Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation with Microsoft Project

About This Course

Effective project management demands more than good intentions — it requires structured planning, disciplined execution, and rigorous performance tracking. In today's competitive and resource-constrained environment, organisations across sectors are under increasing pressure to demonstrate value, meet deadlines, and produce measurable outcomes. Professionals who can seamlessly combine project management methodology with monitoring and evaluation (M&E) frameworks — and operationalise both through technology — are among the most sought-after in the marketplace.

This ten-day programme by TrainingComplex offers a comprehensive, hands-on journey through the full project lifecycle, from initiation and scoping through to close-out and lessons-learned documentation. Participants will master the principles of the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), apply logical framework analysis and results-based management to embed M&E from day one, and harness Microsoft Project to build detailed schedules, track progress, manage resources, and generate professional reports.

The integration of M&E within project management is a growing requirement in donor-funded projects, government programmes, and private-sector initiatives alike. This course addresses that need directly, teaching participants to design performance measurement frameworks, collect and analyse data against baselines, interpret earned value metrics, and communicate progress to diverse stakeholders with clarity and confidence.

By the end of the programme, participants will leave with a working Microsoft Project file, a performance measurement framework, and a personal toolkit of templates ready to apply immediately in their roles. Whether you manage infrastructure projects, social programmes, IT implementations, or organisational change initiatives, this course will sharpen your capability and boost your professional credibility.

Who Should Attend

• Project Managers and Assistant Project Managers seeking to strengthen their technical and M&E skills
• Monitoring and Evaluation Officers responsible for tracking project performance
• Programme Coordinators and Development Professionals in NGOs, government, and the private sector
• Planning Officers and Strategy Analysts involved in project design and implementation
• Grant and Fund Managers who must report on project progress to funders and boards
• IT and Engineering Project Leads managing complex, multi-phase deliverables
• Senior Officers transitioning into project management or M&E roles
• Consultants providing project management or evaluation services to client organisations

Learning Objectives

• Understand and apply the full project management lifecycle from initiation to close-out using PMBOK-aligned principles
• Design a comprehensive project plan including scope, schedule, budget, risk register, and communication plan
• Build and manage detailed project schedules in Microsoft Project, including task dependencies, milestones, and critical path analysis
• Assign and level resources in Microsoft Project to prevent overallocation and optimise team utilisation
• Develop a Logical Framework (LogFrame) and a Results Framework to embed M&E into project design
• Establish a Performance Measurement Framework with indicators, baselines, targets, and data collection methods
• Apply Earned Value Management (EVM) techniques to assess project cost and schedule performance
• Track project progress in Microsoft Project and generate baseline variance, resource, and status reports
• Design and implement a project monitoring plan, including field data collection tools and reporting templates
• Conduct a project evaluation — formative, summative, or real-time — and document findings effectively
• Manage project changes, risks, and issues through structured change control and risk response processes
• Communicate project performance to stakeholders through dashboards, visual reports, and structured briefings
• Document lessons learned and produce a project close-out report aligned with organisational and donor requirements

Course Modules

Requirements & Prerequisites

Participants should have at least one year of experience in a project-related role, such as project coordination, planning, or implementation. Basic computer literacy and familiarity with Microsoft Office applications are required. Prior exposure to project management concepts or M&E principles is helpful but not mandatory, as the course builds from foundational concepts before advancing to technical application.

Training Methodology

• Hands-on Microsoft Project lab sessions where participants build a real project schedule from a provided case brief, progressing module by module
• LogFrame and Results Framework design workshops in which small teams construct planning documents for a realistic sector-specific project scenario
• Earned Value Management simulation exercises using provided cost and schedule data to calculate CPI, SPI, and variance at completion
• Case study analysis of real-world project failures and successes, drawing lessons on planning gaps, M&E weaknesses, and course-correction strategies
• Peer review sessions where participants critique each other's project plans, risk registers, and performance frameworks using structured rubrics
• Role-play stakeholder communication exercises, including presenting a project status dashboard to a simulated donor or board audience
• Guided template completion for risk registers, monitoring plans, data collection tools, and close-out reports that participants retain for use in their own organisations
• Group discussions and facilitated debriefs linking theoretical frameworks to participants' actual workplace contexts and challenges

Organisational Benefits

• Improved project delivery rates as staff apply structured planning and execution techniques from day one
• Enhanced accountability and transparency through embedded M&E systems that track outputs, outcomes, and impacts
• Reduced cost overruns and schedule delays through proactive risk management and earned value monitoring
• Stronger donor and stakeholder confidence supported by professional reporting and evidence-based performance data
• Increased organisational capacity to manage multiple concurrent projects using standardised tools and templates
• Better resource utilisation as project managers use Microsoft Project to allocate and balance workloads effectively
• A shared project management language across teams, improving collaboration and reducing miscommunication
• Immediate return on investment as participants apply newly acquired skills and templates to live projects upon return

Where Is Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation with Microsoft Project Training Offered?

This course runs in-person across: Nairobi, Johannesburg, Kigali, Naivasha, Abuja, Dubai, Pretoria, Zanzibar, Nakuru, Kisumu, Lagos, Accra, Cape Town, Addis Ababa, Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Mombasa, Riyadh, Kampala, plus Live Virtual (online) cohorts. Browse live dates for your city below.

Upcoming Schedules

+237 more dates — view live schedule →

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