Chap 4
Defining
The
Project
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Steps in Defining Project
Chap 4
Step 1: Defining the Project Scope
Step 2: Establishing Project Priorities
Step 3: Creating the Work Breakdown Structure
Step 4: Integrating the WBS with the Organization
Step 5: Coding the WBS for the Information System
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Defining the Project Scope
Chap 4
What you expect to deliver, when project is completed.
Project Objective:
What, when and how much
Deliverables: Specific outcomes for each stage or milestone or review
Milestones:
Major segments of the project
Technical requirements: Specific metrics which a deliverable must satisfy
Limits and Exclusions: What the project will not do
Reviews with Customers: Define frequency, provide direction, coincide with
milestones & deliverables
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Project Definition Example
Chap 4
Basketball game
Fashion Show
Taxi Service
4
Project Definition in Reality
Chap 4
Not well Defined
• the more complex typically the less defined?
• customer is unsure of what is possible, so they leave it general.
Scope Creep
• adding slight changes to the project
• impact is perceived to be minor but can be significant
• especially prevalent in IT projects
Change control procedure is necessary
• documents source of the change
• defines specific change
• defines impact on budget and time
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Establishing Project Priorities
Chap 4
Project objectives center around satisfying Time, Performance & Cost.
These project factors can be at conflict?
How?
Project Priority Matrix can help a Project Manager in making tradeoffs.
Time
Performance
Cost
Constrain
Enhance
Accept
Constrain: This factor must be meet, no compromise
Enhance: Optimize but can vary
Accept: Not meeting target is OK, within limits
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Communication Plan
Chap 4
How to communicate status, changes, and performance
1. Identify Stakeholders
2. Define information required by each stakeholder
3. What are the sources for each form of information
4. Method of getting the information to the stakeholders
5. Who is responsible for placing the information in the correct format
and delivering it to the stakeholders.
6. What is the frequency of the information.
Plan is created by Project Manager in the early stages after discussion
with team and stakeholders, in conjunction with WBS and OBS.
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What is a WBS?
Chap 4
A Work Breakdown Structure can show you at a glance:

