See how the guidethrough process can help you get your it. The work breakdown structure wbs organizes and defines 100% of the scope of project work to be accomplished and displays it in a way that relates work elements to each other and to the projects goals. A work breakdown structure, commonly abbreviated wbs, is a key project deliverable that is utilized to organize a project teams work and responsibilities into compact sections that are more manageable. It is a deliverableoriented grouping of project components. In other words, wbs is a hierarchical decomposition of work that must be performed to achieve the objective. Project work breakdown structure wbs september 28, 2012. The project leader must divide up the project, negotiate and assign the pieces to the project leaders of the organizational units which will actually do the work. Defining the process known as a work breakdown structure the key is applying installations to job specific construction models. We have also developed a project management system called pronavi. Learn how to develop work breakdown structure wbs to represent the work that must be done to complete the deliverables of a project. The work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and control. Thinking in detail is critical when planning your project, but you also need to consider the big picture. Applying work breakdown structure to project lifecycle.
Methods to create a wbs create a wbs with your project team. The importance of the wbs experienced project managers know there are many things that can go wrong in projects. Breakdown structure is built from the ground up to support intuitive keyboard navigation. A work breakdown structure wbs is a key project deliverable that organizes the teams work into manageable sections. View work breakdown structure research papers on academia. Editable work breakdown structure template to plan your work. Outline of todays class determining work and tasks sizes work breakdown structure wbs different approaches for developing wbss notations for work breakdown structures heuristics and examples for wbs.
To develop and maintain a wbs, you must have a clear understanding of the projects. The wbs provides the foundation for all project management work, including, planning, cost and effort estimation, resource allocation, and scheduling. Work breakdown structure surveying excavation request permits buy material lay foundation build outside wall install exterior slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. You can move the selection, individual nodes, group nodes, edit and create new nodes just like you would create an outline in microsoft word. Jim introduces the concept of the work breakdown structure wbs, and describes how it is used to help plan the work to be performed at a construction project. A project work breakdown structure wbs is a deliverable or product oriented grouping of project work elements shown in graph ical display to organize and subdivide the total work scope of a project. Basically, its like a visual map showing how many parts the project consists of and how much time, resources and money will each part need to be completed. What is a work breakdown structure civil engineers pk. A wbs is the cornerstone of effective project planning, execution, controlling, monitoring, and reporting. Simply click to open the template, and then customize the information, layout, and design.
To get you started, here are a number of work breakdown structure templates you can use. The pd is to structure the project work into wbs elements work packages. Work breakdown structure is an awesome way to visualize a particularly complex project. Work breakdown structure examples created by the creately. The work breakdown structure visually defines the scope into manageable chunks that a project team can understand, as each level of the work breakdown structure provides further definition and detail. The decomposing of the upper work breakdown structure into lower level detailed components. Creating the work breakdown structure the wbs can be structured in either of two ways.
Breakdown structures wbs as they begin the process of. If you are a project manager and you want to stretch your tasks correctly, then you need to create what is known as a work breakdown structure for your project. Presenters christopher bucksa, senior project manager, university services pmo duane orlovski, project manager, college of pharmacy. Assigning and developing the identification codes to wbs. A work breakdown structure wbs provides a consistent and visible framework for defense materiel items and contracts within a program. A4500 hov project2 work breakdown structure and dictionary 2. The work breakdown structure visually defines the scope into manageable chunks that a project team can. Collaboration features to do the breakdown as a team. Unfortunately, the business pressures driving projects have often prevented project managers from developing a comprehensive wbs. A wbs work breakdown structure is a project management tool that is planned to capture project activities in an illustrative diagram. Work breakdown structure template click on image to modify online. The need for work breakdown the project manager usually cannot organize or keep track of more than three 3 or possibly four 4 levels within the work breakdown structure. Breakdown structure efficient project management simplified.
A work breakdown structure or wbs for short is a chart or document used to organize project work into a list of focus areas so that all work stays on track to meet project goals. We have developed a wbswork breakdown structure process model for a business application software development project. Creating a work breakdown structure wbs helps you be both comprehensive and specific when managing a project. This smaller unit can be a data, product, service or any combination. May 11, 2015 a work breakdown structure wbs, as the name says, is the process or technique of dividing complex and difficult projects into smaller units. A workbreakdown structure wbs in project management and systems engineering, is a deliverableoriented breakdown of a project into smaller components. Managers use wbs to break down their projects into easily manageable components. This standard offers uniformity in definition and consistency of approach for developing all levels of the wbs.
Work breakdown structure element dictionary preliminary engineering procedures are subject to change without notice. What is a work breakdown structure wbs the project management body of knowledge pmbok defines the work breakdown structure as a deliverable oriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team. The first approach structures the wbs primarily from a deliverables perspective, in that the highest level level 1 entries represent the major deliverables that the project is committed to create. A work breakdown structure wbs, as the name says, is the process or technique of dividing complex and difficult projects into smaller units. The efficiency of a work breakdown structure can determine the success of a project. Projects are complex endeavors and plan is a necessary guide for the execution of the project. Figures 1 and 2 provide examples of a wbs for the building of a table. A work breakdown structure creates an efficient work flow from preconstruction through the. Finally verifying the degree of decomposition which is necessary and sufficient. A work breakdown structure wbs is a decomposition of all the work necessary to complete a project. It is an im portant planning tool which links objectives with re sources and activities in a logical framework. You manage the wbs on the project activities page where you can view all summary and detail activities. Structure the work based on geographical location organizational approach.
