The costs of these tasks are clear and easy to estimate. The work breakdown structure wbs is a view into the project which shows what work the project encompasses. 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 a vehicle for breaking an engineering project down into subproject, tasks, subtasks, work packages, and so on. Large or complex deliverables are broken down into smaller components. Work breakdown structure wbs sample skeleton wbs for softwarehardware system development. In the tree structure of a wbs, project deliverables and activities are broken down. It is a tabular or graphical representation of the tasks that make up the projects scope. The wbs is a hierarchical reflection of all the work in the project in terms of. The project manager uses the work breakdown structure to estimate the duration of the project, determine the required resources and schedule the work. With edraw max, you can edit the free work breakdown structure chart template for project management.
Create a work breakdown structure to represent the sequence of tasks in a project. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project management lifecycle. Schedule a project with a work breakdown structure. The activity definition process is a further breakdown of the work package elements of the wbs. Application development project work breakdown structure. One work breakdown structure example that will make it clear. The software bug fix work breakdown structure, or sw bug fix wbs, is a simple wbs that can be used for very small software projects, software maintenance or enhancement projects or bug fix a. The next topic is about scheduling of the activities which requires the estimation of activity durations. Development and implementation phases of an engineering project to build a. Mindview is a mind mapping software package that supports work breakdown structures, project outlines, gantt charts, and exports easily into microsoft project for further schedule definition. Project schedule planning in order to develop our schedule, we first need to define the activities, sequence them in the right order, estimate the resources needed, and estimate the time it will take to complete the tasks. Work breakdown structure vs project schedule vs project plan.
If youve seen detailed project schedules, then youll recognize the tasks under the work. Work breakdown structure or wbs is a hierarchical tree structure that outlines your project and breaks it down into smaller, more manageable portions. The bottom line is by using a work breakdown structure it reduces the number of surprises and improves the ability to better estimate future projects. Quickly get a headstart when creating your own wbs of software development. User acceptance testing uat is the last phase of software testing, in which. It is a visual and hierarchic representation of all work needed to complete the project.
Work breakdown structures wbs for software development projects. Through this wbs of software development, viewers can get a comprehensive understanding about this process. Project managers use the wbs to divide the project into controllable elements. The work breakdown structure wbs is a graphic family tree that captures all of the work of a project in an organized way. Taking a software development project as an example, the wbs shown in figure 1 is what is expected to represent the lifecycle and scope of the project wbs in its initial structure for illustration purposes. Project schedules and work breakdown structures wbs. The schedule and budget is then created and tracked by task. This is a way of describing the work so that the team knows exactly what work is.
It decomposes a main project product into its constituent parts in the form of a hierarchical structure. In identifying the activities, one has to be careful that the activity is not too much of an aggregation of several sub activities. By developing a wbs, one can focus on the deliverables and nothing but the. This document provides project managers with a work breakdown structure wbs, which defines all of the application development project s critical deliverables. The work breakdown structure is the foundation of your project schedule, which, in turn, is the foundation of the entire project. The project schedule can be viewed and updated by team members associated with the project, keeping everyone well informed on the overall project status. Even subprojects can be broken down into smaller bits. Wbs template to plan and delegate tasks in largescale engineering projects. Results this information is included in a separate section of your project plan often referred to as the work breakdown structure.
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. Thinking in detail is critical when planning your project, but you also need to consider the big picture. It is a tool which helps to easily communicate the work and processes involved to execute the project. Software bug fix wbs work breakdown structure for a project to fix bugs in an existing product or system. Project schedules are often created using project management software tools. If you fail to identify a major part of your projects work, you wont have the chance to detail it.
Wbs examples for a software project, construction projects, a conference, finding. 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. Work breakdown structure relativistic heavy ion collider. The work breakdown structure includes tasks, requirements for each task, and revenue and. Creating a wbs is the first step in developing a comprehensive project schedule. 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. A work breakdown structure wbs is a chart where the project s tasks are illustrated to reflect their relations to each other and to the project in general. It is a tabular or graphical representation of the tasks. Work breakdown structure information, software and wbs samples. Specifically, a wbs diagram shows how individual products may be grouped together to create a top level product such as the concept development report. To download the above as a 20k zip file in msproject 2002. Planning work breakdown structure wbs academic and.
The project schedule in the work breakdown structure has a familiar look and feel, complete with an interactive gantt chart. Pdf the work breakdown structure in software project. Online project management software allows project managers to track project. How to create a work breakdown structure projectengineer. Detailed planning is essential for successful deployment of custom software. Rational unified process, rational software corporation 19872001. What is work breakdown structure in project management. It is an input for many processes like cost estimation, schedule development, risk identification. Construction project leaders can use a work breakdown structure to track utility work and follow up environmental approvals. Work breakdown structure wbs sample skeleton wbs for software hardware system development. Creating a work breakdown structure wbs helps you be both comprehensive and specific when managing a project. Applying work breakdown structure to project lifecycle pmi. A work breakdown structure wbs represents this division of a project into constituent tasks. With a work breakdown structure, you can stay focused on what you need to accomplish as you move toward the project deadline.
