Overview
Pitney Bowes’ Small and Medium Business Challenge is a product and application development hackathon for small and medium business (SMBs) focused applications and solutions.
The submissions that are innovative, technologically impressive, and most importantly submissions that help SMBs solve their problems will be shortlisted for the hackathon, where you will bring your idea to a working app prototype using our Pitney Bowes APIs and other partner technologies.
Schedule
The challenge is in two phases:
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Idea Phase Candidates are expected to choose a problem an SMB faces and provide a solution. Please include contextual information of the problem and corresponding solution and do mention the technology stack and APIs you are planning to use.
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Submission Phase Top scorers from Phase 1 will be invited to the bigger stage for the Offline Hackathon. This event will be held on 23-24 June. This event is aimed at bringing some of the brightest minds together for a 24-48 hour build session.
Who should register?
Professional developers, Start-ups, App and Solution developers, System Integrators, Shipping, Delivery, Supply chain/Logistics players who are desirous to build solutions for the SMBs
What’s in it for you?
The hackathon offers an opportunity for developers like you to leverage Pitney Bowes expertise and create apps and solutions for over 750,000 clients.
Top applications also get an opportunity to join Pitney Bowes Start - Accelerator for SMB focused applications.
For more information, please visit http://www.smbstartuppack.com/#!/home
OR
Join our Slack Channel to connect with fellow developers and mentors.
Themes
E-commerce Enablement
It is really difficult for a small online retailer to manage and streamline his E-commerce store operations. How can disruptive technology like AI, ML and distributed computing can help these online retailers to streamline operations.
Some key Areas Include :
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Customer Support
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Returns management
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Order Management
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Marketing
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Hyperlocal Delivery Management
SMB Productivity
SMBs(Small Medium Businesses) often have little to no room for error, and productivity depends on hyper-smart time management and budget-friendly choices. Can your application help SMBs boost their Performance and Productivity?
Some key areas include :
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Employee Management
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Customer Loyalty Program Management
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Customer Engagement
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Appointments Management
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Document Management
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Expense Management
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Visitor Management
Streamline Shipping Operations
Enable SMBs to perform cost-effective and efficient shipping operations.
Some key Areas Include :
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Intelligent Parcel Packing
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Customer Address Management
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Parcel Insurance
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Reporting and Shipping Analytics
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Parcel Receiving Management
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Intelligent Shipping Planner
Increase International Presence
Help SMBs go global and expand their businesses across borders. Create technology for small businesses to enter new markets and fuel business growth.
Some key areas include:
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Cross-Border Product Regulations
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Duties and Taxes
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Global Payments
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International Shipping
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Customs clearance
Open Innovation
Any Innovative solution which can help small businesses work faster, easier and better.
Note: You can ideate and create a prototype on anything which helps SMBs scale and is not mentioned in the above themes.
PRIZES
A chance to Monetize your App with Pitney Bowes App Store.
Top applications will get an opportunity to join PB Start - Accelerator for SMB focused applications where teams will be provided with Mentorship and Technical Support to launch and monetize their app on Pitney Bowes App Store.
Main Prizes:
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$5000 First Prize
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$2000 Cash Prize for the First Runner-Up
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$1000 Cash Prize for the Second Runner Up
Main Prizes:
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$3000 Cash Prize for Top Applications in E-commerce Enablement Theme
To read more on the Hackathon, follow this link: https://www.hackerearth.com/sprints/pitney-bowes-smb-challenge-2018/?utm_source=eventbrite&utm_campaign=pb&utm_medium=all
Location
Dates
to 24th June 2018 - 10:00 PM