Install Claude Code and point it at a folder of your real documents so it can draft, edit, and organize them for you. Then set up a Claude Project on the web so it remembers your standing instructions and reference material every time — two surfaces, the same assistant, no copy-pasting your context back in either way.
What This Looks Like in Your Role
| Role | What Changes |
|---|---|
| HR | Screen 40 résumés against one job description in a single pass instead of uploading them one by one. A Recruiting Project then holds your rubric and tone permanently, so you stop re-explaining it in every chat. |
| Industrial Engineering | Compare cycle-time and downtime data across many shift reports in a single pass instead of exporting each one separately. Process terminology (takt time, changeover, OEE) lives permanently in CLAUDE.md or a Project's instructions instead of being re-explained each session. |
| Legal | Compare a clause such as indemnity language across many agreements in one pass with a single comparison table. Defined terms and citation format live permanently in CLAUDE.md, and a Contract Review Project handles quick web-chat questions the same way. |
| Marketing | Turn one piece of content into several channel variants as separate saved files from one instruction. Your brand voice and banned-words list live in CLAUDE.md for file work and in a Project's custom instructions for everyday chat. |
| International Relations | Check a ministry's agreements page and keep a running Word log automatically. A Diplomatic Affairs Project handles the same protocol and department-mapping rules for one-off web-chat questions. |
By the end, you will
Claude Pro is a personal subscription with no corporate data agreement, admin oversight, audit logs, or retention controls. Practice on non-sensitive material. Before running real client files, employee records, or privileged material through it, check with your employer's IT or Legal team.
Lessons in this module
When to use the web version vs. Claude Code, full install and login, terminal basics, a hands-on tutorial ending in a real saved file, CLAUDE.md, and reusable slash commands.
The three parts of a Project, why it beats a blank chat, and how to scope your first one.
The setup click path, the four sections of good custom instructions, and copy-ready templates for all five roles.
How to upload reference files, which files to upload for your role, and exactly what a Project can and cannot reach.
Where a Project's memory actually lives and how to update it when a standing fact changes.
A prompt that has Claude draft your next Project end to end, plus Projects worth building across all five roles.
One complete, end-to-end Project — name, instructions, files, and a sample chat — for all five roles.
Key Concepts
Core terms introduced in this module. The lesson where each term is first defined is listed so you can return to the source explanation.
| Term | Defined In | Plain English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Lesson 3.1 | An AI assistant that reads, drafts, and edits the real files in a folder you open on your computer. |
| VS Code | Lesson 3.1 | The free Microsoft program Claude Code runs inside. Like Word, but built to open a whole folder of files at once. |
| Project Folder | Lesson 3.1 | The one folder you open. Claude can only see and touch files inside it, and nothing else. |
| Terminal | Lesson 3.1 | A text box where you type instructions instead of clicking. You need about six commands total. |
| Diff | Lesson 3.1 | A side-by-side before/after view of a change Claude proposes, which you approve or reject. |
| CLAUDE.md | Lesson 3.1 | A plain-text file of standing instructions Claude reads automatically at the start of every session in that folder. |
| Slash Command | Lesson 3.1 | A saved, reusable prompt you trigger with a short /name instead of retyping a long instruction. |
| Claude Project | Lesson 3.2 | A reusable workspace on claude.ai built around one kind of recurring work — the web-side counterpart to a Claude Code project folder. |
| Custom Instructions | Lesson 3.2 | Plain-language standing rules that tell Claude who it is, how to behave, and how to format answers — a Project's version of CLAUDE.md. |
| Project Knowledge | Lesson 3.2 | Reference files you upload once so Claude can draw on them in any chat inside the Project. |
| Claude Cowork | Lesson 3.1 | The option built for editing or creating a single Word, Excel, or PowerPoint file, with no terminal needed. |
| Plan Mode | Lesson 3.1 | A setting that limits Claude to reading and thinking until you approve a written plan. Your best guardrail. |
