The work breakdown structure is the idea of taking a project. The work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and. 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. A wbs is the cornerstone of effective project planning, execution, controlling, monitoring, and reporting. A work breakdown structure wbs is a key project deliverable that organizes the teams work into manageable sections. What is wbs work breakdown structure in project management. This work template tells us about how the total work can be distributed amongst the members in a. The pm wbs template for infrastructure projects types 1, 2 and 3 has already been finalised, handed over to the business owners for.
We cover the methodology and processes in wbs that help you break down a project into more manageable pieces. The work breakdown structure wbs defines the work scope of a project. The graphical form is appropriate for communicating work activities to both. A work breakdown structure defines all the things a project needs to accomplish, organized into multiple levels, and displayed graphically. The template includes instructions to the author, boilerplate text, and fields that should be replaced with the values specific to the project. Its an important part of the scope management plan which is a subsidiary of the project management plan. Resources are identified for each item within the wbs that facilitates budgeting as well as assignment of responsibilities. But to confront the challenges of working in todays volatile economic environment, project managers are increasingly using. Software scope verification, scope definition, user requirements, wbs, inspection. The work breakdown structure, generally abbreviated wbs, is a key project deliverable that is used to manage a project works and assigning the works to teams. A cost breakdown structure cbs is not that different from a pbs product breakdown structure or wbs work breakdown structure. A work breakdown structure wbs is a visual tool for defining and tracking a project deliverable and all the small components needed to create it. As a supporting document to the work breakdown structure, each definition pertains to the tasks specified in the latter document in relation to the project requirements.
Work breakdown structure for construction of a house figure 1. Have you encountered work breakdown structures and wondered how they can help in your project management efforts. The project schedule should reflect all of the work associated with delivering the project on time. Work breakdown structure wbs is an outline for the project scope of work, and a hierarchical scope of work division of project, and provides a structure for organising the schedule and cost data for analysing, tracking, and reporting purposes. This foundational tool breaks a project or objective down into smaller, more manageable pieces so you can plan, manage, and evaluate large projects. To develop and maintain a wbs, you must have a clear understanding of the projects. This document is a template of a work breakdown structure dictionary document for a project. Oct 27, 2016 project management work breakdown structure definition. Work breakdown structure examples and overview of wbs. Creating a work breakdown structure wbs helps you be both comprehensive and specific when managing a project. It presents all of the work that will be carried out by the project team during the life of the project, including the project management work. Free work breakdown structure templates smartsheet. Work breakdown structure wbs is a method of organizing and completing work in a project. The wbs dictionary template provided below is a somewhat comprehensive one.
Mar 15, 2018 a work breakdown structure wbs is a hierarchical structure of things that the project will make or outcomes that it will deliver this one is far better. 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, 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. A work breakdown structure that integrates different views in.
Pdf software project scope verification is a very important process in project. Task identification and work breakdown structure san jose state. This document is a great source of analyzing the way of work through different parts of project. Developing and elaborating effective work breakdown structures. How to improve productivity with a work breakdown structure. Each descending level in the wbs represents an increasingly detailed description of the project. By kim colenso, managing principal, artemis management systems. 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. As an example, you may have a deliverable defined for a software. Work breakdown structure organizes the work to provide value and work towards producing tangible results. Wbs examples for a software project, construction projects, a conference, finding a job, selling a house, planning. In project management, wbs stands for work breakdown structure. Breaking down the work is the first stage of project planning and essential for managing project scope.
Element level wbs title description 1 6500m hov a4500. Applying work breakdown structure to project lifecycle. Work breakdown structure template in word and pdf formats toggle navigation. For the purpose of examples, the wbs entry at level 2 will fall below the phase and. It is a product oriented structure, not an organizational structure. Work breakdown structure dictionary was controlled and tracked. It is a hierarchical description of the work that must be done to complete the deliverables of a project. In this guide, well explain how to make a wbs dictionary and give combined samples to accompany the explanations. Figure 1below depicts a sample work breakdown structure with three levels.
