Project Management

Breaking Down the Work: The Work Breakdown Structure

Identifying and breaking down the work to be done is the logical
starting point in the entire planning process. The objective of
this step is to identify relatively small, specific pieces of work.
(For simplicity, let’s refer to them as activities.) Once you’ve
identified all of the activities required to execute the project,
you’re ready to create a complete project plan. You’ll be able to
estimate activity durations and prepare your schedule, estimate
activity costs and prepare your project budget, assign responsi-
bility, and carry out many more planning steps.
But what exactly does a work breakdown structure look like
and how do you create one?
Let’s say I’m planning on hosting a birthday party in my
back yard. As most people would tend to do intuitively, I begin
by recognizing that there are a number of large “chunks” of
work (also called subgroups) to be done. I’ll have to do some
planning. I’ll need to make sure I properly feed everyone. I’m
sure I’ll need supplies of some sort, such as tables and chairs,
paper plates, and so forth. I’ll also have to set up for the party
and clean up after the party is over. I’ve already begun subdi-
viding the work to be done. Figure 7-1 shows my WBS so far.
The key at this point is to verify, as well as possible, that I’ve
identified all major categories of work that constitute the project.
In other words, everyelement of work required for my party will
fit into one of these five subgroups. Since I believe this is the
case, I can proceed to the next level of detail.

Preparing a Detailed Project Plan: Step by Step 115

Birthday

Party

Planning ProvideFood Supplies Setup Cleanup

Figure 7-1. Second level of WBS for birthday party

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