Work Breakdown Structure

What is a Work Breakdown Structure?

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical decomposition of the total scope of work to be carried out by the project team to accomplish the project objectives and create the required deliverables   It is not a description of the processes followed to perform the project   It is one of the essential steps to planning a project

Advantages of using a WBS

Helps the project manager to be both comprehensive and specific Helps to define the scope of a project which is essential in ensuring the delivery of the project's objectives and outcomes Makes it easier to: Estimate required resources Create a realistic project schedule Control each stage of the project Especially useful for bigger projects that involve many elements

Importance of the WBS

A poorly constructed WBS can result in: Ongoing, repeated project re-plans and extensions Unclear work assignments Scope creep Budget overrun Missed deadlines Unusable new products or delivered features

Work 2005640 960 720 (binary/octet-stream)

Developing a WBS

Determine the major deliverables or products of the project.  These are what must be produced in order to meet the project's objectives. Divide major deliverables into component/intermediate deliverables. Divide each of these work pieces into its component parts. 8/80 rule: Continue to subdivide components until the lowest level component requires between 8 and 80 hours of work. Work packages: When components are defined in sufficient detail for management and planning purposes, they are known as work packages.

Wbs The Product Part (binary/octet-stream)

Example of Work Breakdown Structure

Work Breakdown Structure Of Aircraft System (binary/octet-stream)

Example of Work Breakdown Structure

WBS interacting with other planning tools

WBS Dictionary: Contains detailed information about each element of the project, including definitions of each work package, effort level and duration of tasks, resources and more Scope statement: High level elements of WBS should match, word for word, the nouns used to describe the project outcomes in the scope statement Resource breakdown structure: Describes the project's resource organisation - Can be used in conjunction with WBS to define work package assignments. Network diagram: A sequential arrangement of the work defined by the WBS Project schedule: Elements of the WBS are starting points for defining the activities included in the project schedule.