A work breakdown structure is a deliverableoriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be. As a provider of technical design or technical documents 6. Work breakdown structure wbs the project definition. The work breakdown structure presented here represents all the work required to complete this project. The objective is to furnish each member with a means for undertaking on how to keep the work processes smoothly. So, all efforts and resources will be assigned to a clearly defined piece of work. However, in a matrix org chart or a flat org chart, links between staffs can be intercrossed. The project schedule is the tool that communicates what work needs to be performed, which resources of the organization will perform the work and the timeframes in which that work needs to be performed. If you fail to identify a major part of your projects work, you wont have the chance to detail it. Whatever definition is used, the wbs is a hierarchical structure in which the top level represents the. A work breakdown structure in every project management and system engineering is an effective tool that is used for defining and group the discrete elements of work in any project so that it can help the organization, build it in some way and boost the work scope of the whole project. T he wbs dictionary is a project management document that provides detailed information about each component in the work breakdown structure wbs. Pdf work breakdown structure wbs dictionary development for.
Creating the work breakdown structure by kim colenso, managing principal, artemis management systems the work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and control. Figure 1below depicts a sample work breakdown structure with three levels defined. A work breakdown structure wbs is a hierarchical structure of things that the project will make or outcomes that it will deliver this one is far better. The industrystandard definition of a work breakdown structure is a deliverableoriented hierarchical decomposition that offers digestible tasks for team members to meet the projects objectives and create the required deliverables. It is the connecting point for work and cost estimates, schedule information, actual work effortcost expenditures, and accountability.
This lesson will discuss the definition and importance of the work breakdown structure, or wbs in terms of overall project management. The work breakdown structure wbs is developed to establish a common understanding of project scope. To build a work breakdown structure for your project using microsoft word, follow these 4 steps. How to create a work breakdown structure lucidchart blog. Project management work breakdown structure definition a work breakdown structure wbs is a chart where the project tasks are illustrated to reflect their relations to each other and the project in general. T he work breakdown structure wbs is a hierarchical breakdown of the complete project scope. The work breakdown structure wbs has long served as a valuable tool in helping project managers plan deliverables and detail project scope. A work breakdown structure template is a crucial document which helps to break down your work into small pieces for easily determining its procedure of completion. Thinking in detail is critical when planning your project, but you also need to consider the big picture. Learn how to create a work breakdown structure and use our free templates. One work breakdown structure example that will make it clear.
Work breakdown structure rev e, june 2003 work breakdown structure 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. A work breakdown structure wbs is a chart where the project tasks are illustrated to reflect their relations to each other and the project in general. The work breakdown structure can likewise be shading coded to speak to subdeliverable status. 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. A work breakdown structure can be formatted in various ways, including as an outline basically, a numbered list, a hierarchical table, or a tree diagram. This format should give the it pm and business lead a thorough. The aircraft modification business carries out a great variety of projects.
Work breakdown structure template in word and pdf formats. Regardless of format, a wbs will typically include outline numbering to represent the sequential order of each level and activity. A wbs diagram expresses the project scope in simple graphic terms. Instead, wbs provides useful inputs for cost estimating and budgeting, scope control, activity definition, and more. Although the core skills and tasks are similar, there are very few projects that are exact repetition of previous work. 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. Work breakdown structure wbs template free visio excel. Level 2 define a set of planned outcomes that collectively and exclusively. It is an enabler that ensures clear definition and communication of project scope while performing a critical role as a monitoring and controlling tool. The wbs is a task oriented, detailed breakdown that defines the code structure for tasks, and is. The pmbok defines wbs as a deliverableoriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team. Sep 12, 2008 the work breakdown structure wbs has emerged as a foundational concept and tool in project management.
Regarding the format for wbs design, some people create tables or lists for their work breakdown structures, but most use graphics to display the project components as a hierarchical tree structure or diagram. Unfortunately, the business pressures driving projects have often prevented project managers from developing a comprehensive wbs. The way a wbs is defined depends on the person and hisher viewpoint. Structure the most common format of the work breakdown structure and traditional organizational charts are the hierarchical structure, which means each parent level has a number of child levels. A work breakdown structure wbs is a fundamental project management technique for defining and organizing the total scope of a project, using a hierarchical tree structure. The wbs dictionary is a key project definition tool that defines indepth the scope for each work element. A typical example is documented in the bible where moses divided the people of. At the point when a task is falling behind, alluding the work breakdown structure will rapidly distinguish the real expectations affected by a coming up short work bundle or late subdeliverable. In your project you will want to develop them down to a much more detailed level using the 8 to 80 rule where the wbs is broken down to where a work package contains between 8 and 80 hours of work to complete. 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. The work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and control. Having a structured approach makes it easier to control the project. As a hierarchical decomposition of the project work, each descending level of the wbs is increasingly detailed.
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