Overview

In this two-day course, students will be introduced to using Claude Cowork, which is Anthropic's autonomous AI agent language and execution system used to manage complex, multi-step knowledge work directly within the Claude Desktop (https://claude.ai) environment. The course covers the structural requirements, permission frameworks, and interface dynamics needed to safely run computer use capabilities, but the emphasis is on leveraging Claude Cowork to handle long-running, autonomous business workflows. Students will learn how to configure persistent workspace context files, integrate native connectors and third-party Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers, build reusable custom AI skills, and schedule fully automated daily or weekly tasks. This instructor-led course consists of a combination of lecture, demonstrations, and hands-on labs.

Software Used During the Class

The standard lab setup for this class consists of a Windows or macOS PC with the Claude Desktop App (with Cowork mode enabled) installed, a modern text or Markdown editor (such as VS Code or Obsidian), a web browser with the Claude extension, and an environment preconfigured with target cloud tools (such as Google Workspace).

Audience

This course is intended for business users, operations managers, and professional knowledge workers who have been using standard conversational interfaces like Claude Chat and are ready to step into the power of autonomous AI agents. Delegating multi-step, background-running workflows is a highly effective next step for experienced Claude users looking to scale their productivity.

Prerequisites

Although deep technical coding experience is not required for this class, students should have prior experience interacting with Claude Chat or similar large language models. Basic familiarity with navigating local file structures and utilizing standard markdown formatting will help students get the most out of the hands-on lab work.

Course Outline