Written by F.Pentney or Project Management, G. Brown College, Bus 1040 students. Spring and Fall 2002

W.B.S - Planning phase continued: dedicated page to WBS .

WBS theory:  Layout  Task list 

Relationships
of tasks to create
Summary tasks

 Defining work packages Estimating work packages. Getting the budget approved Assigning responsibilty of tasks -onto matrix Scheduling the sequence of task. Pert and Gantt
WBS examples:

Camping Know this ! Qu. 31 handout Week 11.

Walk dog.

Temporarily lost the dog!

 Renovate room Dinner party  Making cup of tea  Shopping

Network diagram
using Predeccesors

Know this

WBS. Work Breakdown Structure. This can be used for quick, short projects or large complex projects. What do we have to get done? Call this your project. This is your heading for the highest level or single box at the top of the WBS. Now, make a a list of all the things you can think of that need to be done related to your project. This is the task list. It doesn't matter in which order you write them down. You will sort them out afterward. i.e. . We look for relationships between the tasks and group them under headings called Summary tasks. These Summary tasks are completed only by doing all the work packages-the sub tasks.. Summary tasks become second level headings which break down the goal we wish to achieve into smaller pieces. In this next case it is a camping weekend. The task list items (some of which are activities) can be estimated and scheduled more easily and accurately if they are in related groups.

Here again are the steps in the procedure. This time we will use the Camping example from Week 11, Qu. 31

1. We use the hierchal or organizational format (WBS) to show the related groups of tasks. We take the big picture item (camping weekend) and decompose (break it down) into headings (summary tasks) and then group the task items that can actually be done. (Work packages).

2. How much is it going to cost? Once we have the work packages (task items on the lower level of the WBS ) we can price them individually. E.g. The estimate would include the labour hours x labour rate plus the materials. To buy the tent- one hours labour at $10 hours and $100 for the tent. This work package (one item on the task list) is $110.
 3. In what order (sequence) are we going to do the tasks? The WBS lower level gives us the items we need to schedule into a network diagram. Now we apply the sequencing or scheduling rule. What do we want to get done? What comes before that? What comes after? What can we do at the same time?
4. Who is going to do the work? We can allocate names onto a Gantt chart and also show the sequence in a linear fashion for each person in relation to the other. When one task is finished another starts etc.  We put some of this information onto a Responsibility Matrix.  We assign the responsibilty od specific task to individual best suited for the job. By tracking the start and finsish dates for the their task we can monitor the % of completion and whether they are staying within budget both from a time and cost . The Gantt also helps us in resource leveling.  To many tasks going on at the same time and not enough people or resources. We can show progress on the Gantt chart for individual, groups, or as a whole.
W.B.S. Work  breakdown structure.

What is the project?

Done before scheduling.


Make a task list-any order as tasks come to mind.

Continue- making lists of all tasks/activities. # each activity (or give letter).

Can be chart form or outline form See Verzuh, page 103 & 104
W.B.S.  Starts with summary headings.


Top level summary.
This is the title of this part of the project. 

Second level are the group headings. 


Set up hierarchy chart or outline format e.g. 1, 1.1, 

 W.B.S. Work packages e.g. third level
 

Team members help define the time and materials for each work package.

Remember to factor in all cost. Staff time, your time, hourly rates, benefits.

Resource costs. Equipment, materials, sundry items.

 Estimate.

Bottom up.

Add the cost of all the wok packages together and this will become your first estimate for this part of the WBS. or project.

Once the estimate is approved you it is used for the budget.

 
The budget helps plan the use of people and resources.

If people are over or underutilized we level off the resources-put the them where they are needed or most used most efficiently-this is csalled resource leveling. 
 
 
Lets go camping.

Use your handout to complete the WBS exercise. 

 Take this exercise to the budget stage. 

What is it going to cost for your group to take the day off and go camping? Calculate cost of lost work hours only.

      

Note on these web pages the I am using tables to create the diagrams for WBS and networks and they look similar in format. I suggest you transpose these diagrams onto paper so you get practice and a sense of what the finished product looks like. There is usually more than one way of representing the tasks on the  WBS. In this case I have decided to put all the purchases as one trip to the store for one person rather than each tradesperson buying their own items.
 
# Items List items Find relationships.

Summary items first

 Define summary tasks-at level two
1 New floor  tiles   Level one. Project goal.   8. Renovate 
kitchen
2 Purchases

items

 2. 10. Purchases:cupboards 
tiles 
fan		 Level two. Summary tasks. 2. Purchases 7. Labour    4. Paint
3 New cupboards 7. Labour: Level 3

Work packages

 10. Cupboards. tiles, fan  1. Install tiles 3.

Install 
cupboards

 6. Install 
fan		  5. Repair 
plumbing 		 9. Walls
4 Paint  Install 
5 Repair plumbing cupboards
6 New fan tiles
7 Labour paint
8 Renovate 
kitchen
9 Paint walls
10 Purchases 
items
11


Network diagram for Renovating the kitchen.
Paint
Start Purchase 
items		 Repair plumbing Install Tiles Finish
Install cupboards
Install fan 

This diagram indicates that three of the tasks can be worked on at the same time. Note the scheduling is not dependent on resources. We don't have to have three people-we are just saying that the work could be done at the same time.

