Microsoft Project Level 1: Comprehensive Introduction

This course is designed to familiarize you with the basic features and functions of Microsoft Project so you can use it effectively and efficiently in a real-world environment. This course covers the critical knowledge and skills a project manager needs to create a project plan during the planning phase of a project.

This course is taught using Microsoft 2019 software but it is also applicable to users of Project Online and earlier versions of the Project desktop software. Instructors will note any features that are exclusive to 2019. This is an excellent introduction for users of Project 2019, Project Online, or earlier versions.

Note: This course is for anyone who has Project on the desktop, regardless of whether they purchased an “on-premise” edition or subscribed to a “cloud-based” (online) edition. Most project managers and project team members use the desktop application, so that is the main focus of this course. The main features of the online app are presented in an appendix.

Target Student

This course is designed for a person with general desktop computer skills who will be responsible for creating and maintaining project plans. This course will give you the fundamental understanding of Microsoft Project necessary to construct basic project plans.

Prerequisites

To ensure your success in this course, you should have basic knowledge and skills using the Microsoft® Windows® operating system—preferably the most current version. While you do not need to be an expert, some experience and competency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word and Excel®, will be useful.

NOTE: If you already have a basic understanding of how to use Microsoft Project, but want a deeper dive into its features consider going directly into our Level 2 Project class. Or if are self-taught using Project and want additional practice with project management concepts and techniques, you should also consider going directly to the second classes in this series:

Microsoft Project Level 2: Mastering Project

Course Objectives

In this course, you will be able to construct basic project plans using Microsoft Project.

You will:

• Identify project management concepts and navigate Microsoft Project Professional.
• Create a new project plan.
• Add tasks to a project.
• Manage task relationships within a project.
• Manage project resources.
• Finalize a project plan.
• Update a project plan.
• Generate project views to manage a project.
• Create project reports to share a project's status.
• Reuse project plan information.
• Work with multiple projects.

• Lesson 1: Getting Started with Microsoft Project
• Topic A: Identify Project Management Concepts
• Topic B: Navigate in the Microsoft Project Desktop Environment
• Lesson 2: Defining a Project
• Topic A: Create a New Project Plan File
• Topic B: Set Project Plan Options
• Topic C: Assign a Project Calendar
• Lesson 3: Adding Project Tasks
• Topic A: Add Tasks to a Project Plan
• Topic B: Enter Task Duration Estimates
• Lesson 4: Managing Tasks
• Topic A: Create a Work Breakdown Structure
• Topic B: Define Task Relationships
• Topic C: Schedule Tasks
• Lesson 5: Managing Project Resources
• Topic A: Add Resources to a Project
• Topic B: Create a Resource Calendar
• Topic C: Enter Costs for Resources
• Topic D: Assign Resources to Tasks
• Topic E: Resolve Resource Conflicts
• Lesson 6: Finalizing a Project Plan
• Topic A: Optimize a Project Plan
• Topic B: Set a Baseline
• Topic C: Share a Project Plan