At Edwards Project Solutions (Edwards), we believe that training programs must integrate theory with real world experiences to be effective. Our comprehensive courses in project management theory, fundamentals, principles and practices are designed around industry best practices and based on the Project Management Institute’s (PMI®) Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®). They are taught by experienced project managers with insight into managing real world situations and projects. EdwPS is confident in our ability to provide comprehensive, practical courses that will enable you to further your professional education.
All Edwards training courses are 100% guaranteed for total customer satisfaction
Our Microsoft® Project training courses cover all versions of the application since 1998 (MSP 2010, 2007, 2003, and 98-2002). For all versions, we offer our foundations “Core” class, which focuses on applying Microsoft® Project to a PMI® PMBOK® based project management process for setting up and managing the project schedule. This process focuses on planning the project, developing the schedule, managing project resources, tracking progress against an established baseline and reporting project status and progress. The course also provides a detailed illustration of how Microsoft® Project fits into the process, thereby giving the student an effective tool that can be applied to their real-world projects. This is NOT a point-and-click “features” class on Microsoft® Project.
For later versions of the scheduling tool (MSP 2010 & MSP 2007), we offer a special course tailor-made for those project managers who require, or desire, to use Microsoft® Project to track and report earned value metrics within the schedule. Using Microsoft® Project to collect and report accurately reliable earned value metrics can be very daunting if you don’t know how to how to set up the tool and apply the correct processes. These courses, through a series of tools, custom templates and add-ins, as well as a solid step-by-step PMBOK®based process, give you repeatable accuracy for collecting and reporting earned value metrics within the project schedule.
We also offer several advanced topic courses which explore some of the features and capabilities of Microsoft® Project introduced in the Core course in greater detail. These courses will also introduce the enterprise version of Microsoft® Project: Project Server.
In all of our Microsoft® Project training sessions, each student will: (a) work at an individual PC workstation running the full application; (b) receive hands-on instruction from our professional instructors; (c) receive a detailed, 500+ page full-color, course manual authored by Edwards Project Solutions; a laminated desktop reference guide for the course; a CD loaded with templates, tools, add-ins and sample project schedules; and (d) obtain a certificate upon completion. For more information on any of the courses listed, simply click on the course title. For a full course listing, download a catalog here.
Microsoft® Project Foundation “Core” Course
Microsoft® Project with Earned Value Courses
Microsoft® Project Advanced Topic Courses
The Microsoft® Project “Core” courses are Edwards Project Solutions’ premier and most popular courses. The formats, processes, and approaches presented in this class serve as the foundation for our other project-based courses. The best practices taught in each of these interactive sessions have been developed through real-life experience and consultation with subject matter experts.
From 1988-1997, company founder Steve Edwards used very early versions of Microsoft®Project to plan and manage complex DoD programs when he was a division director and program manager at a mid-sized engineering firm. Steve established the policies and procedures and created standardized scheduling templates for the project and program managers at this firm. Then in late 1998, a year after Edwards Project Solutions was founded, he developed and launched the first formal training course available to the general public: Microsoft® Project 98. This course set the standard for process, detail, and quality on all training materials developed and produced by Edwards Project Solutions. It is focused on the project management process and then illustrated in detail, where Microsoft® Project fit into that process. This course teaches a full project lifecycle process that easily translates to your work environment and the projects you are managing.
Since that first course was launched, Edwards Project Solutions has developed many other project management related training courses, and continued to improve, enhance and release new versions of our Microsoft® Project courses. As Microsoft® has released new versions of its application, we have also released new versions of our training that leverage the application’s improved functions and added capabilities.
Microsoft® Project Core Courses
Microsoft® Project Desktop Core: A Scheduling Tool for Successfully Managing Projects
Every project, regardless of its size or complexity must have a plan in order to succeed. As part of that project plan, you need to have a comprehensive and manageable schedule. Planning and scheduling your project in a systematic and logical fashion is paramount to the success of the overall program. This two-day course provides an excellent foundation for Microsoft® Project users. Through hands-on training, our experienced professional project managers will present students with a clear, comprehensive, step-by-step methodology for entering, managing and tracking project schedules using the program. In addition, the course includes a basic project management overview, including PMI best practices as well as Edwards Project Solutions methodologies. After completing the course, students will be able to create and manage a project resource tool; set up and manipulate project and resource calendars and task relationships; assign project resources to tasks; track projects; create reports; analyze data, and much more.
The students participating in this course will learn:
- A full-life cycle, PMI® based, project management methodology for scheduling with Microsoft® Project. Plan – Create – Review – Baseline – Status – Track – Report
- Create and manage a project resource pool.
- Set up and manipulate project and resource calendars.
- Set up and modify task relationships
- Assign project resources to tasks
- Set up performance and level-of-effort (LOE) tasks – Understand task types and the “schedule formula”
- Resolve resource conflicts and baseline the project
- Track project progress (in good times and bad)
- Create project reports and analyze project, resource and task data
Course Materials:
- Professionally bound 500+ page full color instruction manual written by Edwards Project Solutions. This manual is rich with color screen captures and process details to walk you through the step-by-step process.
