Extentia Information Technology held X24.2017, the third season of a unique ‘Build Marathon’ over 24-hours between September 15-16. An event that featured six internal teams, this was a hackathon that focused on digital transformation, required participants to develop technology-based solutions and to go from concept to pitch in a tight timeframe. Season 3 was full of twists – teams could pick their own challenge statements, a free Marketplace with intellectual and hands-on services, participation of flexible members in the Marketplace, and exchange of challenge statements between teams until 11 am on September 15.

 

The event’s basic premise was – ‘When Business Meets Digital Transformation.’ The teams had to develop a solution for a challenge using cutting-edge technology, and present it to an evaluation and mentoring panel, along with a sales pitch. They were presented with a set of challenges 2 days prior, asked to choose from these on September 15, and build solutions for them. They were also encouraged to build applications using Extentia’s ‘Techquarium’ set of new-age technology devices with a focus on innovation and usability.  The event presented Extentians with an opportunity to display innovation, technological skills, creative flair, passion, and concepts.

 

Founded in 1998, Extentia is an Indo-German software services provider that focuses on Technology, Consulting, and Innovation for Mobile, Cloud, and Design. Its mission is to deliver confidence in a sustainable and socially responsible manner for customers, partners, and stakeholders.

 

Extentia offers boutique and high-end technology services – development and support – for customers across the globe. These include numerous enterprise deployments. It is headquartered in Pune, India with offices in the United States, United Kingdom, Singapore, and Germany.

 

X24.2017 team members were made up of developers, designers, and sales people. Leading up to the event multiple contests were conducted at Extentia – ‘Idea Challenge’, ‘Creative Canvas’ and ‘Riddle Me This’.

 

Challenge statements were released 2 days before the event, giving the hackathon its first twist. The second twist –  ‘Bring Your Own Mentor’ – teams gave suggestions for mentors and started consulting with them from September 13.

 

Next, the core asked the teams to pick challenge statements based on the order of participation in the ‘Idea Challenge.’ The teams also had access to a special coach during the event. He advised the teams on their challenges and solutions and was available to them throughout the event.

 

Diverse Challenges for Teams

• Challenge Your Buddy – develop a platform to challenge and encourage your friends

• Visitors – a security program to validate users with a single tag

• Let Me Go – a solution to facilitate easy movement of emergency vehicles in traffic

• Ride – an application to encourage ridesharing in a closed community

• Take My Hand – when going on a vacation, connect with a local person and ask them to be your tour guide.

• Find Me Parking – help people identify available parking spaces and share these with others

·Find Me Parking – help people identify available parking spaces and share these with otherThe Gurus

The Gurus

The X24.2017 Gurus – judges who were experts, drawn from industry met on September 15, to evaluate, vote, and pick the winners based on several assigned evaluation criteria – concept, execution, and pitch. Among them were Abhishek Chandra (IIFL Investment Managers), George Eldho (SAP), Mahendra Yadav (Tavisca Solutions), and special coach, Don Tyson, who was there to attend the event from the United States.

 

At the awards ceremony, the judges and mentors spoke about the level of intense competition, and the quality of solutions on offer by the teams. They also had advice and suggestions for the organizers of next year's X24 event.

 

The Mentors

The third season provided special support to the teams in the form of mentors, who the teams could consult with 2 days prior to the event as well as during the event. Each team submitted one mentor, who was then assigned to the team by the core. Mentors provided expert guidance to the teams from choosing the right challenge statement to building the solution keeping the sales angle in mind.

Mentors included senior representatives from – Enterprise Community Partner, DataColada, Ekartha, roomsXML, Enterprise Community Investment, and BlueWhale Research.

 

Live Feed and Social Media

X24 had a comprehensive support staff made up of Extentia’s system administration team and a special crew that managed a live feed through the entire event. The live feed was made up of photos, videos, hourly updates, and an active comments section. The hackathon was also live tweeted over 24-hours, along with updates on Facebook, and multiple videos on YouTube. Twitter posts were favorited and retweeted extensively using the hashtag ‘#HackathonX24’ and ‘#ExtentiaX24’. This season hosted an engaging in-house social media contest where each house was encouraged to post on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram with other predefined hashtags, along with the main one – ‘#HackathonX24’. The house with the maximum number of hashtags was rewarded at the end of the event.

 

Sponsors

The event attracted several sponsors who offered generous prizes and support for the teams. This included our lead partners – EZShield and Finnovators, and our other partners – Amazon Web Services, Blue Frog Pune, Café 1730, Dezio, Effingut Brewerkz, Euriska, Café High Spirits, The Inspiration, Kinki, Kwizine, Malaka Spice, Noodle Canteen, Red Bull, Sach, Subway, and Tvum.

 

'I think the teams raised the bar in this third edition of X24, with even more innovative and engaging solutions. We're delighted that our X24 gurus and mentors thought so as well,' said Umeed Kothavala, CEO, Extentia. 'Given this season's various twists at the event, it was all the more impressive, and we look forward to seeing some of these apps actually go to market.'

 

To know more about Extentia’s mobile offerings and to schedule demos, please write to inquiries(at) extentia.com, or call +91 20 6728 5200 (India) / +1-408-627-4094 (United States).

 

About Extentia Information Technology

Extentia is a global technology and services firm that helps clients transform and realize their digital strategies. With a focus on enterprise mobility, cloud computing, and user experiences, Extentia strives to accomplish and surpass your business goals. Our team is differentiated by an emphasis on excellent design skills that we bring to every project. Extentia’s work environment and culture inspire team members to be innovative and creative, and to provide clients with an exceptional partnership experience. The company’s emphasis is on Technology, Consulting, and Innovation for Mobile, Cloud, and Design. 
www.extentia.com