Aviva’s BIG First Inclusive Hackathon: Paving the Way for Future Innovation
Corporate Hackathon Case Study
Type: 2-day internal hackathon
Participants: 100
Projects: 9
Preparation time: 3 months
About AVIVA
Headcount: 10,000 employees
HQ: London
Industry: Insurance
Key objectives: Cross-departmental collaboration & tangible proof of concepts
Aviva’s Innovation team leads multiple efforts, so when the CEO envisioned a ‘BIG inclusive event’ to shape the future, they imagined a company-wide hackathon and sought an experienced hackathon specialist to help bring it to life. The goal? To spark cross-departmental collaboration, engage employees with an innovative format and master user-centric innovation skills to develop high-impact prototypes. The success of this initiative laid the foundation for Aviva’s now-annual innovation hackathons.
Hackathon objectives:
Cultivate an Innovation Culture: Drive cross-departmental collaboration and creative problem-solving.
Train a Disruptive Mindset: Equip teams to envision and prototype new products or services.
Solve Real Problems: Tackle customer challenges with practical, tangible, tech-driven solutions.
Deliver Quality Solutions: Develop proof-of-concepts through user-centric interactive prototypes.
Process
DEFINE
Aviva’s Innovation Team brought together key stakeholders - including tech leads, product managers, and internal event specialists - for a strategic kick-off workshop. After the initial scoping phase, we prepared and facilitated this session to refine the event’s objectives and timeline, align the hackathon challenge with business priorities, uncover key insights and select internal mentors to support team projects.
DESIGN
Building on our initial work, we designed event branding, streamlined registration, and created content for the website and ideation platform. We produced key communication materials, including a pre-hack video, and prepared user-centric training resources such as User Personas and participant guides. After two workshops to finalise messaging and assets, we were ready for the Hackathon Launch!
DELIVER
We launched the hackathon with an ideation phase, encouraging participants to propose transformative ideas for Aviva’s customers on the company’s ideas platform Wazoku. Submissions ranged from practical improvements to bold, disruptive innovations poised to shake up the insurance industry.
Next, we rolled out a training programme on user personas, experience mapping, the business model canvas, internal training on product pricing, and key tools like AWS Cloud services to ensure participants were well-prepared.
Aviva’s tech and innovation team worked closely to select projects, ensuring teams were well-balanced with diverse profiles and interests to tackle the most exciting (and feasible) hackathon projects.
The finale? A two-day hackathon where teams came together to build game-changing solutions.
Diverse Teams
Cross-departmental collaboration. A goal for this hackathon was cross-departmental collaboration. Our structured approach and communication efforts successfully achieved a balanced mix: 60% business, 40% IT participants, fostering stronger collaboration and shared problem-solving.
Tangible Projects
Quality Proof of Concepts. From 78 submitted ideas, 9 projects were selected, developed during the hackathon, and presented in the final pitches. Teams leveraged a structured toolkit to frame problems, ideate innovative solutions, and prototype tangible outcomes.
100% satisfaction
A good time, lasting impact. Participants rated the hackathon 4.75/5, with 100% eager to join another. Beyond the event, teams gained hands-on innovation skills, strengthening Aviva’s ability to drive forward-thinking solutions.
Aviva’s first-ever hackathon wasn’t just a one-time success - it laid the foundation for their now-annual tradition of fostering innovation and collaboration. This inaugural event brought together diverse teams, and inspired a culture of creativity that continues to thrive.
By embedding hackathons into its culture, Aviva has created an ongoing platform for employees to drive meaningful change, experiment with new ideas, and develop solutions that contribute to business growth.
Unlock Innovation Within Your Organization
If you're ready to spark innovation, empower your teams, and tackle real business challenges, let’s make it happen. With years of expertise in designing and delivering impactful hackathons, I can help you create a tailored experience that drives results—and paves the way for ongoing innovation.
Ready to take the first step? Book a Call today and let’s start building the future of your organization together.
