What is work breakdown structure in project management. It do have different levels similar to work breakdown structure which makes rbs a very strong tool for project managers to use. The hierarchical structure presents breakdown structure elements in a tabular form. As an essential element of the planning process group outlined in the pmbok guide third edition, everyday practice is revealing with increasing regularity that creation of a wbs to define. 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. In short, wbs is like a todolist for the project manager and the project team. A coffee shop discussion on process redesign and process improvement led me to state the obvious to my caffeinecharged debaters.
The planning process will add management activities to the wbs to show the work involved in managing aspects such as risk and communications. The efficiency of a work breakdown structure can determine the success of a project. We hope this article has helped you better understand the work breakdown structures purpose, process, and common pitfalls. Each descending level in the wbs represents an increasingly detailed description of the project deliverables. The pbs precedes the wbs and focuses on cataloguing all the desired outputs products needed to achieve the goal of the project. The pbs is identical in format to the work breakdown structure wbs, but is a separate entity and is used at a different step in the planning process. Work breakdown structure template for powerpoint and. Process breakdown structure the wbs is best suited for. Project managers are responsible for the creation of a. Chapter of project management tools and techniques 7. Automation, project control, work breakdown structure 1. A project wbs is a productoriented grouping of project work. A work breakdown structure for implementing and costing an erp project communications of the ibima volume 6, 2008 94 a work breakdown structure for implementing and costing an erp project aisha momoh, decision engineering centre, cranfield university, bedford, uk,a.
Nov 26, 2019 a work breakdown structure is your map through more complicated projects. Integrating process and work breakdown structure with design structure matrix. The 6 steps to the work breakdown structure in detail 1 list of all tasks. In work break down structure, the deliverable can be an object, service, or an activity. A work breakdown structure is your map through more complicated projects. Work breakdown structures bernd bruegge applied software engineering. Wbs the scope or all of the work pert graphical visualization of sequence and dependencies a high quality wbs and pert chart is the foundation. Product breakdown structure is a hybrid in nature in that some aspects of a work breakdown structure will be incorporated and merged with the architecture concept of operations, master subsystem list, customer interface, and assigned management responsibility. The project management institute pmi project management body of knowledge pmbok defines a. Understanding breakdown structures in project management. Integrating process and work breakdown structure with design. Pdf integrating process and work breakdown structure with. Risk management is an important part of the decisionmaking process in construction project management, particularly regarding the projects integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resources, communications and procurement.
Breakdown structures wbs as they begin the process of project management. A fourstep guide to the work breakdown structure smart projex. Cdc unified process practices guide work breakdown structure up version. May 1994 work breakdown structure reference guide 1 chapter 1. The items at the lowest level of a branch are known as work packages. Unfortunately, the business pressures driving projects have often prevented project managers from developing a comprehensive wbs. We have developed a wbswork breakdown structure process model for a business application software development project. As a first step, a list should be drawn up with the processes and subprocesses which are to be introduced or improved, resulting in a structured process breakdown. Work breakdown structure relativistic heavy ion collider. Planning process group begins with three essential steps scope planning 3. Different levels helps in streamlining the risks and identifying the risks in a categorical approach where.
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 is a tool used to define and group a projects discrete work elements or tasks in a way that helps organise and define the total work scope of the project it provides the framework for detailed cost estimating and control along with providing guidance for schedule development and control. The following discussion will examine the current trends and practice regarding work breakdown structures. It includes modelling asis and tobe processes, validating the processes, and testing.
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. Thinking in detail is critical when planning your project, but you also need to consider the big picture. The ground operations product breakdown structure needs to be able to identify the. 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. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project management lifecycle. Itil implementation process structure it process wiki. 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.
Therefore, one should take creating wbs as a critical step in the process of project management. 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. Wbs basic information this chapter provides general work breakdown structure information including definition, types, guidelines and development process. Integrating process and work breakdown structure with. The conclusions drawn from the analysis of the current situation provide the basis for developing the tobe process structure. Wbs produces a detailed list of tasks to be performed for a project, helping to. Work breakdown structure wbs different approaches for developing a wbs. Development of hybrid product breakdown structure for. 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 a work breakdown structure permits summing of subordinate costs for tasks. A solid work breakdown structure means better estimation, better management, better coordination and. At the beginning of the design process, the project manager has. The lowest levels of wbs shows the project deliverables.
For clarity of purpose and for control reasons it is useful to arrange these tasks in a top down structure, which progressively specify the required work in. Aug 21, 2019 according to the pmbok guide, the work breakdown structure creation process should involve the project manager, project team, project management team, and stakeholders. Sep 14, 2010 process breakdown structure a coffee shop discussion on process redesign and process improvement led me to state the obvious to my caffeinecharged debaters. 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. 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. Introduction the work breakdown structure is a fundamental tool of project management which is formed as an output of the process 5. Pdf facilitate risk management in construction process. The goal of a wbs is to make a large project more manageable. But to confront the challenges of working in todays volatile economic environment, project managers are increasingly using. In so doing, you gain clarity into the details needed to accomplish every aspect of your project. Pdf impact of various workbreakdown structures on project.
