Partitioning Your Project
• You need to decompose your project into manageable chunks
• ALL projects need this step
• Divide and Conquer
• Two main causes of project failure
– Forgetting something critical
– Ballpark estimates become targets
• How does partitioning help this?
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Project Elements
• A Project: functions, activities, tasks
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WBS Chart Example
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WBS Outline Example
0.0 Retail Web Site
1.0 Project Management
2.0 Requirements Gathering
3.0 Analysis & Design
4.0 Site Software Development
4.1 HTML Design and Creation
4.2 Backend Software
4.2.1 Database Implementation
4.2.2 Middleware Development
4.2.3 Security Subsystems
4.2.4 Catalog Engine
4.2.5 Transaction Processing
4.3 Graphics and Interface
4.4 Content Creation
5.0 Testing and Production
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WBS Types
• Process WBS
• a.k.a Activity-oriented
• Ex: Requirements, Analysis, Design, Testing
• Typically used by PM
• Product WBS
• a.k.a. Entity-oriented
• Ex: Financial engine, Interface system, DB
• Typically used by engineering manager
• Hybrid WBS: both above
• This is not unusual
• Ex: Lifecycle phases at high level with component or featurespecifics within phases
• Rationale: processes produce products
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Product WBS
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Process WBS
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Outline WBS w/Gantt
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WBS by PMI Process Groups
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WBS
• List of Activities, not Things
• List of items can come from many sources
– SOW, Proposal, brainstorming, stakeholders, team
• Describe activities using “bullet language”
– Meaningful but terse labels
• All WBS paths do not have to go to the same level
• Do not plan more detail than you can manage
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WBS & Methodology
• PM must map activities to chosen lifecycle
• Each lifecycle has different sets of activities
• Integral process activities occur for all
– Planning, configuration, testing
• Operations and maintenance phases are not normally in plan (considered post-project)
• Some models are “straightened” for WBS
– Spiral and other iterative models
– Linear sequence several times
• Deliverables of tasks vary by methodology
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WBS Techniques
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Top-Down
Bottom-Up
Analogy
Rolling Wave
– 1st pass: go 1-3 levels deep
– Gather more requirements or data
– Add more detail later
• Post-its on a wall
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WBS Techniques
• Top-down
– Start at highest level
– Systematically develop increasing level of detail – Best if
• The problem is well understood
• Technology and methodology are not new
• This is similar to an earlier project or problem
– But is also applied in majority of situations
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WBS Techniques
• Bottom-up
– Start at lowest level tasks
– Aggregate into summaries and higher levels
– Cons
• Time consuming
• Needs more requirements complete
