Course Outline
DAY 1
Module 1 — Claude Fundamentals, Prompting and Personalisation
Examine Claude’s capabilities beyond conversational interfaces. Assess its strategic value, determine appropriate use cases for government operations, and implement personalization settings to align outputs with specific user profiles and operational needs.
Topics
• Strategic positioning of Claude in the 2026 AI landscape and its distinction from alternative tools
• Model architectures: Fable, Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku, and criteria for selecting the appropriate model for specific tasks
• Probabilistic AI mechanisms, managing hallucinations, and strategies for risk mitigation in public sector contexts
• Comparative analysis of subscription plans and the operational advantages of paid enterprise accounts
• Advanced prompting strategies: prioritizing contextual accuracy over syntactic structure, foundational frameworks, and guidelines for managing conversation continuity
• Implementation of Custom Instructions to define roles, operational priorities, and communication standards
Practical Applications
• Exercise 1 — Develop a comprehensive prompt to address a formal complaint or public inquiry
• Exercise 2 — Configure Custom Instructions to align with a specific government user profile
Module 2 — Projects, Artifacts and Skills
Utilize Projects to establish persistent workspaces with dedicated knowledge bases, including regulatory manuals, technical specifications, and operational standards. Leverage Artifacts to generate production-ready outputs within the interface. Implement Skills to codify repeatable working procedures for consistency and efficiency.
Topics:
• Projects: Creation of persistent workspaces with dedicated history and secure knowledge base integration
• Distinction between Project Instructions and Profile Preferences, and methods for harmonizing both
• Collaborative sharing of Projects across teams and enterprise units
• Document integration: Processing PDFs, Excel spreadsheets, and image files
• Artifacts: Generation of formal documents, analytical dashboards, and interactive prototypes within the session
• Web Search: Accessing real-time data with verifiable citations for due diligence
• Skills: Definition and application of standardized, repeatable operational procedures
Practical Applications:
• Exercise 3 — Construct a functional Project tailored to a specific government operational context
• Exercise 4 — Generate a functional Artifact relevant to current departmental requirements
• Exercise 5 — Create a functional Skill to streamline a recurring administrative task
DAY 2
Module 3 — Cowork, agents and Microsoft 365 integration
Transition from reactive chatbot usage to proactive AI partnership. Configure the system to operate autonomously on background tasks, processing real-world operational data with greater efficiency and accuracy.
Topics:
• Claude Desktop: Deployment, system requirements, authentication protocols, and configuration for secure enterprise use
• Claude in Chrome: Installation of the official extension, permission management, operational use cases, and security safeguards
• Claude Mobile: Operational continuity across devices and best practices for field work and mobile access
• Cowork: Functional overview, operational capabilities, and strategic deployment scenarios
• Microsoft 365 integration: Connecting Outlook, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams for seamless workflow management
• Multi-step task automation: Executing search, analysis, summarization, drafting, and distribution workflows
• Scheduled automation: Implementing Scheduled Prompts for routine monitoring and reporting
• MCP: Utilizing the Model Context Protocol and Connectors ecosystem for extended functionality
• Identifying current limitations of Cowork and implementing workarounds for operational resilience
Practical Applications:
• Exercise 6 — Establish a Cowork project and organize its file architecture for structured data management
• Exercise 7 — Configure a comprehensive Cowork project with integrated Skills and instructions; validate performance on complex operational tasks.
Module 4 — Claude in Excel, Word and PowerPoint
Integrate Claude with the Microsoft 365 suite to enhance productivity in document creation, spreadsheet analysis, and presentation development. Leverage existing organizational files to accelerate analysis, drafting, review, and the preparation of official work materials.
Topics:
• Excel: Data analysis, formula generation, data cleaning, indicator interpretation, and executive summary creation
• Word: Document review, revision, structural formatting, and drafting of proposals, reports, minutes, and official communications
• PowerPoint: Converting content into strategic narratives, scripting development, message refinement, and audience-specific adaptation
Practical Applications:
• Exercise 8 — Analyze an Excel dataset and produce an executive summary with data-driven conclusions and recommendations
• Exercise 9 — Transform a Word document or note set into a structured PowerPoint presentation framework
Requirements
To fully participate in the practical exercises, the following prerequisites must be in place prior to the course:
- Active Claude Account (Paid): A Pro, Team, or Enterprise plan is required to access Projects, Artifacts, and advanced models utilized in Module 2.
- Microsoft 365 Access: A valid account with access to OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint to complete the integrations in Modules 3 and 4.
- Laptop with Installation Rights: A device authorized for the installation of Claude Desktop and the Chrome extension (required for Module 3).
- Organizational Files (Highly Recommended): Provide 2–3 non-confidential, real-world documents (e.g., a PDF manual, an Excel sheet, or a Word report) for use in hands-on exercises. Ensure no strictly confidential data is included.
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
