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[ ENTERPRISE · FORMATION AT SCALE ]FDE-SF/1.0 · FDE-S/1.0 · AUTHORED
EVERY SEAT HAS A PATH · EVERY PATH HAS GATES

Form engineers to every seat. At the pace a program needs.

A delivery program does not need a course catalog. It needs to know what it takes to produce an FDE I, a Senior FDE, and a pod lead, how many at a time, and what human review that demands. This page shows the instruction LockedIn Labs uses to form each seat on the ladder, how a cohort moves through the authored runway, and what a bench plan looks like when a pod composition is turned into headcount.

TO AN FDE I SEAT · AUTHORED FACTS
FDE core modules7
Authored instruction12 h
Lab environments4
Practice rooms4
Evidence gates7
Authored runway windowWeeks 1 to 12

Instruction time is authored read and artifact time. It is not a time to competence. A cohort advances on evidence.

01[ THE DEPTH BEHIND THE SEATS ]

A teaching system, not a slide deck.

Counts derived from this repository. Every module ends in an artifact a reviewer scores against a published rubric; every lab environment is an executable scenario; every practice room rehearses a field moment with a scripted counterpart.

42
AUTHORED MODULES
213
LESSON SECTIONS
181
RUBRIC CRITERIA
19
WORKED EXAMPLE ARTIFACTS
13
LAB ENVIRONMENTS
4
PRACTICE ROOMS
10
EVIDENCE GATES
9
COMPETENCY DOMAINS

The forward deployed engineering core is 8 modules and 14 h of authored instruction, sitting inside 7 tracks and 42 capability graph nodes. Levels on the pod ladder are earned on the 10 evidence gates of the Forward-Deployed Engineering Standard, across 9 competency domains.

02[ THE PATH TO EACH SEAT ]

What it takes to produce each rung of the ladder.

Each card lists the exact modules, lab environments, practice rooms, and evidence gates behind a rung, with the authored runway window. Higher rungs contain the rungs below them; the increment is what the seat adds.

RUNG 0WEEKS 0102

Associate FDE

A recorded baseline and an evidence based development plan. Deploys only paired with a lead.

0 h
AUTHORED INSTRUCTION
1
EVIDENCE GATES
0 h
FIELD HOURS
  • 1 Diagnostic
  1. QS-00Baseline establishedEG-00
MODULES · 0
  • Diagnostic only: the capability assessment.
PRACTICE ROOMS · 1
  • Capability assessment
Diagnostic standing. It establishes no independent field capability.
RUNG 1WEEKS 0112

FDE I

Can diagnose, scope, integrate, evaluate, and stage a bounded mission under controlled pressure.

12 h
AUTHORED INSTRUCTION
7
EVIDENCE GATES
0 h
FIELD HOURS
  • 1 Diagnostic
  • 5 Performance review
  • 1 Live defense
  1. QS-00Baseline establishedEG-00
  2. QS-01Mission-ready in simulationEG-01 · EG-02 · EG-03
  3. QS-02Production-ready in rehearsalEG-04 · EG-05 · EG-06
MODULES · 7
  • Diagnose the work, establish the outcome94 min
  • Scope and architect the mission87 min
  • Land inside enterprise systems103 min
  • Engineer provider-portable AI systems109 min
  • Operate an evaluation and reliability control system114 min
  • Bound authority and earn authorization102 min
  • Operate adoption, rollout, and incidents118 min
LAB ENVIRONMENTS · 4
  • Enterprise Data Reconciliation Lab65 min
  • Evaluation Regression Lab55 min
  • Agentic Release Challenge60 min
  • Production Operations Defense75 min
PRACTICE ROOMS · 4
  • Capability assessment
  • Client Discovery Room
  • Integration Recovery Bench
  • Staged Rollout Command Room
Rehearsal evidence is not a production outcome inside a client environment.
RUNG 2WEEKS 0124

FDE II (Senior)

Has owned a bounded mission in a real client boundary and transferred operation to a named owner under supervision.

