Microsoft Project fundamentals course 1: Getting started with Project
During this hands-on session, you will learn how to create and save a simple Project file. You will become familiar with the screen layout and learn how to give commands within the program. You will also learn how to set up the essentials of the project initially and add simple tasks.
1.5 Hours
This course is suitable for beginners and no prior knowledge of Project is required. Ideally, the delegate will be familiar with using a mouse, and working in a Windows environment.
- Project management concepts: What is the definition of a ‘project’?
- Overview: learn a little about Project Management and Project Methodologies.
- Creating a new project file: learn how to open the program and create a new blank project.
- Understanding the screen: note the most important features on-screen e.g. the ribbon; work area; scroll bars; status bar; views.
- Starting a new project: before you start to add tasks or resources, there are some settings that should be considered and changed if necessary, e.g. working hours.
- Entering tasks: in a new blank project, enter some simple tasks and add a duration for each.
- Saving your work: learn how to save and resave your work; consider the options available e.g. where to save, file name; create a new folder to save your file into.
- Help: browse Project Help to find out more about the program, or search for a specific topic.
Microsoft Project fundamentals course 2: Working with Tasks and Resources
During this hands-on session, you will learn how about how to add tasks to a project, how to link tasks to show dependencies, and how to add milestones to indicate significant project events. You will also learn how to create resources and how to assign these resources to tasks.
1.5 Hours
This course is suitable for delegates who have attended the Module 1 session (Getting started with Project), or who have gained a similar, basic knowledge of the Project program (any version) in the workplace.
- Tasks: learn how to insert, move, delete and copy tasks; estimate and enter task durations and change task properties.
- Milestones: a milestone is a significant event in your project; add milestones to your project to keep track of deadlines and other significant events.
- Constraining tasks: learn how to control and define task schedules using task constraints.
- Summary tasks: learn how to use summary tasks to organise your project into ‘phases’, and how to add subtasks within each phase; look at some examples of work breakdown structures.
- Recurring tasks: some tasks repeat regularly over the course of the project; learn how to add tasks that take place daily/weekly/monthly/annually.
- Task notes and hyperlinks: include detailed information by adding notes to a task; add a hyperlink to include an online source in the task information.
- Critical path: a critical path is a series of critical tasks that must be completed on time so that the project will finish on time; learn how to view the critical path.
- Linking tasks: most tasks are related to other tasks in some way and in many cases a task will ‘depend’ on another task; learn about types of dependencies and how to add links to show the relationship between two tasks.
- Gantt chart view: explore options available for formatting/customising the Gantt chart view, including the Gantt Chart Wizard; and find out what other views are available.
- Resources: an overview; types of resources; setting up a resource list; add resource notes; assign resources to tasks.
Microsoft Project fundamentals course 3: Project progression and reporting
During this hands-on session, you will learn how to manage changes by updating tasks etc. and how to track your project progression. You will also learn how to sort, filter, group and print project data, and how to exchange data with other programs. You will also learn how to generate reports for your project.
1.5 Hours
This course is suitable for delegates who have attended the Module 1 & 2 sessions or who have gained a similar, basic knowledge of the Project program (any version) in the workplace.
- Baseline: learn how to create a snapshot of your project using a baseline - this provides a reference point against which the progress of the project can be tracked.
- Tracking progress and updating the schedule: update the entire project or individual tasks by changing completion percentages or actual values; learn about automatic and manual cost updating.
- Comparing planned to actual: view project statistics; costs; duration variance; work variance; cost variance.
- Rescheduling outstanding work: identify slipped tasks; learn why and how to split tasks.
- Interim plan: an interim plan is a snapshot of your project as it progresses – this data is useful to compare to baseline plan data to assess task progress; learn how to create an interim plan.
- Sorting & filtering: sort and filter your tasks and resources; learn how to group tasks/resources.
- Split view: learn how to display two views of your project in one window; zoom in and out.
- Printing: print the Gantt Chart View; print the current view as a report; headers and footers.
- Exchanging project plan data with other programs: import a list of tasks from Excel into a new project plan; create a custom import map; export project plan data to Excel; copy a picture of selected project data into a Word document.
