Review: Primavera P6 Video Training

There are many types of project management tools, but most of the software I review is designed to manage small- and medium-sized projects. Primavera is an enterprise-grade solution that targets companies with a mature approach towards project management, possibly with a portfolio or programme management approach. How do you learn about a product that is so complex and packed with features that you may not even want to use in your project?
Ten Six, a US-based consultancy firm, has created a video course to help people get started with Primavera. Primavera consultants will likely work with you to set it up correctly, and they’ll also provide on-site training. However, those consultants will have long since retired so you will need a different way to get new employees up to speed. This video course might be the answer.
Video navigation and welcome screen
Cost: $495
What you get: High-quality video with sample data files, and a 47 page exercise workbook. If Primavera P6 is not installed, detailed instructions are included on how to download it and install it.
Audience: This is for people who have never used Primavera P6 Pro.
It should take you 2 days to complete.
Access granted for 3 months. Ten Six will grant extensions if requested by email.
Downloadable? No.
DVD available? No.
PDUs? Yes, there are 7 category A PDUs available.
Overview
To put the course in context, there is a six-minute video on PMI’s process group to start the course. It’s a useful overview of the project management lifecycle. These videos are excellent. The videos don’t have a talking head trainer. Instead, they show screen flows and slides to illustrate what is being said. It’s a shame, as it’s helpful to have a trainer to give you an idea of human interaction.
Each lesson contains a quiz. You can also refer to the workbook to find exercises on each topic.
Content
There are 12 lessons plus 3 bonus lessons. You don’t need to learn the lessons in order. You can skip over topics as you find them. It is important to begin at the beginning and work your way up, rather than jumping to global project and reporting calendars (covered under Lesson 12).
The learning management system tracks how many lessons you’ve completed, regardless of whether you follow the order in which they were taught. This allows you to track how much you’ve done and how many you still have to learn.
You can track your progress with the course. The Work Breakdown Structure video was helpful as it gave a general overview of the software and then showed how it translates into the software. Some videos are too long for me. For example, the lesson on project reporting takes 25 minutes. This is too long to look at slides and do a screen walkthrough. It could have been broken up into two videos and combined with the exercises.
Bonus lessons include P6 Visualizer (useful for those who use this module), percent complete types, and progressing activities using step. These lessons don’t have quizzes.
Summary
The most surprising thing about the P6 system was its age. Of course, the training provider is not responsible for this. Although I am not an expert in P6 use, the course is comprehensive. It seems to include everything you need to get started with this software and to help you improve your skills.
Screenshot of the user interface of P6. It’s easy to navigate the training and workbook. However, you will need the workbook exercises as well as the associated data files to really get to know the software. You can’t just look at the videos and learn how to use it. The videos are removed after three months unless you request an extended. However, it appears that you can still access them.