What the various deliverables of the project are

How the necessary work is distributed between the project deliverables

How the cost or budget is distributed between the project deliverables

How the larger deliverables of the project are subdivided into smaller ones

But it does not say anything about individual tasks or the order of execution.
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Creating the
Work Breakdown Structure
Chap 4
Hierarchical approach of dividing the work by types;
allowing a framework to track cost and work performance
Cost Account
Work Packages
Communication
Costs rolled up
Deliverables
Sub-deliverables
:
Sub-deliverables
Types: Frame, Plumbing, Electrical, Landscaping, HVAC, Drywall,
Flooring
WBS follows the project structure not the functional organization
Output Oriented
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Coding the WBS for the
Information System
Chap 4
Typically, WBS is coded beginning with Completed project and then
indented until all Work Packages have been identified
Other forms of coding can be used to reflect different project structures.
- Locations, functional depts, product type, customer, year, etc
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Banquet Example
Chap 4
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Product Development WBS Example
Chap 4
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Project Definition Example
Chap 4
Basketball game
Fashion Show
Taxi Service
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A Work Breakdown Structure is not:
Chap 4
• A Work Breakdown Structure is not an exhaustive list of work
• A WBS is neither a project plan, a schedule, nor a chronological listing.
• It is considered poor practice to construct a project schedule (e.g. using
project management software) before designing a proper WBS.
• A WBS is not an organizational hierarchy.
• Some practitioners make the mistake of creating a WBS that shadows the
functional organizational chart.
• WBS updates, other than progressive elaboration of details, require formal
change control.
• This is another reason why a WBS should be outcome-oriented and not be
prescriptive of methods.
• A WBS is not a logic model. Nor is it a strategy map.
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The 100% Rule
Chap 4
• WBS includes 100% of the work defined by the project scope and
captures all deliverables – internal, external, interim – in terms of
the work to be completed, including project management.
• One of the most important principles guiding the development,
decomposition and evaluation of the WBS.
• Applies at all levels within the hierarchy:
• The sum of the work at the “child” level must equal 100% of the
work represented by the “parent” and the WBS should not include
any work that falls outside the actual scope of the project, that is, it
cannot include more than 100% of the work…
•
It is important to remember that the 100% rule also applies to the
activity level. The work represented by the activities in each work
package must add up to 100% of the work necessary to complete the
work package.
Practice Standard for Work Breakdown Structures (Second Edition), published by the Project Management
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Institute, ISBN 1933890134, page 8
Integrating the WBS with the
Organization
Chap 4
Organizational Breakdown structure:
Describes how the firm has assigned the work responsibility.
- results from assigning of work packages responsibilities, made in WBS
When a dedicated project management structure is not used the OBS can:
• help define and group the Cost Accounts by function
• promotes communication of reporting and project changes
Same as WBS with the addition of functional departments matrices to
WPs
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Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS)
Chap 4
Project
Mgr
Structural
Accounting
Info Tech
Concrete
Framing
Masonry
Interior
Drywall
Mudders
Finishing
flooring
Plumbing
Water/Sewer
Gas
Electrical
Hookup
Outlets
Wiring
Fixtures
Marketing
Purchasing
Project Oriented Structure
Trucking
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Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS)
Chap 4
Project
Mgr
Engineering
Structural
Accounting
Info Tech
Concrete
Framing
Masonry
Interior
Plumbing
Electrical
Water/Sewer
Gas
Marketing
Trucking
Drywall
Mudders
Finishing
flooring
Hookup
Outlets Functional Structure
Wiring
Fixtures
Roofing
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Project Definition Example
Chap 4
Basketball game
Fashion Show
Taxi Service
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Responsibility Activity Matrix (RAM)
Chap 4
RAM is used to integrate the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and the
Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS).
RAM output is Work Packages.
WBS
OBS
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
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Work Package
Chap 4
A work package at the activity level is a task that:
• can be realistically and confidently estimated;
• makes no sense practically to break down any further;
• can be completed in accordance with one of the heuristics defined
above;
• produces a deliverable which is measurable; and
• forms a unique package of work which can be outsourced
• The activities listed in the work package are the activities listed in
the MS Project plan.
• allows user to estimate costs for each task
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Creating a Work Package
Chap 4
Lowest unit of WBS; This is where all the tasks are accomplished
1. Define work
• Detail events
• Specific deliverable(s)
2. Identify time to complete
3. Identify a time phased budget to complete
4. Identify a single person responsible for unit of work
5. Identify monitoring points for measuring progress
• How to measure a successful deliverable
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Level of Detail
Chap 4
• The “80 hour rule“: no single activity or group of activities to produce a
single deliverable should be more than 80 hours of effort.
• Single Reporting Period: no activity or series of activities should be
longer than a single reporting period.
• The "if it makes sense" rule. Applying this rule of thumb, one can apply
"common sense" when creating the duration of a single activity or group
of activities necessary to produce a deliverable defined by the WBS.
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Responsibility Activity Matrix (RAM)
Chap 4
RAM output is Work Packages.
WBS
$580
$600
OBS
$300
$210
$900
$950
$750
$450
$1860
Rent Tables
$250
Rent glass ware
$200
Rent silverware
$200
Setup
4 hrs $160
WP 1.2.3
$100
Create Menu
Shop
Prep
Cook
Serve
2 hrs
4 hrs
1 hrs
3 hrs
2 hrs
$200
$250
$150
$ 200
$250
WP 1.2.4
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Assignment
Chap 4
Read and answer questions regarding
Manchester United Soccer Club case study.
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Questions
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Aircraft Example
Chap 4
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WBS Dictionary (First Level)
Chap 4
Support
This WBS element includes all management activities that typically span the entire project and
are estimated in terms of level of effort rather than by reference to the specific work products
produced. These include Program Management, Implementation (Release) Management,
Logistics Management, and Technical Management.
1
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Program Management
This WBS element includes all management tasks at the level of the entire project including
organizing, directing, coordinating, and controlling all of the resources required to accomplish
project objectives, cost/schedule performance management, subcontractor management, and
quality management.
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Implementation (Release) Management
This WBS element includes all of the effort to plan, control, and execute the implementation of
all releases.
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Logistics Management
This WBS element includes all of the effort to establish and maintain a logistics support and
provisioning program, including, for example, supplies, storage, spares, and repairs of material
used by the project. Material includes commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software, and other
tangible supplies.
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Technical Management
This WBS element includes all of the effort to direct and control the technical engineering effort
to transform the operational needs into a specification of requirements and an optimum
configuration, including risk and issue management and configuration management.
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