Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)



Definition

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
the management work product that provides an exhaustive, hierarchical (top-down) tree structure overview of the work to be performed to complete an endeavor

Objectives

The typical objectives of a work breakdown structure are to document the:

Benefits

The typical benefits of a work breakdown structure include:

Contents

A work breakdown structure typically has the following contents:

Stakeholders

A work breakdown structure typically has the following stakeholders:

Phases

A work breakdown structure is typically produced and maintained during the following phases:

Preconditions

A work breakdown structure can typically be started if the following preconditions hold:

Inputs

A work breakdown structure typically has the following inputs:

Guidelines

Conventions

Work breakdown structures are typically constrained by the following conventions:

Examples

The following are simple examples of work breakdown structures:

Example System-Oriented WBS

The following is a simple (three level) WBS for building a science fair volcanoe. This WBS uses a decomposition tree graphic to document the associated components. A real endeavor WBS would be much larger and more complex.

Example System-Oriented WBS

Example Work-Unit-Oriented WBS

The following is a simple (three level) WBS for having a child’s birthday party. This WBS uses a hierarchically indented list to document the associated work units. A real endeavor WBS would be much larger and more complex.

Example Student WBS

The following is a more realistic, although still very small, WBS for a student project to conduct benchmarking research on county e-government Web sites and then to present the results in a Web site. More information about the project can be found at Innovations in eGovernment.

Example Student Project WBS

Example WBS Tool Output

The following is typical of the output from a simple WBS tool. More information about the tool can be found at WBS Chart Pro.

Example WBS Tool Output