A work breakdown structure is not a list of tasks, a schedule or an organization chart. A product breakdown structure pbs is a hierarchical structure of things that the project will make or outcomes that it will deliver. A work breakdown structure is your map through more complicated projects. Unfortunately, the business pressures driving projects have often prevented project managers from developing a comprehensive wbs. Project management is like fixing a car you must break it down into parts. The wbs is designed, formatted and managed by means of project management software for example, ms project software, vip task manager software. Ms project wbsgantt template it software development project very detailed, annotated crossfunctional work breakdown structure for development of it applications. Work breakdown structure wbs project management docs. Work breakdown structure wbs software project management. This document provides project managers with a work breakdown structure wbs, which defines all of the application development projects critical deliverables. What is a work breakdown structure wbs example included. Rather it provides the basis on which a task list and a schedule can be constructed.
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. This team identifies the project tasks that are needed to achieve the project deliverables, and is usually comprised of the project manager and the resources requested to complete the project. Project management work breakdown structure definition. Creating the schedule once the wbs has been created and the critical path is determined, all the components are in place to create the schedule. A wbs is the cornerstone of effective project planning, execution, controlling, monitoring, and reporting. Software such as microsoft project can be used to help develop the schedule but is not necessary. Project scheduling project management basics project insight. In wrike, you can build a wbs by creating folders and subfolders, and can even go further to divide individual tasks into subtasks. Free work breakdown structure templates smartsheet. The work breakdown structure wbs is the decomposition of a software project into low level work tasks. Work breakdown structure wbs the building blocks of a schedule start with a work breakdown structure wbs.
In reality, wbs is a simple and easy visual breakdown of deliverables for product, result, or service. Two methods for presenting a work breakdown structure wbs are the wbs outline and the wbs diagram. If manually creating a schedule, list all of the project tasks roughly in order of precedence. Figure 3 provides an example of a work breakdown structure using mindview. The work breakdown structure wbs has long served as a valuable tool in helping project managers plan deliverables and detail project scope. Developing the work breakdown structure means defining the relationships between the project goals, deliverables and scope. User manual planning wbs and schedule this microsoft project file for developing and writing a software user manual. 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. An important point to remember is that in design decomposition, only the lower. Work breakdown structures wbs for software development. Pdf many people have mistaken wbs as a list of tasks, a schedule or an organization. To download the above as a 20k zip file in ms project 2002. Work breakdown structure an overview sciencedirect topics.
Another common source of confusion for beginners is the difference between the work breakdown structure, project schedule, and project plan. Tasks and schedules are better handled in other ways, for example by using gantt charts. Work breakdown structure and network diagram project. A subsea field development project can be organized and comprehended in a visual manner by breaking the tasks into progressively smaller pieces until they are a collection of defined tasks, as shown in figure 69. A work breakdown structure wbs proposes a graphical nature that helps project managers predict results based on various scenarios.
But to confront the challenges of working in todays volatile economic environment, project managers are increasingly using. Applying work breakdown structure to project lifecycle. Work breakdown structures give you a highlevel understanding of the. Diagrams, capital project delivery, capital program. 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. Work breakdown structure diagrams njdots wbs diagram shows the products of a phase or process and how the products relate to each other. It is simply a chart or outline of your projects deliverables.
The work breakdown structure approach allows us to visually see the work that is needed in order to complete a project. Wbs hierarchical list of projects work activities t wo formats outline indented format graphical tree organizational chart uses a decimal numbering system ex. 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. What is wbs work breakdown structure in project management. The goal of a wbs is to make a large project more manageable. Applying the work breakdown structure to the project. Project managements first step is creating the work breakdown structure, a step that then enables subsequent planning of the work processes and schedule for accomplishing the project. While these three things often describe the same thing what is to be achieved in the project they vary greatly in scope and details. One project may include several phases, or also smaller subprojects. Many people have mistaken wbs as a list of tasks, a schedule or an organization chart. The items at the lowest level of a branch are known as work packages.
Information technology engineers can use a work breakdown structure as a roadmap for their program development, for example, software development, remote projects, database system development and more. In so doing, you gain clarity into the details needed to accomplish every aspect of your project. All about work breakdown structures wbs smartsheet. I often hear people use project plan, work breakdown structure wbs and project. The building blocks of a schedule start with a work breakdown structure wbs. Project management is actually a phase in the wbs that has its own deliverables, subdeliverables, and work packages. The lowest level components for each deliverable are known as work packages. Oct 27, 2016 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 project manager and project team use the wbs to develop the project schedule, resource requirements and costs.
Work breakdown structure leading to work packages or activities with the associated precedence relationships are treated in detail. The following discussion will examine the current trends and practice regarding work breakdown structures. A free customizable wbs of software development template is provided to download and print. The work breakdown structure wbs organizes and defines the scope of the project, breaking it into manageable tasks. Software application development wbs projectconnections. Nov 26, 2019 a work breakdown structure is your map through more complicated projects.