Project Work Breakdown Structure WBS

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7.4.1 Project Work Breakdown Structure WBS

The Project Work Breakdown Structure WBS is a tool that allows project managers to define task sets, milestones and deliverables. It is a systematic analysis approach of depicting a project as a set of discrete pieces of work. The tasks and milestones can be used in a project to track development or maintenance. Two methods are used in defining the work breakdown structure, namely, the Work Breakdown Analysis and WBS Top-down Decomposition and Bottom-up Integration. Work Breakdown Analysis The Work Breakdown Analysis consists of the following steps: 1. Break the project into blocks of related activities. 2. Arrange the blocks into a logical hierarchy. • Analysis starts by identifying the major phases and the major deliverables that each produces. • For each activity, break them to define sub-activities and the work products produced by these sub-activities. • Continue to subdivide an activity until you get to an activity that cannot be subdivided anymore. This atomic activity is called the work unit or package. 3. Define the Work Unit or Package. The work unit or package is the responsibility of one person. It should be executed until it finishes without any interruption. Its duration and cost can be measured, and requires the continuous use of a resource group. WBS Top-down Decomposition and Bottom-up Integration Process This method defines two major activities as specified in its name, specifically, the top- down decomposition and bottom-up integration. 1. Top-down Decomposition • Identify 4-7 major components of work. Do not worry about the sequence. • Identify intermediate and final deliverables for each grouping. • Perform functional decomposition until a task has one owner, clear deliverables, credible estimates and can be tracked. • Use verb-object at lowest task level. Recommended number of levels is four 4. • Multiple iterations are required. 2. Bottom-up Integration • Brainstorm all possible tasks. • Organize task into 4-7 major groupings reflecting how the project will be managed. Software Engineering 313 J.E.D.I

7.4.2 Work Breakdown Schedule Format