WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a decomposition of all the work necessary to complete a
project. A WBS is arranged in a hierarchy and constructed to allow for clear and logical
groupings, either by actiities or delierables. !he WBS should represent the work identified in
the approed "roject Scope Statement and seres as an early foundation for effectie schedule
deelopment and cost estimating. "roject managers typically will deelop a WBS as a precursor
to a detailed project schedule. !he WBS should be accompanied by a WBS #ictionary, which
lists and defines WBS elements.
!he goals of deeloping a WBS and WBS #ictionary are $) for the project team to proactiely
and logically plan out the project to completion, %) to collect the information about work that
needs to be done for a project, and &) to organi'e actiities into manageable components that will
achiee project objecties. !he WBS and WBS #ictionary are not the schedule, but rather the
building blocks to it. !he progression of WBS and WBS #ictionary deelopment is as follows(
!he WBS and WBS #ictionary should not be static documents. WBS construction is subject to
project management progressie elaboration, and as new information becomes known, the WBS
should be reised to reflect that information. A "roject !eam that has substantial changes to its
WBS should reference the project)s *hange +anagement "lan for guidance on management of
changes to project scope.
EXAMPLE
Below is a simplified WBS e,ample with a limited number of organi'ing leels. !he following
list describes key characteristics of the sample WBS(
Hierarchical Levels - contains three leels of work
Numberi! Se"uece - uses outline numbering as a uni.ue identifier for all leels
/eel one is $.0, which illustrates the project leel.
/eel two is $.1 ($.$, $.%, $.&, etc.), which is the summary leel, and often the leel
at which reporting is done.
/eel three is $.1.1 ($.$.$, $.$.%, etc.), which illustrates the work package leel. !he
work package is the lowest leel of the WBS where both the cost and schedule can be
reliably estimated.
L#$es% Level Descri&%i#s ' e,pressed using erbs and objects, such as 2make menu.3
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WBS (#iagram
or /ist)
WBS (#iagram
or /ist)
WBS
#ictionary
WBS
#ictionary
#etailed
Schedule
#etailed
Schedule
(#al
#efine comprehensie
list of project actiities
(#als
#escribe task
Se.uence actiities
4stimate duration
4stimate resources
5dentify constraints
(#al
5ntegrate detailed list of project
actiities, dependencies,
constraints, and resources to
reflect complete timeframe
WBS NUMBER)N(
5n a WBS, eery leel item has a uni.ue assigned number so that work can be identified and
tracked oer time. A WBS may hae arying numbers of decomposition leels, but there is a
general scheme for how to number each leel so that tasks are uni.uely numbered and correctly
summari'ed. Below is the general conention for how tasks are decomposed(
Level * - #esignated by $.0. !his leel is the top leel of the WBS and is usually the
project name. All other leels are subordinate to this leel.
Level + - #esignated by $.1 (e.g., $.$, $.%). !his leel is the summary leel.
Level , - #esignated by $.1.1 (e.g., $.$.$, $.$.%). !his third leel comprises the
subcomponents to each leel % summary element. !his effort continues down until
progressiely subordinate leels are assigned for all work re.uired for the entire project.
5f tasks are properly subordinated, most project scheduling tools will automatically number tasks
using the aboe conention.
WBS CONSTRUCT)ON METHODS
Although there are different methods of decomposing project work and creating a WBS, the most
straightforward and effectie way is to use some form of isual display of the delierables,
phases, or actiities. 5deally, all "roject !eam members will conene and brainstorm all work
re.uired to complete project delierables successfully. 5nolement of all team members in this
process increases the likelihood that the resulting WBS will be comprehensie. !ypically, team
members start by identifying all project delierables or milestones and then decompose them one
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at a time into a detailed and se.uential list of the detailed actiities re.uired to complete the
delierable or milestone. 6ne way of isually conducting this process is by using post7it notes to
represent each delierable and sub7actiity.
WBS T-PES
#elierable7oriented WBS
"rocess7centered WBS
DEL).ERABLE/OR)ENTED WBS
A delierable7oriented WBS is built around the project)s desired outcomes or delierables. !his
type of WBS would likely include the following characteristics(
/eel % items are the names of all endor project delierables that are e,pected to be
re.uired as part of a contract. /eel % should also include any agency delierables tasks.
/eel & items are key actiities re.uired to produce the /eel % delierables.
Additional leels are used depending upon the magnitude of the delierables and the
leel of detail re.uired to reliably estimate cost and schedule.
5n the delierable7oriented WBS, all delierables are identified, and all work is
included.
Statewide projects procured as 8irm78i,ed7"rice contracts are well suited to the delierable7
oriented approach. 6rgani'ed this way, project managers and agency management can reiew
interim progress against delierables and easily determine the percentage of the work that is
complete. Sometimes, a delierable7oriented WBS and its associated schedule can be confusing
to read because their items are not organi'ed se.uentially at the highest leel. !hey are,
howeer, ery useful in demonstrating progress against contracted delierables.
PROCESS/CENTERED WBS
A process7centered WBS is similar to a delierable7oriented WBS e,cept that it is organi'ed, at
the highest leel, by phases or steps in a process rather than by delierables. !he benefit of using
a process7centered WBS is that it encourages the inclusion of process7re.uired delierables, such
as System #eelopment /ife *ycle (S#/*) delierables. 9egardless of the type of WBS
employed, project teams should ensure that all contractual and S#/* delierables are accounted
for in the WBS. A process7centered WBS typically includes the following(
/eel % actiities are phases or schedule checkpoints:milestones. !hese actiities
could be S#/* phases such as 5nitiation, "lanning, etc.
