Microsoft Project level 1, beginner
Context and rationale
Microsoft Project (MS Project or MSP) is Microsoft software dedicated to project management. It enables planners and project managers to organise and steer a project, and to manage resources, budget and data analysis.
This MS Project course will enable you to acquire the technical knowledge needed to produce PERT and Gantt charts, assign teams, manage workload peaks and automatically generate documentation in Word, PDF and HTML formats.
Training objectives
- Using a project management approach from initiation to closure
- Understanding the role of MS Project as a project management support tool
- Mastering an approach to using MS Project to plan, monitor and analyse project performance.
- Learning to use MS Project functions to manage project deadlines, resources and costs
- Mastering the design of customised project reports
- Learning to use MS Project for consolidated management of a project portfolio
Training content
Fundamental principles of project management
- Phases and knowledge areas of project management
- Designing a simple project
- Entering tasks
- Breaking the project into work packages
- Links between tasks
- Risk analysis
- Planning a project
- Monitoring a project
- Closing a project
Creating and configuring a project in MS Project
- Setting the project calendar
- Entering the project start date
Scheduling tasks with MS Project
- Creating the work breakdown structure (WBS)
- Defining the scheduling mode (manual or automatic)
- Sequencing tasks (links between tasks)
- Displaying the project summary task
- Viewing different displays: Gantt, PERT...
- Creating a recurring task
- Deleting or deactivating a task
- Establishing a backward schedule
- Understanding the difference between a project's deadline and its finish date
- Using deadlines and constraints, and understanding the difference between these two concepts
- Understanding the concepts of critical path and float
- Using the project's critical path and task float views to identify opportunities to optimise deadlines
Planning resources and costs
- Entering project resources and their characteristics
- Understanding the difference between the 3 types of resources: work, material and cost
- Assigning resources to tasks
- Understanding and using the relationship between work and duration of tasks
- Entering fixed task costs
- Viewing task and resource costs
- Viewing general project statistics
- Analysing resource use and identifying any over-allocation
- Using the team planner
- Using the task inspector
- Resolving over-allocation by levelling resources
- Excluding certain resources from levelling
- Resolving over-allocation by adding resources
- Taking resource absences into account in the schedule (leave, illness)
- Changing assignments to act on duration, work or assignment rate
Setting the baseline
- Setting the project baseline
- Setting the baseline for part of the project
- Setting several baselines (when the baseline changes)
Monitoring projects with MS Project
- Understanding the difference between the various monitoring methods
- Updating the project using the appropriate method
- Task completion dates
- Task durations
- Task and resource work
Using project data and reporting with MS Project
- Laying out and printing the project schedule
- Using the Copy Picture wizard (to other applications)
- Copying information between MS Project and other applications
- Customising views (Gantt chart)
- Viewing and printing graphical project reports
- Using visual reports to display data and charts in Excel
- Using filters, groups and sorting to display project information
- Displaying and copying the timeline
Analysing project data after updating
- Displaying and analysing date variances
- Displaying and analysing cost variances
- Displaying and analysing duration and work variances
- Taking project shutdown periods into account
- Using the appropriate views to identify the measures to take to avoid potential slippage
Case studies
- The training takes the form of a documented presentation, delivered by the trainer for each module;
- Case studies;
- Discussions (interactive work between participants);
- Reactions, observations, suggestions;
- Illustration of strengths and weaknesses;
- Theoretical and practical input;
- Practical exercises
- MS Project course materials
- Assessment of learning at the end of the training
Let's discuss your training needs
Free, no-obligation offer. An adviser will call you back within 48 hours.