The human resource function of a work breakdown structure. On the other hand, things such as design engineering, requirements. A work breakdown structure is a key project deliverable that organizes the teams work into manageable sections. For the purpose of examples, the phase is at level 1. Project work breakdown structure wbs september 28, 2012.
Related articles about the work breakdown structure. Tausworthe jet propllsiotl lrrhoultop the work breakdown structure wbs is a vehicle for breaking an engineering project down into subproject, tasks, subtasks, work packages, and so on. Collaboration features to do the breakdown as a team. Work breakdown structure wbs project management docs. Simplifying project management neellohit burghate dept. Project managers have long relied on work breakdown structures wbs to help them effectively and efficiently plan and implement projects. Standard pm wbs template for non infrastructure projects. Work breakdown structure project management production. The importance of the wbs experienced project managers know there are many things that can go wrong in projects. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project. Work breakdown structure project management institute. Preparation of a wbs is one of the key steps in project planning.
Figure 1 wbs construction example the above wbs is from pmis practice standard for work breakdown structures. We have lots of project management templates to give you a foothold on every aspect of your project, including a free wbs template so you can get started right away. It must exist before the project manager can plan these related and vital aspects of the. Use pdf export for high quality prints and svg export for large sharp images or embed your diagrams anywhere with the creately viewer. A pert chart is a project management tool used to schedule, organize, and. Pdf the work breakdown structure in software project. As the discipline has matured, project professionals have expanded and matured the wbs concept. Constructing the work breakdown structure project management. The work breakdown structure visually defines the scope into manageable chunks that a project team can. Applying a work breakdown structure figure 1 shows an example of a wbs that lays out a plan for a generator installation to an existing distribution system. Project management using work breakdown structure wbs. Work breakdown structure information, software and wbs samples. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project management lifecycle shelly a. Project management work breakdown structure youtube.
The project management institute pmi defines the wbs as follows. The pd is to structure the project work into wbs elements work packages. Understanding the project at a detailed level is the key to developing a roadmap to success. Practice standard for work breakdown structures wbs second edition reaffirmed. 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. The project management body of knowledge pmbok 5 defines the workbreakdown structure a hierarchical decomposition of the. A brief synopsis, a process plant construction work breakdown structure in both word and excel, and a pdf appendix of the process plant construction work breakdown structure wbs example. Norman, pmp, pgmp introduction today, project managers are more frequently finding high value in the creation of work breakdown structures wbs as they begin the process of project management. The main project tasks have been subdivided separating the new work from the existing installation that needs to be reworked. The 5 process groups of project management the project management process is a series of phases that represent the evolution of a productfrom concept to delivery, maturity, and finally retirement. This paper examines the dimensions that are involved in developing a wbs that can help project teams successfully realize their project goals.
Creating the work breakdown structure the wbs can be structured in either of two ways. Developing and elaborating effective work breakdown structures. 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. This document starts with an overview that looks like this.
At the same time, according to the actual situation of the project, the team can make this unit of work associated with a milestone. Work breakdown structure project management knowledge. Work breakdown structure or wbs is a hierarchical tree structure that outlines your project and breaks it down into smaller, more manageable portions. 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. All about work breakdown structures wbs smartsheet. In wrike, you can build a wbs by creating folders and subfolders, and can even go further to divide individual tasks into subtasks. A signal processor, for example, is clearly a product, as are mock ups and computer software configuration items. The schedule that lists, organizes, and describes the dependencies of the detailed work tasks work breakdown structure wbs the list of hierarchy of activities and tasks of a project. Learn how a project scope statement and work breakdown structure can help prevent scope creep. If youre interested in viewing industryspecific examples of wbs templates, refer to the practice standard published by project management institute in 2006. The work breakdown structure in software project management robert c. The work breakdown structure wbs is a foundation tool for effective project management and yet its creation is often undertaken without appropriate team involvement or buyin. The rule that states that no single element of a work breakdown structure should be less than 8 hours, or greater than 80 hours. Creating the work breakdown structure by kim colenso, managing principal, artemis management systems.
The following discussion will examine the current trends and practice regarding work breakdown structures. The lowest level components in the wbs are your work packages. Project work breakdown structure wbs is a hierarchical listing of the individual work elements of a project. This is the skeleton of your project plan, and getting it straight and strong is essential to building the rest of your plan and moving ahead with your project successfully.
At the same time the links between the practice of wbswork breakdown structure and its intention for planning and control are in keeping with the original intent of ijpm. Wbs hierarchical list of projects work activities t wo formats outline indented format graphical tree organizational chart uses a decimal numbering system ex. A gantt chart uses horizontal bars in a lineartype calendar. You can edit this template and create your own diagram. A work breakdown structure wbs is a fundamental project management. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project management lifecycle.
Edit this wbs template online using our tool and easily visualize your project work. This content was copied from view the original, and get the alreadycompleted solution here. Project management practices 5 work breakdown structure rev e, june 2003 do not include elements that are not products. Project managementwork breakdown structure flashcards. The work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and control. The project management body of knowledge, an internationally recognized collection of processes and knowledge areas accepted as best practice for the project management profession, defines the work breakdown structure as 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. What is work breakdown structure in project management. Breaking up a project into smaller components facilitates project management. In this article, well define the project management process and cover each phase of project management. For example, in a construction project, civil engineers and architects. The development of work breakdown structure involves subdividing the major project activities or subactivities into smaller, more manageable activities until the activities are defined in sufficient detail to support the management and development of project works. Typical examples of the contribution the wbs makes to other processes are. The template below uses an outline or list type of presentation.
Process plant construction work breakdown structure wbs. Project managers are responsible for the creation of a. Breaking down the work is the first stage of project planning and essential for managing project scope. It organizes the work of the project into logical groupings similar to a milestone chart but displays the information in a tree form or an outline form. The work breakdown structure wbs is a vehicle for breaking an engineering project down into subproject, tasks, subtasks, work packages, and so on. A coding scheme also helps wbs elements to be recognized in any written context. Creately diagrams can be exported and added to word, ppt powerpoint, excel, visio or any other document. 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. These resources are presented from the pmi practice standard for work breakdown. A workbreakdown structure wbs in project management and systems engineering, is a deliverableoriented breakdown of a project into smaller components. Wbswork breakdown structure, planning and control constitute only 10. Figure 1 at the construction stage, a wbs helps manage.
The scope of a project and the totality of the work are defined in the wbs, and failing to do so early can result in rework, schedule impacts, resource misallocations. Project management scope refers to all of the products, services, and results provided by your project. In this example, the wbs coding scheme includes a trailing underscore. Activities are where deliverables are assigned to an. Editable work breakdown structure template to plan your work. This zip file contains the white paper the work breakdown structure. Work breakdown structure wbs refers to a portion of a total project management plan that is used by the project management team to organize a project into manageable objectives and create a blueprint by which the steps leading to the completion of a project are obtained the work breakdown structure can be thought of like an outline of the project and like an outline, becomes more detailed. In order to save space in this work breakdown structure template we only developed the wbs examples down to the third level. If a narrative definition is not as helpful as having a wbs to play with, dont worry. How to create a work breakdown structure wbs in project. Work breakdown structure templates editable online or. Pdf the work breakdown structure in software project management. The work breakdown structure in software project management article pdf available in journal of systems and software.