(^140) 97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know
A Project Is the
Pursuit of a
Solution
Cynthia A. Berg, PhD (ABD), PMP
Glendale, Arizona, U.S.
AUThoR STEPhEn CovEy STATES, “BEgIn WITh ThE EnD In MInD.” And
what is a project, except the pursuit of an end solution? The best way to con-
ceptualize the end of a software project is to create a work breakdown struc-
ture (WBS). The WBS is a hierarchical view, which shows the entire scope of
the project broken down into deliverables,* much like an organizational chart
shows company divisions broken into departments and then work teams. The
deliverables are then divided into smaller and smaller components until they
get to the work package† level.
Include the team, sponsors, and other stakeholders when creating a WBS. This
ensures that the work of the project is fully defined and represents the needs
of all of the participants. Why include the team? Well, who knows the work
that needs to be done better than the project team members who will actually
do those tasks? Projects are doomed to fail when the project manager assumes
that he/she alone knows how to list every facet of the work of the project.
While creating a WBS, the team has an opportunity to challenge the norms
of “how we’ve always done it.” Plus, team members are formulating a shared
opinion on what constitutes the work of the project. This method ensures that
they will have more buy-in for the effort. After all, it’s always more interesting
to work on a project you helped to design.
How small should the activities of the WBS be broken down? That’s a trick
question. There are no activities shown in the WBS, since it is only divided to
the work package level. Once that work package is assigned to the department,
group, vendor, or subcontractor who will complete it, it can be broken down
- Deliverable: A product, result, or capability to perform a service that is created through the work of a
project.
† Work package: The smallest portion of a deliverable, including activities and schedule milestones.
The goal is to be able to assign it to one person, group, or vendor.