| Permission Prompt | Lesson 3.1 | The ask that appears before Claude writes or edits. Options are allow-once, allow-always, or deny. |
| Integrated Terminal | Lesson 3.1 | The terminal panel built into VS Code, opened with Ctrl and the backtick key (same shortcut on Mac). The only terminal you need. |
| PowerShell | Lesson 3.1 | A built-in Windows program for typing instructions. Used once, just for the install. (Mac uses Terminal with a one-line curl install instead.) |
| PATH | Lesson 3.1 | The list of places your computer looks for programs. A command must be on it to run from any folder — on Windows this lives in environment variables, on Mac in ~/.zshrc. |
| Extension | Lesson 3.1 | A small add-on for VS Code, like an app for your phone, that adds features such as PDF viewing or spell check. |
| Markdown (.md) | Lesson 3.1 | A simple plain-text formatting style. The recommended format to work in, exporting to Word or PDF at the end. |
| Model | Lesson 3.1 | The specific AI doing the work, such as Sonnet or Opus, shown in the prompt's model indicator. |
| Token | Lesson 3.1 | A unit of text usage that counts against your plan limit. |
| Usage Limits | Lesson 3.1 | Claude Pro's rolling roughly 5-hour session caps plus weekly caps. Web chat and Claude Code share one pool. |
| Git for Windows | Lesson 3.1 | A recommended free install that adds Git Bash, an alternative terminal, to your machine. (On Mac, Git ships via Xcode Command Line Tools — no separate download needed.) |
| Standing Instruction | Lesson 3.5 | A fact that should always be true, written into the custom instructions so every chat uses it. |
| My Context Block | Lesson 3.3 | The section of your instructions holding the details about your role, systems, and preferences. |
| Project Scope | Lesson 3.2 | The single kind of recurring work a Project covers. One kind of work per Project. |
| Meta Prompt | Lesson 3.6 | A prompt that asks Claude to design a whole new Project for you, ready to paste in. |
| Plain Chat | Lesson 3.2 | A single conversation that forgets everything the moment it ends. |
| Recruiting Assistant | Lesson 3.2 | The example HR Project: candidate summaries, outreach messages, pipeline tracking. |
| Contract Review | Lesson 3.2 | The example Legal Project: clause review, risk flagging, tracking defined terms. |
| Content Assistant | Lesson 3.2 | The example Marketing Project: repurposing content, enforcing brand voice, campaign summaries. |
| Process & Work-Order Assistant | Lesson 3.2 | The example Industrial Engineering Project: nonconformance summaries, standard-work drafting, work-order status tracking. |
| Diplomatic Affairs Assistant | Lesson 3.2 | The example International Relations Project: briefing memos, protocol checks, agreement and cable tracking. |
| Identity Line | Lesson 3.3 | The "You are my ___ assistant" line that sets Claude's role for every chat in the Project. |
| Responsibilities List | Lesson 3.3 | The numbered list of standing jobs the Project handles. |
| Output Format Rule | Lesson 3.3 | Your default answer format (table, bullets) and any required fields. |
| Required Fields | Lesson 3.3 | The specific items Claude must extract or include in every answer. |
| Reference Shelf | Lesson 3.4 | The set of uploaded files a Project draws on, in place of you pasting them each time. |
| Live System Access | Lesson 3.4 | What a Project reaches by default: nothing beyond what you upload. Connectors (Module 4, Lesson 4.4) are the one way to deliberately extend that. |
| Project Memory | Lesson 3.5 | The custom instructions and uploaded files. There is no separate learned-preference feature. |
| Repeat-Correction Rule | Lesson 3.5 | If you correct Claude the same way in every chat, that correction belongs in the instructions. |
| Project Template | Lesson 3.6 | The four-part setup (name, description, instructions, file list) for a new Project. |
A Project's custom instructions (3.2–3.7) and Claude Code's CLAUDE.md (3.1) both do the same job: standing rules Claude reads automatically instead of you restating them every time. The difference is only which surface you're on — the terminal or the web. If you end up using both daily, that similarity is deliberate — the fix for "I keep repeating myself" is the same fix either way.
Support Resources
| Resource | Link | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Claude | claude.ai | Sign up and use Claude in your browser |
| Claude Docs | code.claude.com/docs | Official documentation |
| Claude Support | support.claude.com | Help center and account support |
Up next
Module 4: Automating Workflows with Claude Code