What's this all about?
This is a one day mini-conference, aimed at practioners who are working with Lean, Agile, or Systems Thinking techniques. The primary audience is the Melbourne practitioner community, although you're also welcome if you are from out of town. The day will be participatory, and collaborative. Workshops, activities, and discussions are favoured ahead of one person speaking at the front of the room in front of a slide deck.
The event is being run by practitioners from the Melbourne community. 2015 is the fourth year that this event has been held.
Why LAST?
LAST stands for "Lean, Agile, Systems Thinking".
Our day is inspired by the Agile Tour, the inaugural Australian instance was held in December 2011, in Sydney. The organisers of LAST, felt that the Melbourne community could really benefit from something similar, and so LAST Conference was born.Here’s Ed's writeup of that event. He also explains "Why I started LAST Conference".
With the naming of the event, we wanted to provide a broad remit, so that the full scope of practice could potentially be covered.
Who should come?
The event is not aimed at beginners, but rather for people who have worked in the field, and want to extend their knowledge, and share their experiences with other practitioners in a collaborative and interactive environment.
This may include but is not limited to: Developers, Product Managers, Business Analysts, Product Owners, Designers, UX Designers, Iteration Managers, Testers, Scrum Masters, CTOs, Project Managers, Trainers and Coaches. Technical and non-technical practitioners are welcome.
Should I come if I'm a beginner?
If you are starting our, there may be some things that go over your head, but you may also find the day useful. So come along if you want to, it's up to you. Don’t be afraid to ask and learn from others.
Beginners will also want to attend 1st Conf an event organised by the same people that organise LAST, but aimed at people just starting out with agile.
What is the structure?
We will start announcing the sessions for the day in June/July. We want to encourage activities and workshops, as well as talks, about real world experiences (both positive and problematic).
We will build the schedule iteratively, adding sessions if great new ideas come in or if there is a gap that needs to be filled. Session leaders are also free to alter their session in the lead up to the event, if they need to.
Craig is the main curator of the schedule and he’s cramming a lot into the day again. There is going to be a lot going on at one time. We like to think of it like a film festival where, as there will inevitably be some things that you won’t be able to get to. Our hope is that the sessions that you do attend are interesting and stimulating for you.
- Talks that run for up to 30 minutes. We are taking the stance that you should be able to get your strongest points across in this time and then take further discussions forward via other avenues.
- Lightning Talk sessions. Blocks of up to 10 minute talks with even more focus, or new ideas you just want to get out there, or a chance to get involved for the first time.
- Workshops. Activities or games that emphasise agile and lean concepts.
Will there be stress balls/t-shirts/bags/schwag/tchotchke?
Not really. Our view is that there is too much tchotchke at a typical conference, so we aren't having very much, if any. We want to focus on communication, interactions and value rather than schwag.
If you have a lanyard holder from a previous event (and we bet that you've got a few), please bring it. Otherwise, your name badge is self-adhesive, so stick it on your shirt! Similarly, you'll probably have your own bag, so you don't need another one, right?
Don't worry, we still love you though, and have thought about all of your really important needs.
Will there be food?
You'll be adequately fed and watered at lunch, and morning and afternoon breaks.
We always have a post-event gathering, with sponsored drinks (we hope). Make sure you allow time to stick around and engage in stimulating follow up conversations about the day!
When will Registration open?
Registration opens in late March at midday Wednesday 15 June 2015. In previous years, the event has sold out weeks before the day, so it’s best to get in quick. Once full, please join the waiting list, and if there are any spots become available, they will be released to the waiting list first.
See this page for more FAQs about Registration.
Can I send someone else or get a refund?
What is Lanyrd?
We use Lanyrd for session and speaker details. It can be used it to track sessions and speakers, and find follow up coverage. Here's what it looked like for the 2012 Google I/O conference and for LAST Conference 2013.
Lynyrd has an HTML5 mobile version for various mobile devices, and an iOS app for iPhone or iPad They both allow for offline access…and are free.
Easy Twitter, LinkedIn or username/password sign in will also allow you to meet other attendees, and find out about other events that you might find interesting. Don't worry if you don't have a Twitter or LinkedIn account, you can still use Lanyrd to view event info.
Who's organising it?
There is a healthy Agile and Lean community in Melbourne that holds regular evening user group events throughout the year. Ed Wong and Craig Brown, co-organisers of the Melbourne Agile and Scrum group, the Agile Business Analysts group, and experienced practitioners, decided to make it happen.
Ed and Craig are also founding members of the Tabar, who are the organising sponsors of LAST. Tabar is a group of agile practitioners who provide coaching, training and consulting services…and events!
