Dream! Hack! Build!: Unleash citizen-driven innovation with the power of hackathons

Leverage hackathons as a powerful catalyst for rapid innovation, empowering you to tackle your organization's challenges head-on through collaborative engagement.

Expert review and foreword by Johan Soderstrom, Executive Advisor to the CEO, Hitachi Energy

Key Features

• Learn how to identify challenges in your organization quickly by engaging people
• Understand how to organize your hackathon to find practical and impactful solutions
• Execute winning solutions through a scientific, customized acceleration program
• Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free PDF eBook

Book Description

Drawing from the combined expertise of five distinguished professionals, this book brings together diverse perspectives on hackathon innovation. Ann, founder of Hack for Earth Foundation, joins forces with serial entrepreneur and hackathon expert Love Dager and renowned urban planner Mustafa Sherif. Completing this powerhouse team are Carolina Emanuelson, a leader in talent management, and Kristofer Vernmark, a researcher at Linköping University. Together, they present the groundbreaking "Dream! Hack! Build!" method, equipping you with proven strategies to run successful hackathons and rapidly transform ideas into reality.

The book explains why hackathons are so particularly effective in today’s fast-changing business world. Through real-life examples of citizen-driven innovation, it demonstrates how these events can drive impact and how you can apply them within your own organization. You'll gain insights into how hackathons can address complex problems and foster creative, high-impact solutions.

The authors cover everything from engaging participants and creating urgent challenges to managing teams, mentors, and partners. They show you how to design an acceleration program based on proven start-up success strategies, ensuring that the ideas generated during your hackathon lead to real-world results.

By the end of this book, you'll be well-prepared to lead transformative events that create lasting impact in your field.

What you will learn

• Find out what makes the hackathons a game changer in innovation
• Identify and tackle challenges in your organization by finding practical solutions
• Activate engagement among customers, partner organizations, and employees through an interactive and fun hackathon experience
• Leverage the Dream-Hack-Build method for enhanced organizational performance and brand development
• Customize your hackathon using the best platforms for your challenge
• Create a personalized acceleration program rooted in the science of group dynamics and psychology

Who this book is for

This book is for business leaders, C-suite executives, and decision-makers in search of impactful solutions to their organization's challenges. While a basic understanding of hackathons is beneficial, no other technical skills associated with hackathons are required to derive value from this book.

Table of Contents

1. Redefining the Hackathon Tool
2. Making Citizen-Driven Innovation Work for You
3. The Dream! Hack! Build! Method
4. Creating the Perfect Challenge for Your Hackathon
5. How to Organize an Impactful Hackathon
6. Communication and Managing Hacker Teams and Mentors
7. Partnerships for Success
8. External Communication and Social Media Presence for Hackathon Success
9. Taking Citizen-Driven Innovation to the Next Level
10. Converting Hackathon Results into Real Tools
11. Build for Earth Learnings – How to Make a Startup a Success Fast

Ann started the Hack for Earth Foundation in 2021, sensing the need for an international platform for citizens to co-create sustainable innovation for the future. As a licensed psychologist with 18+ years of experience, she has a profound understanding of human behavior and the importance of people and communication. As Head Project Manager at the government mission Hack for Sweden, she invented the impactful Dream-Hack-Build method and coined the concept of citizen-driven innovation. She introduced her work at the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 2022, and at TEDx Stockholm in 2020. She is a multiple published author and an international speaker on hackathons, citizen-driven innovation, and ESG in action.

Love Dager is a serial entrepreneur, hackathon expert and co-founder of Hack for Earth AB. Known for his outstanding achievements in creating tech communities, fostering innovation and impact, Love comes from a background in tech working for Norrsken, Microsoft and Hack for Earth. Pioneering the hackathon method for the government mission Hack for Sweden in 2019, Love adapted this previously tech based format to tackle society's greatest challenges, laying the foundation to what would evolve into Hack for Earth and the Dream! Hack! Build! method. Back in his home country of Sweden he runs Stockholm Fintech, the nation's largest community within fintech, and invests in early stage startups on the side. Love's passions are tech and empowering youth to become entrepreneurs.

Mustafa Sherif, an urban planner from Baghdad, now residing in Sweden, is renowned for his people-focused city designs. Educated in Stockholm and Milan, his global insights drive his commitment to community-involved urban development. At Hack for Earth, as Community Manager, Sherif channels his passion for community and citizen-driven innovation into international hackathons. Additionally, Sherif's Urbanistica Podcast, reaching over 140 countries globally, has become a vital platform for urban dialogue, emphasizing human-centric city planning. His multifaceted contributions underscore his influence in shaping the future of urban spaces globally.

Carolina Emanuelson stands out as a dynamic force in talent management, notably shaping the future of Hack for Earth as Partner Manager with her innovative approach to partner community development and value-driven partner packages. Now at Apoteket AB, she leads Talent Acquisition & Employer Branding, masterfully steering strategies to attract top-notch candidates, fulfilling hiring needs and propelling business growth. Her impressive career spans key roles, including at the Swedish Public Employment Service as Talent Manager in IT and at the burgeoning tech firm GOALS. Carolina's expertise in enhancing employer branding and optimizing talent acquisition processes marks her as an influential figure in driving organizational success, underscoring her profound impact across various sectors.

Kristofer Vernmark (PhD, MSc) is a revered researcher at Linköping University and the innovator behind the Build for Earth program. With 17 years of experience as a psychologist, manager, consultant, author, and researcher in digital mental health, Kristofer has been a pioneer in integrating internet-based treatments into Swedish primary care. His efforts were recognized with the 2022 eMHIC award for Leadership in eMental Health Implementation. Collaborating with the Hack for Earth foundation, he works with global teams to develop sustainable solutions, showcasing his commitment to enhancing mental health care and promoting sustainability.