14 h
AUTHORED INSTRUCTION
9
EVIDENCE GATES
180 h
FIELD HOURS
  • 1 Diagnostic
  • 5 Performance review
  • 2 Live defense
  • 1 Supervised field
  1. QS-00Baseline establishedEG-00
  2. QS-01Mission-ready in simulationEG-01 · EG-02 · EG-03
  3. QS-02Production-ready in rehearsalEG-04 · EG-05 · EG-06
  4. QS-03Field evidence completeEG-07 · EG-08
MODULES · 8
  • Diagnose the work, establish the outcome94 min
  • Scope and architect the mission87 min
  • Land inside enterprise systems103 min
  • Engineer provider-portable AI systems109 min
  • Operate an evaluation and reliability control system114 min
  • Bound authority and earn authorization102 min
  • Operate adoption, rollout, and incidents118 min
  • Yield ownership and compound field learning102 min
LAB ENVIRONMENTS · 5
  • Enterprise Data Reconciliation Lab65 min
  • Evaluation Regression Lab55 min
  • Agentic Release Challenge60 min
  • Production Operations Defense75 min
  • FDE Production Project Review90 min
PRACTICE ROOMS · 6
  • Capability assessment
  • Client Discovery Room
  • Integration Recovery Bench
  • Staged Rollout Command Room
  • Assigned Mission Workspace
  • Ownership Transfer Room

Supervised field: at least 180 accepted mission hours, 80 inside a live client boundary, across 2 distinct missions, with a named supervisor and a client designated owner.

One supervised mission does not predict performance in every domain, scale, or estate.
RUNG 3WEEKS 0124

FDE Architect

The complete evidence chain has passed an independent integrated defense with architecture and integration depth across estates.

14 h
AUTHORED INSTRUCTION
10
EVIDENCE GATES
180 h
FIELD HOURS
  • 1 Diagnostic
  • 5 Performance review
  • 3 Live defense
  • 1 Supervised field
  1. QS-00Baseline establishedEG-00
  2. QS-01Mission-ready in simulationEG-01 · EG-02 · EG-03
  3. QS-02Production-ready in rehearsalEG-04 · EG-05 · EG-06
  4. QS-03Field evidence completeEG-07 · EG-08
  5. QS-04FDE qualification defendedEG-09
MODULES · 8
  • Diagnose the work, establish the outcome94 min
  • Scope and architect the mission87 min
  • Land inside enterprise systems103 min
  • Engineer provider-portable AI systems109 min
  • Operate an evaluation and reliability control system114 min
  • Bound authority and earn authorization102 min
  • Operate adoption, rollout, and incidents118 min
  • Yield ownership and compound field learning102 min
LAB ENVIRONMENTS · 5
  • Enterprise Data Reconciliation Lab65 min
  • Evaluation Regression Lab55 min
  • Agentic Release Challenge60 min
  • Production Operations Defense75 min
  • FDE Production Project Review90 min
PRACTICE ROOMS · 6
  • Capability assessment
  • Client Discovery Room
  • Integration Recovery Bench
  • Staged Rollout Command Room
  • Assigned Mission Workspace
  • Ownership Transfer Room

Supervised field: at least 180 accepted mission hours, 80 inside a live client boundary, across 2 distinct missions, with a named supervisor and a client designated owner.

A defended qualification is a program judgment, not a client acceptance or an employer authorization.
RUNG 3WEEKS 0124

FDE Lead

The complete evidence chain has passed an independent integrated defense and the engineer anchors a pod onshore.

14 h
AUTHORED INSTRUCTION
10
EVIDENCE GATES
180 h
FIELD HOURS
  • 1 Diagnostic
  • 5 Performance review
  • 3 Live defense
  • 1 Supervised field
  1. QS-00Baseline establishedEG-00
  2. QS-01Mission-ready in simulationEG-01 · EG-02 · EG-03
  3. QS-02Production-ready in rehearsalEG-04 · EG-05 · EG-06
  4. QS-03Field evidence completeEG-07 · EG-08
  5. QS-04FDE qualification defendedEG-09
MODULES · 8
  • Diagnose the work, establish the outcome94 min
  • Scope and architect the mission87 min
  • Land inside enterprise systems103 min
  • Engineer provider-portable AI systems109 min
  • Operate an evaluation and reliability control system114 min
  • Bound authority and earn authorization102 min
  • Operate adoption, rollout, and incidents118 min
  • Yield ownership and compound field learning102 min
LAB ENVIRONMENTS · 5
  • Enterprise Data Reconciliation Lab65 min
  • Evaluation Regression Lab55 min
  • Agentic Release Challenge60 min
  • Production Operations Defense75 min
  • FDE Production Project Review90 min
PRACTICE ROOMS · 6
  • Capability assessment
  • Client Discovery Room
  • Integration Recovery Bench
  • Staged Rollout Command Room
  • Assigned Mission Workspace
  • Ownership Transfer Room

