Dallas/Fort Worth Certified LeSS Practitioner Course Spring 2025

  James  8 mins read.

February 4-6: Get Tickets

Venue Update

The course will be hosted at the Hyatt Regency DFW Airport, which is at Terminal C on-campus at the DFW airport.

Please see the Training Venue Details section for more logistical details.

Introductory Video

Course Agenda

The morning of the first of three days will be used to establish the overall context of the system modeling activities which follow. This will be done through a small amount of lecture, combined with both small and large group discussions.

Once the stage is set, we will transition to thoughtful analysis of the impact of different organizational design decisions on adaptability and value delivery using system modeling. Following each incremental framework-agnostic advance in our understanding, we will map concrete aspects of LeSS into our increasingly enlightened understanding of organizational system dynamics. The system modeling brings deeper insight, while mapping this insight into LeSS facilitates better retention along with an understanding of how to act on what is being learned.

We will continue to incrementally advance our depth of understanding using system modeling for the majority of the three days. Towards the end of the third day time will be spent: coalescing the whole of our enhanced understanding; providing guidance on how to move forward; and orienting participants on how to navigate a wealth of additional information.

DAY 1: Setting the Stage

The first of three days will be used to establish the overall context of the system modeling activities which follow. This will be done with a small amount of lecture, but primarily via small and large group discussions and exercises. We’ll follow this thread through the entire 3-day event.

  • Introduction
  • Avoiding Taylorism
  • Estimates, not Commitments
  • People are Valuable
  • System Optimization, not Local Optimization
  • Discovering Value
  • Implications of multiple Product Backlogs

DAY 2: Seeing Simplicity through Systems Modeling

On the second day, we will take what we learned about Systems Modeling on Day 1 and use those tools to understand:

  • Benefits of Cross-Functional Teams
  • Product Breadth Considerations
  • Private Code Impedes Technical Excellence
  • Managing Cognitive Fullness
  • Requirement Area Sizing Considerations

DAY 3: Modeling decisions through Systems Modeling & LeSS

As we continue to advance our depth of understanding using system modeling, the third day will be spent coalescing the whole of our enhanced understanding, providing guidance on how to move forward, and orienting participants on how to navigate a wealth of additional information.

  • Product Breadth and Adaptability
  • Avoiding Middlemen
  • LeSS Complete Picture
  • Structure Drives Culture
  • Adoption in your organization
  • Extended Q&A

After course completion

Each participant will be a Certified LeSS Practitioner and will get an account on less.works. Here one can find additional information about LeSS, share course information, and stay in contact with the other course participants.

All participants get access to the book: Large-Scale Scrum: More with LeSS

U.S. Air-Force Specifics

This course is listed in the United States Air Force’s Education and Training Management System (ETMS). More details are available here.

Participant Testimonials

LeSS Adopters

LeSS Logo Sheet by Sector

Training Venue Details

The course is being hosted directly on the DFW airport campus at the Hyatt Regency DFW.

This will be very convenient if you’re flying in to attend the course.

The airport is also centrally located, and therefore a reasonable commute for most people living within the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. Free parking validation is available if you’re driving.

Full Attendance Required

The course runs from 8:30 am - 6:00 pm all three days. For certification, full attendance is required. Please take this into consideration when making travel plans.

Most attendees who are traveling will need to stay Thursday night, unless they take a very late flight home. On the upside, taking a flight home on Friday morning will be super easy.

Classroom Details

The course is being hosted on the executive conference level of the Hyatt Regency DFW Airport in Meeting Room 1106/08.

The meeting rooms in the executive conference level at the Hyatt Regency have good natural light. They provide the best on-airport event space available for supporting a mid-sized system modeling-based Certified LeSS Practitioner class.

DFW Airport On-Campus Hotel Options

There are two hotels on the DFW airport campus.

The first hotel is the original 4 star Hyatt Regency DFW Airport hotel in which the event is being hosted. The Hyatt Regency is located at Terminal C.

The second hotel is the newer 4.5 star Hyatt Grand DFW, which is located at Terminal D.

I have personally had a pleasant, restful experience at both hotels. While airport hotels are seldom exciting, they are certainly convenient.

The Hyatt Regency DFW is providing a discounted price of $215/night for the first 8 participants. To access this special room rate you will need to send an email to Ashley Ward. Ashley is the event sales manager at the Hyatt Regency DFW.

As I write this, the advance purchase price listed on the Hyatt Regency DFW website for a King bedroom is only $239/night, so the additional savings might not be worth the hassle required to access it. On the other hand, if the publicly listed prices become much higher, knowing you can reach out to Ashley for the $215/night rate could prove very useful.

The DFW Airport is a huge airport. Your options for going between terminals varies greatly based on which side of security you are on.

Inside of security, the easiest way to travel between distant terminals is typically the Skylink Train. If you are flying into DFW with only carry-on luggage, I strongly recommend you use Skylink to reach the terminal with the relevant hotel before exiting security.

If you are outside of security, you can either walk, or use the Terminal Link orange buses which run in a loop from terminal to terminal.

Getting to/from the Hyatt Regency DFW

Please see this PDF for comprehensive directions before you go. This includes instructions for walking from Terminal C, instructions for taking the Hyatt Regency hotel shuttle, and instructions for those who are driving. It also includes instructions for validating your parking.

Although there are signs marking the walking path from terminal C to the Hyatt Regency DFW, the path can be a little tricky the first few times. Here is a video showing the walking path from Terminal C to the Hyatt Regency, with a few shortcuts for minimizing stairs.

Getting to/from the Hyatt Grand DFW

The newer Hyatt Grand is far better integrated into the airport than the older Hyatt Regency. The elevator for the Hyatt Grand opens a few steps away from the TSA security area in Terminal D. The hotel lobby is just one floor above the departure level.

When departing for your flight Friday morning, your elevator ride experience will be a bit unusual. You will step into the elevator from a sleepy quiet hallway with people resting in their hotel rooms, push the button for departure level, and then be suddenly jarred awake as the elevator doors open to reveal the cacophony of airport security lines.

Traveling between the Hyatt Grand DFW and the Hyatt Regency DFW is best done by calling the Hyatt Regency DFW shuttle. The two hotels work fairly closely with each other, so don’t be afraid to ask either one for help on how to get to the other.

Amtrak

Amtrak can be a viable option for traveling to the event for those living along Amtrak’s Texas Eagle train. This could be a practical option for those coming from San Antonio, Austin, or Little Rock. An overnight trip in a sleeping cabin to Chicago is doable, just slow.

For those in Oklahoma, the Heartland Flyer might be a reasonable option.

Traveling between the Fort Worth Amtrak station and the DFW airport is best done using TexRail.

Flying will be a more practical choice for most people, yet taking the train isn’t unreasonable in some situations.

Meals

I will be providing lunch for everyone. I anticipate we will eat lunch at the Jacob’s Spring Grille in the Hyatt Regency and the Grand Met in the Hyatt Grand, so long as the class stays small enough for that to be practical.

Refreshments will likely be limited until the class grows larger. Jett’s Coffee Bar in the Hyatt Regency lobby has the usual coffee shop selections.

Breakfast is not being provided. Both hotels have a hotel reservation option with breakfast included.

Evening dinners are not included in the cost of the course. During class, I suspect we will end up organizing trips outside the airport for dinner most nights. There is a nearby Salt Grass Steakhouse which might be a good choice. Most choices will involve driving or taking a short Uber ride.

Tickets

February 4-6: Get Tickets