Chapter 4: Timeline & Milestones
When to start planning (hint: earlier than you think)
The single biggest mistake first-time organisers make is underestimating how long things take. Booking a venue takes weeks. Sponsor outreach takes months. Building an audience takes time. And somehow the event date arrives faster than seems physically possible.
This chapter gives you a realistic planning timeline. Use it as your roadmap — adapt the details, but respect the lead times.
The ideal timeline: 4–6 months before
Yes, really. If your event is in September, you should be making key decisions in March or April. Here's why: venues need to be booked, sponsors need lead time to approve budgets internally, and you need time to build an audience.
If you have less time, you can compress — but know what you're trading off (see "Fast-track: 6 weeks" below).
Phase-by-phase breakdown
4–6 months before: Foundation
This is where the big decisions happen — the ones from Chapters 1–3.
Define your objective and SMART goals (Chapter 1)
Choose your format: on-site, online, or hybrid (Chapter 2)
Nail down your business model and rough budget (Chapter 3)
Set the date and duration (24hrs, 48hrs, one week, etc.)
Check for calendar conflicts — holidays, competing events, university exam periods
For on-site/hybrid: start venue research and booking
Define your target audience and expected participant count
Assemble your core organising team and assign roles
Set up team communication (Slack channel, shared docs, weekly meetings)
Key role assignments at this stage:
Event Director (overall owner)
Operations Lead (logistics)
Marketing Lead (promotion, comms)
Sponsorship Lead (funding)
Technical Lead (platform, tools, APIs)
Community Manager (participant engagement)
Not every event needs all these roles, and on a small team one person might wear multiple hats. But someone needs to own each area, even if "someone" is you doing three jobs.
2–3 months before: Build
Now you're executing against the foundation you set.
Launch sponsorship outreach — this takes time, start early (Chapter 5)
Finalise budget based on confirmed sponsors + projected registration (Chapter 6)
For on-site: confirm venue, start logistics planning (Chapter 7)
For online: finalise your platform stack (Chapter 7)
Set up your event on BuilderBase — event page, registration, challenges (Chapter 8)
Develop your theme and specific challenges/tracks (Chapter 9)
Begin recruiting judges and mentors (Chapter 11)
Launch marketing — website, social media, email lists (Chapter 12)
Open registration
Draft your Code of Conduct
Start community building (Slack/Discord workspace, pre-event content)
1–2 months before: Promote & prepare
The event is taking shape. Now it's about filling seats and preparing content.
Push marketing hard — you need registrations flowing in
Continue sponsor outreach and onboarding
Confirm judges, mentors, speakers — collect bios, photos, availability
Prepare workshop content (if offering workshops)
Configure judging rubrics and submission requirements on BuilderBase
Prepare API documentation, datasets, starter kits (if relevant)
Prepare opening and closing ceremony content
Set up Slack/Discord with proper channels and welcome messages
Invite registrants to community channels
Begin team formation activities (pre-event mixers, idea brainstorming)
Plan food and catering (on-site events)
2 weeks before: Final prep
Crunch time. Everything should be converging.
Close any remaining sponsor deals
Finalise participant list and manage waitlist
For on-site: do a venue walkthrough — test wifi, power, projector, microphone, bathrooms
For online: test all platforms — video conferencing, HackOS, submission portal
For hybrid: test the full AV bridge — cameras, livestream, two-way audio
Send "10 days before" email to all registrants (schedule, logistics, what to prepare)
Brief your judges — share rubric, process, expectations
Brief your mentors — share challenge context, availability expectations
Recruit and brief volunteers
Finalise opening/closing ceremony scripts
Prepare signage, handouts, wifi cards (on-site)
Prepare documentation plan — who's taking photos, managing social media?
3 days before: Lock it down
Send detailed logistics email (schedule, access info, final reminders)
Set up group communication channels if not done yet
Place catering orders (on-site)
Print participant list for security/check-in
Charge all devices — cameras, laptops, phones
Prepare emergency contact list
Prepare supplies kit (power strips, markers, tape, name badges, adapters)
1 day before: Final check
On-site: full venue walkthrough — tables, chairs, power, wifi, AV, bathrooms all working
Online: test all links one more time — video call, platform, submission portal
Send "see you tomorrow!" email with start time, access link/location, what to expect
Slide deck ready, scripts ready, backup plans ready
Get some sleep. Seriously.
Event day: Execute
See Chapters 13–16 for the full execution playbook.
48 hours after: Follow-up
Send thank-you emails to everyone (participants, sponsors, judges, mentors, volunteers)
Share photos, winner announcements, survey link
Post social media highlights
Begin sponsor reporting
1 week after: Close out
Collect and analyse survey responses
Hold team retrospective
Finalise financial reconciliation
Complete sponsor reports and deliverables
Write post-mortem and publish learnings
Fast-track: 6-week timeline
Don't have 4–6 months? Here's a compressed version. It's doable, but you're trading depth for speed.
Weeks 1–2: Foundation decisions (objective, format, budget) + venue/platform booking + begin sponsor outreach + set up BuilderBase event page + open registration
Weeks 3–4: Launch marketing hard + confirm judges and mentors + develop challenges + configure submission and judging on BuilderBase + build community channels
Weeks 5–6: Final logistics + participant comms (10 day, 3 day, 1 day emails) + venue/platform testing + briefings for judges, mentors, volunteers + event execution + follow-up
What you lose in a compressed timeline: big-ticket sponsors (they need internal approval time), a large registrant pool (marketing needs time to work), polished content and materials. What you keep: a real event that people will remember.
Duration: how long should the event be?
This is a separate question from the planning timeline. How long is the event itself?
4–8 hours (half-day or evening): Low commitment, great for newcomers, limited scope but focused output. Works well for workshops or themed build sessions.
24 hours: The classic hackathon format. Enough time for real projects but short enough to maintain energy. One overnight push (though we recommend people actually sleep).
48 hours (full weekend): The most common format. Friday evening kickoff → Sunday afternoon demos. Allows for deeper work, but energy management becomes critical.
1 week (distributed): Usually online, with participants working in their own time. Lower intensity but allows for more thoughtful work. Requires strong async communication.
Match duration to your objective. Community building? A half-day jam might be perfect. Product prototyping? You probably need 48 hours. Training? A full day with workshops.
Key takeaways:
Start planning 4–6 months ahead for an ideal timeline; 6 weeks is the compressed minimum
The first decisions (objective, format, budget, date) unlock everything else
Sponsor outreach needs to start 2–3 months out — companies have slow approval cycles
Never skip the venue/platform walkthrough 1–2 days before the event
Post-event follow-up within 48 hours while energy is fresh
Match event duration to your objective — longer isn't always better
Someone needs to own each planning area, even if your team is small