Supervised field: at least 180 accepted mission hours, 80 inside a live client boundary, across 2 distinct missions, with a named supervisor and a client designated owner.

A defended qualification is a program judgment, not a client acceptance or an employer authorization.
03[ HOW A COHORT MOVES ]

Instruction, labs, and performance review first. Human authority gates last.

The path to a pod lead across the 24 week authored runway. Blue bands are instruction, labs, and calibrated performance review. Light bands are where a person holds the gate: a live defense panel or a supervised field mission with a named supervisor and client owner.

W1W5W9W13W17W21W24
  1. EG-00Unassisted baseline work sampleDiagnostic
  2. EG-01Discovery and outcome contractPerformance review
  3. EG-02Enterprise integration slicePerformance review
  4. EG-03Provider-portable systemPerformance review
  5. EG-04Evaluation and reliability controlPerformance review
  6. EG-05Security and authority reviewLive defense
  7. EG-06Production, adoption, and incident commandPerformance review
  8. EG-07Supervised field missionSupervised field
  9. EG-08Ownership transfer and field learningLive defense
  10. EG-09Integrated qualification defenseLive defense
Instruction, labs, and performance reviewHuman authority: live defense and supervised fieldAuthored runway windows · advance on evidence, not time

Runway windows are the authored Formation Runway's windows. A cohort advances on evidence, not on elapsed time. Review load counts what the standard requires. On this training property, staffed practitioner review and supervised field work are not active.

04[ A BENCH PLAN, ILLUSTRATED ]

Turn a pod composition into headcount, cohorts, and review load.

Four anchored pods (Configuration B), cohorts of eight starting every four weeks, no recorded supply. Program administrators run this against a real composition and the recorded practice ladder inside the authenticated workspace.

RUNGDEMANDSUPPLYGAPCOHORTSREADY BYINSTRUCTION EACH
Associate FDE0000 h
FDE I661week 1212 h
FDE II (Senior)441week 2414 h
FDE Architect441week 2414 h
FDE Lead441week 2414 h
PROGRAM18184week 24
W1W5W9W13W17W21
  1. FDE I cohort 16 learners · ready W12
  2. FDE II cohort 14 learners · ready W24
  3. Architect cohort 14 learners · ready W24
  4. Lead cohort 14 learners · ready W24
Illustrative · Cohorts of 8, started every 4 weeks. Ready week is the end of the authored runway window for that rung. A cohort advances on evidence, not on elapsed time.
HUMAN REVIEW THE STANDARD REQUIRES FOR THIS PLAN
18DIAGNOSTIC BASELINES

Scored by a calibrated reviewer or live provider scorer.

90PERFORMANCE REVIEWS

Calibrated human review against a published rubric, with executable checks.

38LIVE DEFENSES

Qualified human panels under adversarial questioning.

12SUPERVISED FIELD MISSIONS

A named field supervisor plus the client's designated owner, in a real client boundary.

Illustrative. Demand is arithmetic over a pod composition; supply is recorded training evidence; ready weeks follow the authored runway window. A cohort advances on evidence, not elapsed time, and review load names what the standard requires, not reviewers who exist. On this training property, staffed practitioner review and supervised field work are not active; a program staffs them on engagement.

[ TALK TO US ]

Bring a role list. Leave with a bench plan.

We size the seats, the cohorts, the runway, and the review load against your program, then show you the same instruction your engineers would work through, module by module.