Oracle Primavera P6 Basic Training

Lesson 1 • Project Management Fundamentals

Covers the project lifecycle, key constraints, and scheduling terminology. Establishes the conceptual framework needed to use P6 purposefully.

Lesson 2 • Enterprise Project Structure Overview

Introduces the EPS hierarchy that organizes all projects within P6. Students understand how organizational levels affect access and reporting.

Lesson 3 • Navigating the P6 Interface

Guides users through menus, toolbars, and layout panels in P6 Professional. Proficiency here accelerates all subsequent hands-on exercises.

Lesson 1 • Activity Codes and Project Codes

Creates activity and project code dictionaries used for filtering and grouping. Codes enable consistent reporting across the enterprise portfolio.

Lesson 2 • Calendars and Work Periods

Defines global, project, and resource calendars and their hierarchy. Correct calendar setup prevents scheduling errors in all downstream activities.

Lesson 3 • Resource and Role Libraries

Builds the enterprise resource pool including roles, rates, and availability limits. A well-structured resource library supports accurate cost and capacity planning.

Lesson 1 • Building the Work Breakdown Structure

Constructs a multi-level WBS aligned to project deliverables within P6. The WBS becomes the organizational backbone for all activities and reporting.

Lesson 2 • Creating a New Project

Steps through the New Project wizard, setting dates, calendars, and default settings. Proper initialization prevents cascading configuration errors later.

Lesson 3 • Adding and Configuring Activities

Creates activities under WBS nodes and sets type, duration, and calendar. Activity configuration directly drives schedule calculations.

Lesson 1 • Reviewing and Validating Schedule Logic

Uses P6 tools to detect open ends, loops, and redundant logic. A validated schedule is a prerequisite for baselining and reporting.

Lesson 2 • Relationship Types and Logic

Covers all four relationship types and the use of lags and leads. Correct logic application is the foundation of a valid CPM schedule.

Lesson 3 • Float Analysis and Critical Path

Identifies total float, free float, and the critical path in the schedule. Float analysis guides prioritization and risk mitigation decisions.

Lesson 4 • Schedule Constraints and Deadlines

Applies activity constraints and project deadlines and evaluates their effect on float. Overuse of constraints is a common scheduling error this section addresses.

Lesson 1 • Assigning Resources to Activities

Adds labor, nonlabor, and material resources to activities using the assignment dialog. Resource assignments transform a logic schedule into a resource plan.

Lesson 2 • Budgeting and Cost Baseline

Reviews budgeted cost fields and reconciles them with the project budget. Accurate budgeting is required before setting a performance baseline.

Lesson 3 • Resource Leveling Fundamentals

Runs the resource leveling algorithm to resolve overallocations. Students understand leveling trade-offs between schedule dates and resource limits.

Lesson 4 • Cost Accounts and Expense Categories

Links activities to cost accounts and adds nonresource expenses. Cost accounts enable earned value and financial reporting by category.

Lesson 1 • Updating Activity Progress

Records actual start, finish, remaining duration, and percent complete on activities. Accurate status updates are the foundation of reliable schedule forecasting.

Lesson 2 • Variance Analysis and Schedule Health

Compares current schedule to baseline using variance fields and Gantt bars. Variance analysis identifies slippage and drives corrective action.

Lesson 3 • Advancing the Data Date

Moves the data date forward and reschedules to reflect current project status. The data date separates historical actuals from future forecast.

Lesson 1 • Built-in Reports and Report Wizard

Runs standard P6 reports and builds custom reports using the Report wizard. Reports provide formatted output for distribution outside the P6 environment.

Lesson 2 • Grouping, Sorting, and Filtering

Groups activities by WBS, code, or resource and applies sort and filter criteria. These tools focus attention on relevant data during analysis and reporting.

Lesson 3 • Printing and Exporting Schedule Data

Configures page setup and exports schedule data to PDF, Excel, and XER formats. Export skills are essential for sharing data with stakeholders and other tools.

Lesson 4 • Customizing Activity Table Layouts

Adds, removes, and reorders columns in the activity table and saves named layouts. Custom layouts accelerate daily schedule review and status reporting.

Lesson 1 • Global Change Tool

Automates bulk edits to activity data using conditional Global Change rules. Global Change eliminates manual errors when updating large activity sets.

Lesson 2 • Earned Value Management in P6

Calculates BCWS, BCWP, and ACWP using P6's earned value fields and settings. EVM metrics quantify schedule and cost performance against the baseline.

Lesson 3 • Multi-Project Scheduling

Opens and schedules multiple projects simultaneously to manage cross-project dependencies. Multi-project scheduling reveals resource conflicts and inter-project float.

Lesson 4 • Portfolio Views and Dashboards

Configures portfolio views and dashboard portlets to monitor program-level KPIs. Portfolio dashboards give executives a real-time summary of project health.