The work breakdown structure – the backbone of your plan

Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning. —Winston Churchill

As project managers, one of our most important functions is developing a plan. If you missed Project planning – problems, scope, and deliverables, feel free to read that now.

Create a work breakdown structure

Never fear! I’m not going to do a PMBOK interpretive dance here. There are lots of text books where you can learn hows and heretofores of developing a work breakdown structure. The PMBOK itself spends a number of pages on the topic.

I think that for most of us, a work breakdown structure (WBS) is a great way to visualize a project. All but the smallest and quickest of projects should have some type of WBS . If your project doesn’t have a WBS you can reference, you should build one.

Remember those folks on your team that thought they knew exactly what to do and when? A WBS often shows them deliverables they had completely  or conveniently forgotten. They should love this exercise! The entire team should participate.

Outcomes, not actions

A WBS focuses on outcomes, not actions. Each level is the further breakdown of the level above. Once you get to a point where there’s nothing left to break down, you’ve got a work package. Work is usually budgeted at the work package level.

I was once in charge of a project that had gone through many different phases over several years. It seemed to me we had lost our way as a team. We took about two hours, commandeered a conference room and redeveloped the WBS. This helped us to see the big picture again, and group the deliverables more efficiently.

Sample Work Breakdown Structure By BelisJeroen (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The WBS as a communication tool

My advice – try to keep this a graphic. There is software out there that can produce this so that the team can see the big picture as the project progresses. The team often finds it more difficult to relate to the WBS in a table  rather that in a graphic.

A WBS is a great way to show your sponsor that you have a handle on the project. If the team has done a good job with the details, the WBS is a great roadmap for the management team. Communication is critical during project planning and the WBS makes that communication a bit clearer.

WBS tips

• The work breakdown structure only includes those items within scope for the project.
• Before starting, determine the minimum number of hours to complete a deliverable.  For example: If you’re building a house, the entire project may take 3 months. Installing the windows may only take eight hours. Your final level in the WBS may be deliverables that complete in eight hours or less. For some organizations, once they get to a deliverable that takes 80 hours to complete, they’ve reached the bottom of the WBS.
• There are no tasks in a WBS, only deliverables.
• There are many ways to code a WBS. If your company doesn’t already use a standard, the team makes the determination and uses that scheme. Don’t focus on the coding, focus on the deliverables.

Once the work breakdown structure is complete, it’s time to start scheduling, budgeting, and determining resources. By its nature, a WBS doesn’t contain due dates, budget numbers, or resource assignments. It’s used to develop those parts of your project management plan.  The next step is scheduling and developing budgets and resource plans.

How does your company use the WBS? Let us know in the comments.