Gavel is an expo judging app that provides hackathon judges an easy way to review a large number of projects quickly while removing the need to fill out slow, complicated forms for each submission. Originally created by the organizers behind HackMIT, our team identified a number of issues after using it at many of our own events. In the spirit of the hackathons we run, we “hacked” the tools that make these events possible, allowing us to deliver a smoother, simpler experience for judges, attendees, and admins alike at any hackathon.
Design and implement quality of life improvements for a web-based hackathon judging application, simplify confusing elements in the user experience, and introduce responsive UI so judges have an optimized interface no matter the device they choose, thereby improving usability for both judges and judging administrators.
Timeframe: 4 months, January – March 2019 and April 2020
I completed a full redesign of both the judging and admin interfaces, designed several brand new features, and collaborated with a developer on my team to implement the proposed changes.
Interaction/UI Design
Information Architecture
Digital Prototyping
In addition to new functionality, the reworked Gavel of the tool included improvements to instructional language, added a higher-contrast, brighter color scheme for better accessibility, and improved the layout to visually prioritize the most important details judges need when reviewing projects. When COVID forced events to go online/remote, our hackathons no longer required judges to walk around using their cellphones to run the app. We responded by pushing another update, making the UI responsive so it could be used at home on laptops and tablets too. Gavel has been in use at hackathons across the nation since its release in 2019.
