Project Planning and Control Using Oracle Primavera P6 Versions 8.1 and 8.2 Professional Client and Optional Client

A user guide and training manual written for Project Management Professionals who wish to learn how to plan and control projects in an established Primavera Enterprise environment with or without Resources and Roles. This book is an update of the author s Primavera P6 Version 7 and 8.1 book and contains updated workshops, new content and an Earned Value chapter. It has been written so it may be used with any software industry version.
The book is packed with screen shots, constructive tips and contains workshops with solutions at the end of each chapter for the reader to practice the skills taught. It has been written so it may be used with either the Professional Project Management Client version or the Enterprise Project Portfolio Management Optional Client.
The book is aimed at:
1. People who wish learn the software but are unable to attend a training course and find the software reference manual hard going.
2. Project management companies who wish to run their own software training courses or provide their employees with an alternative text to the vendor supplied user manual.
3. Training organizations requiring a training manual to run their own training courses.
This book is a PMI Approved course and instructors PowerPoint slide shows are available to training organizations. PMI REPs may apply to have this course licensed to them and award 21 PDUs to each attendee.
Primavera Systems Inc. originally asked the author to write this book and this publication is ideal for people who would like to gain an understanding of how the software operates up to an intermediate level. It covers only Primavera Versions 8.1 Professional Client and Optional Client Due to the new menus and toolbars release in Version 8. It explains some of the differences from SureTrak, P3, Microsoft Project and Asta Powerproject to assist people converting form other products.
The book is designed to teach planners and schedulers in any industry how to setup and use the software in a project environment. It explains in plain English and in a logical sequence, the steps required to create and maintain an unresourced and resourced schedule. It tackles some of the more complex aspects of the software that the user manual does not address. It highlights the sources of information and the methods that should be employed to produce a realistic and useful project schedule.
The book provides advice on how on how the many software options may be applied to projects environments and it aims to teach readers how to plan and control projects created within the software package and stays focused on explaining how to use Primavera to schedule projects by:
1. Concentrating on the core functions required to set up an enterprise environment and how to plan and control projects.
2. Providing command lists at the start of each chapter as a quick reference.
3. Providing a comprehensive table of contents and index of all topics.
The book is intended to be used:
1. As a self teach book, or
2. A user guide, or
3. A training manual for a three day training course.
This book is written by an experienced scheduler, who has used the software at the sharp end of projects and is not a techo. It draws on the author's practical experience in using the software in a wide variety of industries. It presents workable solutions to real day to day planning and scheduling problems and contains practical advice on how to set up the software and import data.

Paul Harris holds an Honours Degree in Civil Engineering obtained in the UK and is a Certified Cost Engineer through AACEI International, a PRINCE2 Registered Practitioner, an Approved PRINCE2 Trainer and a Managing Successful Programmes Registered Practitioner. He has worked in the project controls industry for a number of years and has assisted many companies in a range of industries to set up and run project controls systems. His Melbourne, Australia based company, Eastwood Harris Pty Ltd, offers project controls consulting and training services world wide with a strong focus on Microsoft Project and Primavera software.

As a project controls consultant I have used a number of planning and scheduling software packages for the management of a range of project types and sizes. The first books I published were user guides/training manuals for Primavera SureTrak®, P3 and® Microsoft Project users. These were well received by professional project managers and schedulers, so I decided to turn my attention to developing books that demonstrated how the software is used with project management methodologies such as PRINCE2 and the PMBOK® Guide. This book follows the same layout as my other books and I trust this book will assist you in understanding how to use Primavera P6 to plan and control your projects.