Page 212 - DMGT521_PROJECT_MANAGEMENT

Unit 12: Work Break Down Structure

experience, and creative thinking that will be needed to get down to the specifics of each Notes
deliverable. Next, we have to get the first two levels setup. The first level is the project title, and
the second level is made up of all the deliverables for the project. At this stage it is important to
function under the 100% Rule. This rule basically states that the WBS (specifically the first two
levels) includes 100% of all the work defined in the project scope statement and management
plan. Also, it must capture 100% of all the deliverables for the project including internal, external,
and interim. In reality the WBS usually only captures between 90-95%, and 100% is our goal.
Once we have gotten the first two levels set, it is time to launch into our decomposition.
Decomposition is the act of breaking down deliverables in to successively smaller chunks of
work to be completed in order to achieve a level of work that can be both realistically managed
by the project manager and completed within a given time frame by one or more team members.
This level of breakdown and detail is called the work package. Work packages are the lowest
level of the WBS and are pieces of work that are specifically assigned to one person or one team
of people to be completed. This is also the level at which the project manager has to monitor all
project work. Now the million dollar question is how specific and small does a chunk of work
need to be to still be considered a work package? Well PMBOK does not seem to give a definitive
answer on that. Most project managers concur that this varies by project, but can usually be
measured using the 8/80 Rule. The 8/80 Rule says that no work package should be less than 8
hours or greater than 80 hours. Notice we said that the work package is the lowest level of the
WBS. Activities and tasks are not included in the WBS. They will be planned from the work
packages once they are assigned.

Now you are ready to start your team on the work of decomposition, but do not get too far
ahead of yourself quite yet. As grandpa always said “There is no reason to reinvent the wheel.”
Occasionally, you will run into a project that is a “first of its kind,” but that is not usually the
case. Most of the time, you, your team, or your organisation has done a project like this one in
the past. That means that there should be a WBS from the previous project that you can use as a
template. This will save you a lot time and effort. Even if you have not done a project like this
one before, most Project Management Offices (PMOs) have basic WBS templates that can get you
started. Another great technique to make your life easier is the Post-It Note Technique. I know
it sounds a little cheesy, but it actually works very well. In this technique you simply write each
deliverable on a post-it note and stick them at the top of a wall. Then you and your team start to
break down each deliverable into components and write each component on its own post-it
note. This way, as you place them on the wall and start to create your tree structure, everyone
can easily see what has been accomplished and where you are headed. Also this technique
allows for easy movement of components around within the WBS.
Now the conference room wall is covered in post-it notes and Sally is frantically wanting to
write everything down before they start to fall, but wait one more step before you put it into an
official (or semi-official) document. You can use your newly created WBS to look for missing or
overlapping pieces of each deliverable. This will help eliminate change requests and double
work down the road. Once that is completed, put your WBS on paper and log it into your project.

Many projects will also find it necessary to create a WBS Dictionary to accompany their WBS.
The WBS Dictionary is simply a document that describes each component in the WBS. This helps
clarify any specifics later on when team members completing the work or stakeholders viewing
the deliverables have questions. Also, when creating the WBS for very large, lengthy, or complex
projects, all the deliverables’ specifics might not be known up front and, therefore, it is difficult
to create a full WBS. In cases such as these many people use what is called Rolling Wave Planning.
This is when you plan down to the level of detail currently known and go back to plan deeper
once more information is acquired. Usually rolling wave planning needs to stay as least 2-3
months ahead of the actual work being done, but of course this varies slightly by industry.

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 207