Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a technique or a tool that is used to breakdown complex work to smaller tasks , thus making the overall work more manageable and approachable. It is a very popular project management tool that helps in dividing the the project deliverables into sub deliverables and work packages that will define work, duration, costs involved to carry out each of the tasks.
Steps to create Work Breakdown Structure for effective project scope management:
Identify Team : Identify the team who will work on the project deliverables that may be divided further into sub deliverables. The team generally will include project managers and subject matter experts.
Gather necessary documents : Gather all the required documents such as project charter that generally includes the business case, problem statement, project scope statement, objectives. list of team members and project management plan.
Highlight the necessary Phases : Divide the Project scope to multiple phases based on the nature or complexity of the project. This will help in taking the project from conception to completion.
Identify key deliverables : Key deliverables of the project are identified and the same are listed out that is targeted to be completed in each phase.
Divide deliverables into sub deliverables(manageable tasks) : With the help of the SMEs the identified key deliverables are further broken down to smaller parts of work also known as work packages.
Assign every sub deliverable : Once the manageable tasks are laid out, the same is assigned to every team member who will ensure to carry out each of the laid out manageable tasks. Every team member is provided with the tools, resources and authority they need to get the job done.
Benefits of Work Breakdown Structure:
Helps in visualizing the scope of the project, thus making it easier to do the planning.
Assigning responsibilities to the project team becomes easy.
Helps in identifying the project milestones and control points.
Helps in visualizing the important parts of work and identifying areas of risk.
Helps in setting timelines for the project and ensuring that no work is duplicated or ignored.
Examples of Work Breakdown Structure:
1) WBS Of Event Planning
2) WBS Of Construction Project
3) WBS Of Holiday Planning
4) WBS Of Software Project