Liberating Structures Advanced Workshop (2 days)

Liberating Structures offer a revolutionary solution to collaboration in groups. Invented by Henri Lipmanowicz and Keith McCandless, Liberating Structures are a set of 33 microstructures that use a handful of simple rules to unleash and involve everyone - no matter the size of the group. The picture below shows what it looks like when people are fully engaged - something that Liberating Structures make possible.

Liberating Structures workshops are designed to let you learn by doing. They are purposefully intense, fun, and inspiring. Immerse yourself and discover how they enable groups to work at the top of their intelligence. Click here for an impression from the previous workshop.

Everyone can design and create their own Immersion Workshops. There's no standardized or certified program. The workshops I designed together with Christiaan Verwijs and various other facilitators, slowly moved into a solid template. It proved to be a good 2-day workshop to introduce people with Liberating Structures.

However, it's impossible to include all 33 Liberating Structures AND dozens of unofficial structures into a 2-day workshop. There's simply not enough time. I frequently received the questions like: "What about the 15 - 20 Liberating Structures that aren't part of the Immersion Workshop? How and where can I learn those ones?".

So far, my answer has always been: just give them a try!

Even though you don't need to be an expert to use Liberating Structures, many people do like to experience them first. And that makes sense! Let's do it together first, so you can do it yourself afterward.

The advanced workshop contains all the 15 - 20 Liberating Structures that aren't part of the Immersion Workshop. For example: Helping Heuristics, Conversation Cafe, Improv Prototyping, Min Specs, and What I Need From You. We'll also include unofficial structures like Myth Turning, Tiny Demons, and 4-2-1-SNAP.

As a bonus, we'll use the concept of Strategy Knotworking as the foundation. Strategy Knotworking is a coherent set of Liberating Structures that aims to involve and engage everyone in developing and evolving sustainable strategies.

This 'advanced' workshop is specifically designed for experienced Liberating Structures practitioners who are already familiar with the underlying design elements & principles. It is particularly beneficial for those people with at least one year of practical experience.

You can still join the workshop if you're new to Liberating Structures. You won't feel totally lost :) But our recommendation is that you'll join the free bonus workshop the day before.

On Tuesday afternoon, the day before the 2-day workshop, we'll facilitate a 3-hour session focused on the basics of Liberating Structures. In an energetic & interactive way, we'll explore the theory & principles behind Liberating Structures and have you experience the five foundational design elements. Use it as a refresher, warming-up session, or to gain the necessary knowledge & experience if you're totally new to Liberating Structures.

• We will keep you from dozing off during two high-energy days. No boring Powerpoint!
• We will host an online retrospective 6 - 8 weeks afterward. Joining is optional, but it's an excellent opportunity to catch up with the participants once again and to share the progress you've made.
• You will receive a digital version of all the material we use during the training. This means a digital copy of all the posters, card exercises, and all other material.
• You will always experience the latest version of the class, including fresh insights from our ongoing scientific research.
• Our previous classes contained ±25 participants from ±10 different countries. This alone offers you a tremendous opportunity to learn from many different cultures and organizations.
• Although it's not a class about Liberating Structures, you will experience about 10 - 15 of them!
• You have the opportunity to join a free bonus workshop the day before the class. This is optional, but it might serve as a nice warming-up exercise preparing you for the 2-day class.
• We will host an online retrospective 6 - 8 weeks afterward. Joining is optional, but it's an excellent opportunity to catch up with the participants once again and to share the progress you've made.

• The location is The Volkshotel in Amsterdam. If you're looking for a place to stay, this is definitely a recommendation.
• We'll start each day at 9:00 sharp. Doors open at 8:30
• We'll finish each day around 16:30, no later than 17:00
• On the second day, we'll have some snacks & drinks after the class. So, if you see a chance to hang around: feel free to do so!
• Got any dietary restrictions? Please let me know in advance, so I can inform the Volkshotel upfront.
• Lunch & snacks are all vegetarian.

Can I pay by invoice? Booking through Eventbrite is simple, safe, and fast. You receive a valid invoice after your purchase. However, if you need to pay by invoice, we can send you a manual invoice for the regular price instead. Please contact us and let us know the name of your company, the address, a purchase order (when relevant), and the VAT number when your company is EU-based. 

Can VAT be reverse-charged? Unfortunately, no. Tickets for public events are exempted from VAT reversal. We effectively pay the VAT for you. You can reclaim the VAT from your invoice through your local tax agency.

As The Liberators, it's our purpose to liberate teams from ineffective ways of work by putting them in control of shaping their future. To achieve this purpose, we create products to unleash the superpowers of (Scrum) teams all over the world. We share a wide variety of content and support a community to learn and grow together.

Examples are:

• Products: the Scrum Team Survey, and all the items on our webshop
• Content: the Zombie Scrum Survival Guide, blog posts, and podcast episodes
• Community: The Liberators Network

We don't like fine print either, but please make sure to check out our (short) and . They apply to all registrations through Eventbrite, either done by you directly, by us on your request, or by a third party on your behalf.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Volkshotel, 150 Wibautstraat, Amsterdam, Netherlands