/eel & actiities are those actiities re.uired to complete /eel % phases or
milestones. +ultiple tasks are included for any work that needs to be done in multiple
phases.
Additional leels are used depending on the duration of the phase or schedule and the
leel of detail re.uired to reliably estimate cost and schedule.
5n the process7centered WBS, all delierables are identified, and all work is included.
!his comprehensieness will reduce the risk of 2off balance sheet3 work tasks, which might
hae une,pected impacts on the project schedule.
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HOW MAN- LE.ELS0
!wo industry7standard methods e,ist for determining how many leels a WBS should hae(
!raditionally, the Project Management Body of Knowledge adocates a predetermined
seen7leel model, which has the adantage of clear labels and definitions of each leel (e.g.,
program, project, task, subtask, work product, and leel of effort); the disadantage to this
model is that it re.uires a leel of detail that may be unnecessary. +odels:methods with
predetermined leels and leel definitions make clear what information needs to be included
and where, but they lack fle,ibility.
!he more contemporary approach is to let the project characteristics dictate the
number of leels used in the judgment of the "roject +anager. 5t is a good practice to
identify the number of leels to be used so that a project maintains consistency when
building the WBS. !he number of leels must be sufficient to allow the "roject +anager to
reliably estimate schedule and cost and effectiely monitor and control work packages.
HOW MUCH DETA)L0
!he WBS should be sufficiently detailed to allow the "roject +anager to reliably estimate
schedule and cost. 6ne point of iew is that the lowest leel of project detail should be no more
than <0 total hours of work and should be assignable to only one person. !his leel of detail
allows the "roject +anager to easily assess what project work is complete, who is responsible for
e,ecuting what work, and what tasks are at ariance with the baseline plan. Another good
measure is the 2= - =03 rule, which recommends that the lowest leel of work should be no less
than = hours and no more than =0 hours. /eel of detail for work packets should be documented
in the WBS #ictionary or the "roject +anagement "lan.
SAMPLE WBS D)CT)ONAR-
As the "roject +anager and !eam discuss and define the WBS and address how many leels and
how much detail should go into the WBS, the "roject !eam should create a WBS #ictionary to
capture task characteristic information, including task names, work products, leel of effort,
resources, dependencies, and others. !he WBS #ictionary should be consistent with the WBS.
!he information captured in the WBS #ictionary will help the "roject +anager to later deelop
the detailed baseline schedule. !he WBS #ictionary may be in table or e,cel format.
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WBS 12 $.$.$ Tas32 *reate "lan
Es%4 Level #5 E55#r%2 <0 hrs O$er2 "roject +anager
Res#urces Nee6e62 Subject +atter 4,perts W#r3 Pr#6uc%s2 +S "roject "lan
Descri&%i# #5 Tas32 #eelopment of a detailed project plan that lists all key resources, tasks, milestones,
dependencies, and durations.
)&u%2 Approed "roject *harter
S+4s
De&e6ecies2 Approal of Budget
Ris32 *hanges to 5! Apps plans and delierables
5! Apps implementation releases, which conflict with implementation
WBS 12 $.$.% W#r3 )%em2 +ake Budget
Es%4 Level #5 E55#r%2 $> hrs O$er2 "roject +anager
Res#urces Nee6e62 *86, *56, 4,ecutie Sponsor W#r3 Pr#6uc%s2 5!"9
Descri&%i# #5 Tas32 #eelopment and documentation of the project budget based on plan and resources.
)&u%2 Approed "roject *harter
S+4s
De&e6ecies2 Approal of "roject *harter
Ris32 *hanges to 5! Apps plans and delierables
5! Apps implementation releases which conflict with implementation
WBS Dic%i#ar7 / Table 8#rma% E9am&le
WBS 8)ELDS
WBS 1 Tas3 Descri&%i# #5 Tas3 W#r3 Pr#6uc%s O$ers
Es%4 Level
#5 E55#r%
* PLANN)N( All %as3 maa!eme% a6
maa!eme% ac%ivi%ies

$.$ "lan and
Superise
9oll7up !ask "roject
+anager
?:A
$.$.$ *reate "lan #eelopment of WBS, work package
identification, schedule formulation,
staffing projection, resource
estimation. 8ollowed by deelopment
of a detail project plan that list all the
key resources, task, milestones,
dependencies, and duration.
WBS,
WBS #ictionary,
+S "roject "lan
"roject
+anager
<0 hrs
$.$.% *reate Budget #eelopment and documentation of
the project budget based on plan and
resources
5!"9 "roject
+anager
<0 hrs
$.$.& "repare
#isbursement :
9econciliation
#eelopment of disbursement process
for the project including
acceptance:approal forms.
"urchase 6rders,
#elierable
"roduct
Acceptance 8orm
*86 <0 hrs
$.$.< *oordinate
Actiities
6ngoing planning actiities for the
project including weekly meetings
+eeting +inutes "roject
+anager
= hrs:week
WBS Dic%i#ar7 / E9cel 8#rma% E9am&le
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SUCCESS CR)TER)A
!he key to a good WBS and WBS #ictionary is the engagement of project team members to
comprehensiely identify and discuss actiities for the project. A "roject +anager must ensure
that all the work that needs to be accomplished for the project is contained within the WBS
#ictionary and is understood by team members. All work should hae clearly defined duration,
resources, dependencies, and leel of effort. A "roject +anager should elicit feedback from all
team members to ensure that the WBS and WBS #ictionary are alid and comprehensie prior to
deeloping the detailed schedule.
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