For clarity of purpose and for control reasons it is useful to arrange these tasks in a top down structure, which progressively specify the required work in more detail. As construction projects become more complex, the need for effective project control becomes equally pressing. Activity is a combination of deliverable and process. Apr 27, 2020 create work breakdown structure process is the 4th process of the scope management according to the online pmp course. Three elements of the scope baseline element name process 1.
The work breakdown structure wbs is the foundation for project planning and control. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project. Once a solution has been identified which meets the stakeholder requirements, the scope of the work can be illustrated using a product breakdown structure pbs and a work breakdown structure wbs. Creating the work breakdown structure the wbs can be structured in either of two ways. A work breakdown structure wbs is a fundamental project management technique for. The work breakdown structure wbs is developed to establish a common understanding of project scope. The work breakdown structure wbs is defined by a guide to the project management body of knowledge 3rd edition pmbok guide as. Introduction delivering projects on time, within budget and to the required quality standard is probably the most difficult and challenging task facing project managers.
The wbs provides the foundation for all project management work, including, planning, cost and effort estimation, resource allocation, and scheduling. Level 3 shows the major deliverables and level 4 is the. Mar 19, 20 the work breakdown structure is a fundamental tool of project management which is formed as an output of the process 5. Definition each nasa program has a set of goals which are developed from nasa mission needs.
A work breakdown structure wbs is a project management tool designed to capture project tasks in a visual, organized manner. Article pdf available july 2010 with 623 reads how we measure reads. Work breakdown structure or wbs is a hierarchical tree structure that outlines your project and breaks it down into smaller, more manageable portions. Applying work breakdown structure to project lifecycle. Work breakdown structure is abbreviated as wbs and create work breakdown structure process mainly aims to produce the wbs of the project. In 6 steps to the work breakdown structure dieprojektmanager. 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 the project management institute pmi 2001 define the wbs as a hierarchical structure that defines and organises the total project scope based on deliverables.
The table diagram is essential for project managers and system engineers. It is created during the planning process and its an important part of scope baseline. It is similar to the outline view but with information presented in a table without indentation. Development of hybrid product breakdown structure for nasa. The project can be decomposed or broken down into major deliverables, subdeliverables, further subdeliverables, and ultimately to work packages. In project management under the prince2 methodology, a product breakdown structure pbs is a tool for analysing, documenting and communicating the outcomes of a project, and forms part of the product based planning technique the pbs provides an exhaustive, hierarchical tree structure of deliverables that make up the project, arranged in wholepart relationship haughey, 2015. It is the connecting point for work and cost estimates, schedule information, actual work effortcost expenditures. Having a big work breakdown structure could take several hours for development. The first step in creating a work breakdown structure is a complete list of all tasks to be performed within the project in the form of work packages. Risk breakdown structure rbs is a hierarchical representation of risks according to their risk categories. A work breakdown structure for implementing and costing an.
There will also be a knowledge transfer and exercises of brainpower. Managers responsible for the business buy results and outcomes, not process. Process breakdown structure the wbs is best suited for design and build projects that have tangible outcomes such as an offshore mining facility or a new car prototype. Pdf integrating process and work breakdown structure. 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 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. This view is extremely useful when your breakdown structure has many nested levels, which would make an outline view hard to presents elements neatly. It is more difficult to apply wbs to less tangible, processoriented projects in. These manuals, policies and guidelines should be consulted for details on departmental processes e. A work breakdown structure wbs is a model of the work to be performed in a project organized in a hierarchical structure. Work breakdown structure template for powerpoint and keynote. Work breakdown structure information, software and wbs samples. Process breakdown structure the wbs is best suited for design. Project success may be attributed specifically to use of a wbs halli, 1993.
It forms the basis for organization and coordination in the project. The first two levels of the wbs the root node and level 2 define a set of planned outcomes that collectively and exclusively represent 100% of the project scope. Today, work breakdown structures are widely used for projects of all types, both business and personal. Even subprojects can be broken down into smaller bits. One project may include several phases, or also smaller subprojects. Work breakdown structure wbs purpose, process and pitfalls.
The development of the work breakdown structure is surely not easy. This work breakdown structure example shows that all the elements are listed under wbs levels. The project scope of work scope statement, organizational process assets and requirement documentation are the essential inputs for work breakdown structure creation process. It is more difficult to apply wbs to less tangible, process oriented projects in. Developing and elaborating effective work breakdown structures. The wbs is an important tool which helps you keep an overview of the project. We have also developed a project management system called pronavi which works on the wbs process model. Tasks and activities will be grouped under these lowest levels. In wrike, you can build a wbs by creating folders and subfolders, and can even go further to divide individual tasks into subtasks. It is one of the three elements of the scope baseline. Creating a work breakdown structure wbs helps you be both comprehensive and specific when managing a project.
The wbs was originally developed by the us department of defense, which mandated their use across the dod. Then it proposes a framework for the semiautomation of the wbs. It is a hierarchical description of the work that must be done to complete the deliverables of a project. Work breakdown structure template for powerpoint and keynote is a customizable diagram created in the tabular format. What are the 4 aspects of work breakdown structure wbs. What is a work breakdown structure wbs example included.
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