Hawaii Foodservice Alliance’s technology team completed the company’s first Web Development hackathon, a two-day event during which participants set aside assigned work to develop projects of their own choosing. Teams formed across functions, defined their own scope, and had 48 hours to produce a working prototype.
The format was deliberate. Rather than assigning projects from a roadmap, HFA asked participants to bring forward ideas they had already identified in the course of their daily work — the kind that surface repeatedly in operations but rarely reach the top of a queue. Each team was given unlimited access to AI development tooling and full discretion over what to build with it.
Every team chose a real operational challenge rather than a hypothetical one. Participants worked alongside colleagues from outside their usual reporting lines, and because the teams built within walking distance of the branches and dispatch operations their work would serve, questions that ordinarily take days to route were resolved in minutes. That proximity shaped what the teams were able to complete in the time available.
HFA views employee-driven development as an extension of its longstanding commitment to personal and professional growth. The company invests in stretch opportunities that allow team members to lead work of their own definition, and the hackathon extended that practice to the technology organization. Plans are underway to hold the event again and to broaden participation beyond the technology team.
HFA is currently hiring across its technology organization. Candidates interested in building, experimenting, and pushing boundaries are invited to view current openings and join our ʻohana. Click here to view HFA careers!
