“diu bant mac nieman vinden, diu mîne gedanke binden. man vâhet wîp unde man, gedanke niemen gevâhen kan.“
This is the original text of a folk song written in 1229, in the predecessor states of today's Germany. Roughly translated, it reads: “Thoughts are free. There is no rope that could
bind them. Whether conceived by a man or a woman. Thoughts are free.” These principles of freedom of thinking were also the guidelines of the 8th IATA ONE Record #hackathon, held in Doha
from 25-27NOV23. CargoForwarder Global reports exclusively.
Admittedly, it's a huge leap from the 13th century to the present day. But the basic problem was the same in the past as it is today: those who express their opinions freely and do not conform to the mainstream, sometimes isolate themselves. Or they are isolated, sanctioned and deprived of their creativity. What is the rule in autocratic countries also happens to creative people in the economies of democratic states, albeit in a more subtle and less existentially threatening way.
Thinking outside the box
Henk Mulder, Head of Digital Cargo at the International Air Transport Association (IATA), confirms this, although somewhat more diplomatically: “The guys participating in our #hackathon are
here because they can develop crazy ideas, let their creativity run free, exchange concepts, and develop solutions with like-minded colleagues from many other countries in a completely informal
setting. We offer them this freedom for out-of-the-box thinking with our #hackathons.”
He compares a #hackathon with a laboratory, where participants don’t have to justify their results or propositions. “What is produced here in two days, from idea to trial implementation, is
an extraordinary feat that often surpasses what might be possible outside of a hackathon, given real world constraints.”
When creativity meets reality
In addition to the possible practical results of this series of events, he thus addresses the difference to the real economy. That is sometimes more, sometimes less, characterized by budget
limitations, failure avoidance behavior, a top-down hierarchy with often restrictive leadership practices, and daily work pressure. “When we close the door behind us here in Doha’s Hyatt
Hotel, to run the #hackathon, we are in a different, much freer and more creative world,” the official summarizes.
17 teams had registered for the #hackathon in Doha; sticking their heads together to present feasible solutions to improving the data flow between trucking companies with unsecured shipments on
board, and warehouses at airports - transmitting this long before the truck’s scheduled time of arrival. Another team presented a ONE Record compatible API to enhance warehouse planning
processes, increasing security and improving operational transparency. Concepts such as these, born and presented at #hackathons, push the industry forward. “If one out of ten or even hundred
solutions will become industrial standard, a #hackathon has paid off. It is really mind-blowing what kind of tools teams sometimes table as their outcome of a #hackathon,” the IATA Cargo
official is in awe.
Plenty of networking opportunities
In addition to the unfiltered exchange of know-how and achieved results, the positive atmosphere and social aspects combined with an interesting framework program offered at #hackathons, are an
absolute highlight, making the events extremely attractive. This was proven again in Doha, with Qatar Airways Cargo, IBS Software, WebCargo by Freightos, Cargo iQ, AWS, Riege Software and some
other companies greatly supporting the event. “I now go home fully energized. This is the 8th IATA Cargo 'hackathon and Air Canada
Cargo has participated in all of them..People gave up their free time and came here [to Qatar] to tackle
the industry's biggest challenges," commented Jonathan Parkinson, Director Cargo IT, Air Canada.
Annika Reuther, IT Designer at Riege Software emphasized that the #hackathon has given her in-depth knowledge of air freight and logistics processes. The cooperation and exchange with
representatives of other cultures was also extremely valuable and promoted understanding, she resumed.
In the end, the jury awarded prizes worth $3,000 each to 4 different teams in recognition of outstanding solutions and the convincing way in which they presented their results to the 115+
participants of the #hackathon. A special prize, worth amazing 25,000 USD, was awarded to Vitaly Smilyanets from Awery, sponsored by Amazon's cloud computing web services AWS. This money can be
used by the participants of #hackathons to cover their cloud expenditures over a certain period of time.
See you in Shenzhen
The next #hackathon will be held in MAR24 in Shenzhen, announced Arnaud Lambert and Henk Mulder collectively, inviting every Doha-participant to come. China is, next to Germany, the fastest
growing market when it comes to companies implementing the data sharing platform ONE Record, including the NE:ONE server created by Digitales Testfeld Air Cargo (DTAC) and sponsored by the German
government with 7 million euros. NE:ONE is an open-source server software package which implements the data model and API specifications of IATA’s ONE Record standard for the wider cargo
industry, including forwarding agents, trucking firms, customs brokers, etc. Henk Mulder points out that NE:ONE was developed during a Frankfurt-held #hackathon by one of the working groups, and
has meanwhile become the common platform for all #hackathon teams.
Heiner Siegmund
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