- Laminated desktop reference illustrating the step-by-step process taught in the class
- CD with templates, tools, add-ins and sample project schedule
- Microsoft® Project Macros and add-ins written by EdwPS
- “Check-Point” project schedules from the course, as well as other practice schedules
- Other supplemental information
* Professionally bound course material available for Microsoft® Project versions 2007 and later.
Microsoft® Project Desktop Core: A Scheduling Tool for Successfully Managing Projects
Course Length: 2 days
Microsoft® Project 2010
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P10COR | PMI PDUs: 15
A.E.P. Program #: 7014-P10COR | AACE PDHs: 15
Microsoft® Project 2007
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K7DC | PMI PDUs: 15
A.E.P. Program #: 7014-P2K7DC | AACE PDHs: 15
Microsoft® Project 2003
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K3C1 | PMI PDUs: 15
A.E.P. Program #: 7014-P2K3C1 | AACE PDHs: 15
Note: Earlier versions of this course are available upon request
Microsoft® Project with Earned Value Courses
Microsoft® Project & Earned Value: Using Microsoft® Project to Collect & Report Earned Value Metrics
This hands-on instructor-led course will provide participants with a clear step-by-step process for setting up, tracking and reporting earned value using Microsoft® Project. Although a general overview and purpose of earned value management (EVM) will be presented, this course is not an earned value management “theory” class and a comfortable understanding of topic is required. This intense two-day class will focus on a methodology that leverages the standards of the Project Management Institute (PMI®) with industry best practices, and couple those with requisite industry experience to deliver process driven solution that allows project managers, schedulers and controllers as well as general managers and cost account managers to incorporate tracking of earned value metrics into their use of the scheduling tool. Edwards Project Solutions’ own methodologies and custom tools created using Microsoft® Project will be presented through class discussion as well as group and individual sample projects. Students will learn a step-by-step process to create and manage a project resource pool; set up and manipulate project and resource calendars; create and modify task relationships; set up performance and level-of-effort tasks; resolve conflicts; baseline projects; track earned value metrics at detailed and summary task levels; and, much more.
Course Materials:
- Professionally bond 560+ page full color instruction manual written by Edwards Project Solutions. This manual is rich with color screen captures and process details to walk you through the step-by-step process.
- Laminated desktop reference illustrating the step-by-step process taught in the class.
- Laminated desktop reference for earned value management
- CD with templates, tools, add-ins and sample project schedule
- Microsoft® Project Macros and add-ins written by EdwPS
- “Check-Point” project schedules from the course, as well as other practice schedules
- Other supplemental information
* Professionally bound course material available for Microsoft® Project versions 2007 and later.
Microsoft® Project & Earned Value: Using Microsoft® Project to Collect & Report Earned Value Metrics
Course Length: 2 days
Microsoft® Project 2010
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P10EVM | PMI PDUs: 15
Microsoft® Project 2007
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K7EVM | PMI PDUs: 15
Microsoft® Project 2003R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K3EI | PMI PDUs: 15
Course Detail Sheet
Microsoft® Project Advanced Topic Courses
Intermediate Microsoft® Project
This training course using a hands-on approach will further expand on the concepts discussed in Introduction to Microsoft® Project exploring impacts of the real-life project management on the schedule planning and status processes. This advance topics course will address two advanced project desktop concepts; creating custom fields and creating stoplight tracking charts. Custom fields allow you to create, modify and calculate custom data based upon the extensive Microsoft® Project database. They also allow you use your project file as the central repository for your plan. Graphical indicators paired with custom fields are used to create very powerful stoplight tracking charts, which can help readily identify potential problems in your project schedule. Students are guided through the setup criteria and the use of graphic indicators to analyze your project data in your custom fields.
Microsoft® Project Professional: Advance Topics 02 — Intermediate Microsoft® Project
Course Length: 1 day
Microsoft® Project 2007
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K2A1 | PMI PDUs: 7.5
Course Detail Sheet (note: clicking here will open the file “EdwPS-Microsoft_Project_Intermediate(2012-07).PDF” in a new browser tab. The PDF file should be stored in the “Presentations & Downloads” section of the Resource Library.)
Advanced Microsoft® Project
This training course using a hands-on approach will further expand on the concepts discussed in the Introduction to Microsoft Project exploring impacts of the real-life project management on the schedule planning and status processes. This advance topics course will provide an overview of and Enterprise Project Management in a Microsoft® Project Server environment relating concepts introduced in the Introduction and Intermediate Microsoft® Project courses. This course will cover an overview of the Project Server, Enterprise Resources, Enterprise Projects, Timesheet and Status Reporting and Project Workspaces. Students of this course will be provided a comprehensive training manual. Access will be provided to a demo Project Server to be used in conjunction with this course.
Microsoft® Project: Advance Topics 03 — Microsoft® Project Server
Course Length: 1 day
Microsoft® Project 2007
R.E.P. Program #: 1918-P2K2A3 | PMI PDUs: 7.5