This course is designed for people who need to use Microsoft Project to manage projects. It covers the preparation of the project plan, implementing the project plan and a third day to work on project plans and do trouble-shooting with the facilitator present. The third day is essential to consolidate the learning.

Versions

2003 - 2010

Duration

2 days with optional third day, (groups only, minimum 6 people)

Outcomes

The delegate will be able to:

• Understand the Ms Project environment
• Define the project plan
• Add resources to the project plan
• Work with project budgets and cashflows
• Understand and tweak the project plan
• Work with baselines
• Track the project
• Print views and reports
• Create template
• Share resources
• Consolidate projects

Unit Standards

120385 - Apply a range of project management tools and techniques (Level 4 – 7 Credits)
On course completion delegates will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of project management tools.
• Using a range of project management tools.
• Applying corrective action steps where project management tools and techniques usage problems occur.

Prerequisites

If you have no previous project management experience and are unfamiliar with project management concepts, then we recommend that you do the one day Introduction to Project Management Course first. Some project management understanding is necessary to work with Ms Project. All candidates must be Windows literate and comfortable with using MS Excel.  

Course content

 Microsoft project - the background

• Computerized planning tools
• Getting started on Microsoft project
• The help facility
• Project settings
• Defining the project plan
• The project objective
• The scoping meeting

Defining the project plan
1. Controlling the project with a project summary task
2. Controlling working times and schedules with the project calendar
3. Defining project start and finish dates

• Defining and entering different types of tasks
• Tasks headings and sub-tasks
• Manipulating and editing tasks
• Defining fixed and estimated durations
• Linking tasks and defining task sequences
• Linking tasks
• Viewing your GANTT chart
• Task dependencies and relationships
• Lead and lag times
• Constraints
• Deadlines
• Recurring tasks
• Entering milestones
• Task information box
• Adding columns to tables (WBS)
• Saving your project file

Adding resources to the project plan

• Defining and assigning resources
• Resource information dialog box
• Resource calendars
• Assigning resources to your project plan
• Determining which staff are over-allocated
• Resolution of over-allocations of resources

Project budgets and cash flows

• Defining variable and fixed costs
• Calculating costs per task and the entire project
• Calculated fields and other currencies
• Grouping costs
• Printing budget and cash flows
• Other methods of reviewing costs

Understanding and tweaking the project plan

• Viewing your project in different views
• Determining the critical path
• Changing timescales
• Change highlighting 2007
• Task drivers 2007

Working with baselines

• Items to check before saving a baseline
• What are baselines?
• Saving a baseline
• Working with baselines
• Interim plans

Tracking your project

• Tracking your project activities
• Tracking your project costs
• Rag robots
• Overtime work
• Custom views (combination views)
• Progress lines
• Filtering your project plans
• Grouping project items
• Sorting project plans

Printing views and reports

• Printing views and tables
• Page setup
• Project reports
• Visual reports
• Customising reports
• Converting your project to html for the web (2003 only)
• Pictures of the project plan
• Exporting project data to excel

Extra features

• Creating templates
• Formatting project plans
• The organizer
• Sharing resources
• Consolidating projects