Applying the work breakdown structure to the project. Jun 02, 2014 if you are a project manager and you want to stretch your tasks correctly, then you need to create what is known as a work breakdown structure for your project. Work breakdown structure dictionary was controlled and tracked. Edit this wbs template online using our tool and easily visualize your project work. Work breakdown structure a work breakdown structure wbs is a decomposition of all the work necessary to complete a project. The wbs is like taking an already assembled puzzle and organizing the pieces.
Jun 08, 2017 learn how to develop work breakdown structure wbs to represent the work that must be done to complete the deliverables of a project. It looks like an upsidedown tree, but each branch has separate scope and is mutually exclusive. A work breakdown structure is a key project deliverable that organizes the teams work into manageable sections. Pdf work breakdown structure pdf work breakdown structure download. The work breakdown structure is the tool used to divide the project work content among individ uals and organizations so that ef ciency and effectiveness will be achieved while ensuring the inte gration of work efforts to produce the projectrequired deliverables. Additionally, you can see the structure change as you indent and outdent activities, and move them up and down on the wbs. The work breakdown structure wbs is a powerful tool for project management. A4500 hov project1 work breakdown structure and dictionary 1. Write down all deliverables and components for the project on post it notes. Preliminary engineering wbs work breakdown structure. Use the table below to provide the version number, the author implementing the version, the date of the version, the name of the person approving the version, the date that particular version was approved, and a brief description of the reason for creating the revised version. Approaches to develop work breakdown structures resultoriented approach structure the work based on the work products activityoriented approach structure the work based on development activities and project functions geographical area approach structure the work based on geographical location organizational approach. The project management body of knowledge pmbok defines the work breakdown structure as a deliverable oriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team. A work breakdown structure wbs in project management is a tool used to define and group a projects discrete work elements or tasks in a way that helps organize and define the total work scope of the project.
You dont necessarily need to use this for every project that you do if you know you can manage a small project without it, dont waste time on mapping everything out, but the larger a project is, the more stuff needs to be understood and remembered. The work breakdown structure wbs has long served as a valuable tool in helping project managers plan deliverables and detail project scope. Once the elements of the wbs have been defined, resource requirements are determined for each element. History of the work breakdown structure information. The following discussion will examine the current trends and practice regarding work breakdown structures.
It is the connecting point for work and cost estimates, schedule information, actual work effortcost expenditures, and accountability. Work breakdown structurebased cost models for drinking. Work breakdown structurebased cost models for drinking water. Cdc unified process practices guide work breakdown structure up version. The project management body of knowledge defines the work breakdown structure as a deliverable oriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team. If you fail to identify a major part of your projects work, you wont have the chance to detail it. A wbs is arranged in a hierarchy and constructed to allow for clear and logical groupings, either by activities or deliverables. It becomes an important status monitor during the actual imple. If the project can be estimated or designed based on these models then the information is better communicated. The work breakdown structure provides a common framework for the natural development of the overall planning and control of a contract and is the basis for dividing work into definable increments from which the statement of work can be developed and technical, schedule, cost, and labor hour reporting can be established.
Work breakdown structures a work breakdown structure is a deliverableoriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team to accomplish the project objectives and create the required deliverables. Therefore, one should take creating wbs as a critical step in the process of project management. On the project activities page, you can choose to display a. The aggregation of all the work to be performed in a project. How to create a work breakdown structure lucidchart blog.
The project management body of knowledge pmbok 5 defines the workbreakdown structure a hierarchical decomposition of the. He also discusses the correct method for creating a proper wbs. Pdf work breakdown structure major revisions to a wbs require both substantial effort and resources, due to pdf reader aloud its. The project management institute pmi project management body of knowledge pmbok defines a. A work breakdown structure or wbs is a treelike structure that permits summing of subordinate costs for tasks, materials, etc. Figure 1below depicts a sample work breakdown structure with three levels defined.
The work breakdown structure is a tree structure, which shows a subdivision of effort required to achieve an objective of a project. A work breakdown structure wbs is a deliverableoriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team to accomplish the project objectives and create the required deliverables. How to improve productivity with a work breakdown structure. It is a product oriented structure, not an organizational structure. Division of the main work into smaller works depending upon the importance or level of work. A work breakdown structure allows you to visualize your deliverables and see all the tasks and subtasks that are required. A work breakdown structure is a document that illustrates the whole project broken down into smaller components, which add up together to form the final product. It is the cornerstone of effective project planning, execution, controlling, statusing, and reporting.
Work breakdown structure templates editable online or. Work breakdown structure relativistic heavy ion collider. Oct 27, 2016 managers use wbs to break down their projects into easily manageable components. All the work contained within the wbs is to be identified. Check the capital project delivery website to ensure this is the current version. When you know what youre doing, its easier to put together. These components are further decomposed until a required person from the team can be assigned. It is a fundamental tool commonly used in project management and systems engineering. But to confront the challenges of working in todays volatile economic environment, project managers are increasingly using. A description of how this structure was developed using the work breakdown structure wbs approach section 2. Element level wbs title description 1 6500m hov a4500 2 project management 3. Pdf project management system based on workbreakdown.