enthusiasm brought to Hack.Ventera by each of the teams and individuals that participated.”
The winning idea centered on a mobile portal for one of our federal clients providing a business solution that would act as a one–stop shop for all of a user’s needs, incorporating the ability to view information, manage and update relevant data, and communicate within the portal.
Future hacks will build off past successes and involve folks inside and out of Ventera, working on interesting client problems using innovative tools and techniques with some of the brightest people we know.