Both of these examples have tasks that can be completed independently of other project tasks. That is, the project could involve designing and building desktop computers or creating an animated computer game.
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Information technology projects translate well into WBS diagrams, whether the project is hardware or software based. Generally, the upper components are the deliverables and the lower level elements are the activities that create the deliverables. The project is then divided into main, or disparate components, with related activities (or elements) listed under them. The diagram starts with a single box or other graphic at the top to represent the entire project. What is a Work Breakdown Structure Diagram?Ī WBS diagram expresses the project scope in simple graphic terms. Regarding the format for WBS design, some people create tables or lists for their work breakdown structures, but most use graphics to display the project components as a hierarchical tree structure or diagram. Determining the chunk size “rules” can take a little practice, but in the end these rules make the WBS easier to use. You can also use the 8/80 rule, where no chunk would take less than 8 hours or longer than 80 hours to complete. There could be a two weeks rule, where nothing is broken down any smaller than it would take two weeks to complete. That varies with project type and management style, but some sort of predetermined “rule” should govern the size and scope of the smallest chunks of work. A WBS for an aircraft system “How small?” you may ask. Once this is completed, they start decomposing the deliverables they have identified, breaking them down to successively smaller chunks of work. To start out, the project manager and subject matter experts determine the main deliverables for the project.