> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.hackersquad.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Judges

> Add judges, configure tournament-style rounds, and organize judging groups for your event

The **Judges** tab in the Event Management dashboard lets you set up and manage the judging panel for your event. Access it from the [Event Management Overview](/event-management/overview) by clicking the **Judges** tab.

HackerSquad uses a **tournament-style judging system** where projects advance through rounds, judges are organized into groups, and scores are aggregated for fair, structured evaluation.

## Judging structure

The judging system is organized in a hierarchy:

| Level             | Description                                                                                         |
| ----------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Judging Round** | A stage of evaluation (e.g., Round 1 preliminary, Round 2 finals). Projects advance between rounds. |
| **Judging Group** | A subset of judges within a round. Each group evaluates a specific set of projects.                 |
| **Judges**        | Individual judges assigned to groups. Each judge scores the projects in their group.                |
| **Projects**      | Projects assigned to groups for evaluation. A project may appear in one group per round.            |

## Adding judges

To add judges to your event:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the Judges tab">
    Navigate to your event's management page and click the **Judges** tab.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a judge">
    Click **Add Judge** and enter the judge's details: name, email, and area of expertise or role.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign to a group">
    Once judging rounds and groups are configured, assign the judge to one or more judging groups.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Setting up judging rounds

Rounds let you run multi-stage evaluation — for example, a preliminary round to narrow the field followed by a final round for top projects.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create a round">
    Click **Create Round** and give it a name (e.g., "Preliminary Round" or "Finals").
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create groups within the round">
    Each round contains one or more judging groups. Click **Add Group** within a round to create groups. Groups let you split judges and projects so each judge reviews a manageable number of submissions.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign judges to groups">
    Add judges to each group. Use the **Auto-Balance Judges** feature to distribute judges evenly across groups.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign projects to groups">
    Add projects to each group. Use the **Auto-Balance Projects** feature to distribute projects fairly so each group has a similar workload.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Auto-balancing

HackerSquad provides two auto-balancing tools to save time and ensure fairness:

| Feature                   | What it does                                                            |
| ------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Auto-Balance Judges**   | Distributes judges as evenly as possible across all groups in a round   |
| **Auto-Balance Projects** | Distributes projects as evenly as possible across all groups in a round |

<Tip>Use auto-balancing after adding all judges and projects for the round. You can manually adjust assignments afterward if needed.</Tip>

## Conflict of interest detection

When assigning judges to groups, the system checks for potential conflicts of interest — for example, a judge who is associated with a team or sponsor that has a project in the same group. Flagged conflicts are surfaced so you can reassign judges or projects as needed.

## Managing judges

From the Judges tab you can:

* **View all judges** — see each judge's name, email, expertise, and group assignments
* **Edit judge details** — update a judge's information or expertise
* **Remove a judge** — remove a judge from the event entirely
* **Reassign judges** — move a judge between groups within a round

<Note>Changes to judge assignments after scoring has begun may affect score consistency. Reassign judges before the judging period starts whenever possible.</Note>

## Next steps

<Columns>
  <Card title="Judge Scoring" icon="star" href="/event-management/judge-scoring">
    Configure scoring criteria and review judge scores.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Leaderboard" icon="ranking-star" href="/event-management/leaderboard">
    View real-time rankings based on judge and community scores.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Community Voting" icon="thumbs-up" href="/event-management/community-voting">
    Enable community judging for attendee voting.
  </Card>
</Columns>