SGBI
sgbi.usHow SGBI Identified the Top 5% of Automation Engineers in 3 Days
SGBI is a Director-led engineering organization hiring for specialized Test Engineer (Automation & AI Systems) roles. Working with TeamCraft and Archi's Academy, they ran a 3-day AI-driven digital hackathon to evaluate 64 candidates simultaneously, pinpointing the top 5% based on real Python and Robot Framework execution.
"TeamCraft's hackathon gave us deep visibility into how candidates actually built, structured, and iterated on automation code. Not just whether they knew the syntax." Asif D I, Director & Head of Engineering, SGBI
The Challenge: Specialized Automation Roles, No Reliable Signal
Hiring automation engineers is harder than general software engineering. Candidates may know Python syntax but struggle to architect a maintainable test framework. SGBI's traditional process couldn't separate the two:
- Resume reviews missed framework-level architectural ability
- Short coding tests rewarded speed over structure
- Manually reviewing 64 multi-day projects was impossible for one hiring manager
The TeamCraft Solution: Workflow-Aware Hackathons at Scale
SGBI used TeamCraft to run a 3-day hackathon mirroring real automation engineering work:
- 64 candidates in parallel, with no 1:1 interviewer bottleneck
- AI-driven pull request analysis scoring code structure, modularity, and maintainability
- Continuous workflow tracking including commit frequency, refinement patterns, and problem-solving approach
- Python and Robot Framework tasks drawn from SGBI's actual production needs
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Results
| Metric | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Candidates evaluated in parallel | 64 |
| Hackathon duration | 3 days |
| Top talent surfaced | Top 5% |
| Manual review effort | Replaced with AI-driven PR scoring |
| Evaluation framework | Code intelligence, project execution, workflow discipline |
For the full breakdown of how AI-driven pull request evaluation worked, read the SGBI case study on the TeamCraft blog.
Why It Worked
Traditional hiring forced SGBI to choose between depth (which doesn't scale) and scale (which loses depth). The hackathon format eliminated the trade-off. Every candidate received the same project-based evaluation, scored consistently by AI across the dimensions that actually predict on-the-job success.
Frequently Asked Questions
How did SGBI evaluate 64 candidates in just 3 days? TeamCraft's AI-driven pull request analysis scored every candidate's code structure, commit history, and iteration patterns automatically, eliminating the manual review bottleneck that caps traditional hiring.
What roles did SGBI hire for through TeamCraft? Test Engineer roles focused on automation and AI systems, specifically Python and Robot Framework expertise.
Can other automation-heavy teams replicate this approach? Yes. The model works for any specialized engineering role where architecture and workflow discipline matter more than raw output speed. See our hackathons vs coding interviews comparison for guidance on when to switch.