Course Outline
DAY 1
Module 1 — Core Claude Concepts, Prompting Strategies, and Personalization
Gain a deeper understanding of Claude beyond the simple chat interface. Learn to identify its unique strengths, determine when it is the optimal choice over other AI solutions, and customize the tool to align with the user’s specific professional profile.
Key Topics
• Claude’s market positioning and the factors that distinguish it from competing AI tools in 2026
• Model families: Fable, Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku, along with guidance on appropriate use cases for each
• AI’s probabilistic nature, managing hallucinations, and risk mitigation strategies
• Variations between subscription plans and the benefits of a paid account
• Effective prompting: the primacy of context over syntax, foundational structures, and determining when to initiate a new conversation
• Tailoring Custom Instructions to user profiles: defining roles, priorities, and communication tone
Practical Exercises
• Exercise 1 — Constructing a comprehensive prompt to address a customer complaint
• Exercise 2 — Configuring Custom Instructions aligned with the user’s professional profile
Module 2 — Projects, Artifacts, and Skills
Leverage Projects to establish persistent workspaces equipped with dedicated knowledge bases, such as operational manuals, technical documentation, and industry standards. Explore Artifacts as a dedicated production environment within the chat interface, and develop repeatable workflows through Skills.
Key Topics:
• Projects: persistent workspaces featuring unique history and a specialized knowledge base
• Project Instructions versus Profile Preferences — understanding their complementary functions
• Collaborative Project sharing: features available on Team and Enterprise plans
• File management: uploading PDFs, Excel spreadsheets, and images
• Artifacts: generating documents, dashboards, and interactive prototypes directly within the chat
• Web Search: accessing real-time information with verifiable sources
• Skills: defining and implementing repeatable operational procedures
Practical Exercises:
• Exercise 3 — Building a functional Project tailored to the user’s specific work context
• Exercise 4 — Generating a functional Artifact relevant to the user’s work context
• Exercise 5 — Creating a functional Skill applicable to the user’s work context
DAY 2
Module 3 — Cowork, AI Agents, and Microsoft 365 Integration
Shift perspective from viewing AI as a passive chatbot to treating it as an active work partner capable of processing real-world daily data in the background.
Key Topics:
• Claude Desktop: installation, system requirements, authentication, initial setup, and key differences from browser-based usage
• Claude in Chrome: installing the official extension, managing permissions, practical applications, limitations, and security best practices
• Claude Mobile: usage in mobile environments, cross-device synchronization, and best practices for remote work
• Cowork: overview of its capabilities, functions, and optimal scenarios for deployment
• Microsoft 365 connector: establishing links to Outlook, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams
• Multi-step workflows: search, read, summarize, draft, and send
• Scheduled operations: utilizing Scheduled Prompts
• MCP: understanding the Model Context Protocol and the Connectors ecosystem
• Identifying current limitations of Cowork and strategies to mitigate them
Practical Exercises:
• Exercise 6 — Setting up a Cowork project and structuring its folder hierarchy
• Exercise 7 — Configuring a comprehensive Cowork project with Skills, instructions, and folders; testing the setup on a complex business task.
Module 4 — Integrating Claude with Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
Utilize Claude within the Microsoft 365 environment, including documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, leveraging the user’s existing files to accelerate data analysis, content creation, review processes, and preparation of professional work materials.
Key Topics:
• Excel: data analysis, formula development, data cleansing, KPI interpretation, and executive summary generation
• Word: content review, rewriting, document structuring, and drafting proposals, reports, minutes, and professional correspondence
• PowerPoint: converting content into narrative presentations, script development, message refinement, and audience-specific adaptation
Practical Exercises:
• Exercise 8 — Employing Claude to analyze an Excel spreadsheet and generate an executive summary with actionable conclusions and recommendations
• Exercise 9 — Converting a Word document or a collection of notes into a structured PowerPoint presentation
Requirements
To fully engage in the practical sessions, participants are required to have the following preparations completed prior to the start of the course:
- Active Claude Subscription (Paid): A Pro, Team, or Enterprise tier is necessary to unlock Projects, Artifacts, and the advanced models utilized in Module 2.
- Microsoft 365 Access: A functional account with permissions for OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint is essential for completing the integration tasks in Modules 3 and 4.
- Laptop with Administrative Privileges: A device where the user is authorized to install Claude Desktop and the Chrome extension (a requirement for Module 3).
- Personal Business Files (Strongly Recommended): Participants should prepare 2–3 real-world documents (such as a PDF manual, an Excel spreadsheet, or a Word report) for use during practical exercises. Please verify that these files do not contain highly sensitive or confidential data.
Testimonials (2)
Learning how to prompt Claude and use it to digest all of the data I have available.
Mike Hartleroad - Furniture Row
Course - Claude AI for Data Analysis and Business Intelligence
how to engage with the Office environment and set up repetitive tasks
