Course information

This course provides an introduction to Microsoft Project for project professionals. Microsoft Project is a software package that supports project managers to plan, baseline, monitor and control a project schedule, budget and resource allocation throughout the life of a project.

This course aims to enable you to develop and monitor a project in Microsoft Project, ensuring it finishes on-time and on-budget. You will gain a working knowledge of MS Project so that you can start working on your project immediately using MS project.

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

• set and manage relationships between project tasks
• develop a simple project schedule, resource sheet and budget within defined constraints using MS Project
• analyse a schedule in MS Project to understand the critical path
• develop a resource sheet to estimate your project budget
• monitor and control a project using MS Project
• explain the benefits and challenges of using MS Project
• identify the challenges and flexibility in the schedule and develop options for optimisation
• produce reports using MS Project
• level resources
• develop an awareness of further learning to get even more out of MS Project, as well as Enterprise Project and Project Online.

Recap on theory

• A refresh on the project management framework and scheduling concepts

MS Project basics

• Navigating MS Project
• Different views available
• Setting up a new project

Integrated project planning

• Developing a WBS and input activity, durations and dependencies to develop a simple Gantt chart
• Building and analysing a project schedule including network analysis, critical path analysis
• Creating and using project resource tables
• Project budget definition

Monitoring and controlling

• Baseline and rebaselining a plan
• Tracking task completion
• Reporting with MS Project

Awareness of more tools

• Benefits and challenges of MS Project, when to use it and what it's good for
• Beyond MS Project: Enterprise, Online, SharePoint integration & other scheduling packages.

• New and experienced Project Managers
• Other project professionals, e.g. PMO, planner, estimator, scheduler etc.
• Little to no experience using MS Project
• The 'accidental' Project Manager

• Some experience as a project manager or applying project management techniques, for example, scheduling.
• It is assumed that you will have access to MS Project upon completion of the training to practice the concepts learned during the training.

Delivery modes

Face-to-face classes

These classes run in a computer lab and you do not need to bring your own device.

Online classes

Online training is delivered via the platform Zoom. You will need your own Windows device (required software is not available on Apple devices) with sound/microphone and a web camera.

Microsoft Project software is required and can be downloaded from the Microsoft store. Please ensure it is installed on your device prior to class. Recommended versions for PC: MS Project 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019 (excluding trial versions).

This two-day course focuses on experiential learning. Content is broken into 10-15 minute blocks and immediately followed by group activities where the theory is put into action.

A range of interactive methods will be used including:

• storytelling and the use of professional examples to exhibit the concepts
• self-reflection and group discussions
• case studies where the concepts are actively applied
• individual and team activities and presentations
• suggested readings for after training.

You will receive:

• online course materials (using Dropbox) with case study activities
• an online project management toolkit with templates
• a Statement of Completion.