Dinner Party.
 
.Sample W.B.S. method: The task list for a Dinner Party. 

 
1.
Pour
wine
2.
Buy
meat 
3.
Steam
vegetables
4.
Serve
salad 
5.
Cook
food
6.
Roast
meat
7.
Dinner
party 
8.
Buy
groceries 
9.
Serve
roast % veg.
10.
Buy
vegetables 
11.
Buy
dessert 
12.
serve
dessert 
13.
Serve 

This  Work Breakdown Structure (W.B.S.) is for a Dinner Party.
The task list on the left can start in any order but we will look for relationships that allow us to group the task under similar headings or summary tasks. 

Note top level task at top. Followed by summary tasks.
 
 
dinner party 
buy 
cook 
serve 
veg. 
meat 
dessert
meat 
veg.
wine 
meat 
dessert

The lower row of #’s are the work packages of what you would actually do as a task or activity. # 2, 10, 11, 6, 3, 4, 9, 1, 12. 
These are what you estimate the time for and the cost of doing in terms of resources and labour. You can write the descriptions in the boxes or numbers  When above done then you schedule based on your timing needs on a Gantt or C.P.M. (Critical Path Method)chart.  Note there is no schedule in the above W.B.S. chart. It shows the importance and levels of detail. 

Q. Take the above W.B.S./task list and show it below in Gantt chart format. 
Use minutes for your time line.  The summary tasks become the milestones. Lay out the list in the groups and the order that they will done. Add times using lines. I've shown milestones using asterisks - they might be diamonds on another chart.Milestones show the summary tasks range of time. 
 
Gantt chart. Note the asterisks are the milestone. They are also the summary task (second level) 

 
17.
Gantt
chart
re. above 
15
30
45
60
75
90
105
120
135
150
165
180 
minutes
for
all
the
dinner
Dinner
party 
*
*
Buy
groceries 
*
*
Buy
meat 
-
Buy
veg.. 
-
Buy
dessert
-
Cook
food 
*
*
Roast
meat 
-
-
-
Steam
vegetables 
-
Serve
the dinner
*
*
Pour
the wine
-
Serve
the roast
-
Serve
the  veg.
. 
-
Serve
dessert 
-
-
-

If I have more than one person to buy the groceries I could put the buy tasks under each other in the 15 minute column. Same rule 
applies to other tasks that can be done in the same time frame if  there are enough resources (people, for  this example). 
Scheduling. Using the W.B.S./ task list above to create a schedule. This will be the schedule using the C.P.M. method. 
The summary tasks in  this case are the critical path and time can be allocated for each package - which are all in the top row. Critical path is: 8 Buy groc., 5 Cook food., 13 Serve 
 
 
buy veg.
buy


dessert
coook 


roast
steam veg.
serve wine 
serve roast /veg.
serve salad 
serve dessert
start
buy 


meat
Fini.


 
Our starting task list for the project does not have to be in any particular order-just list what needs to be done. We will look for the relationships (groups of similar items) when we create the WBS.

1. Pour wine 
2. Buy meat 
3. Steam vegetables 
4. Serve salad 
5. Cook food 
6. Roast meat 
7. Dinner party 
8. Buy groceries 
9. Serve roast &  veg. 
10. Buy vegetables 
11. Buy dessert 
12. Serve dessert 
13. Serve 
Critical path will include some of the Buy, Cook, Serve. We need times to calculate the true critical path. The work package will be estimated for time and effort-this means how many people needed. If there are enough people available we can show some items being done at the same time. One buys meat while one buys veg. 
Note: we do not show the summary tasks on the network diagram. Only show the tasks that are assigned an time. 


 

WBS. Making a cup of tea.
 
 
 
          Make tea            
    Water     Ingredients       Labour    
  Boil  Pour/pot    Sugar
Milk 
 Teabag     Tea into cup Stir   

Suggest you create your own line diagram for the chart below. This is only a representation of the process.
Note: you only need enough detail to ensure understanding-relevant to persons completing the tasks.
 
# Task list.  times/mins
1 water in kettle
2 boil water
3 tea into pot 1. water in kettle 2. boil water 6. water into pot 7. brew tea 8. pour tea.  10. stir
4 milk into cup
5 warm pot Start. 5. warm 
pot		 3. tea leaves into pot connect 3 to 6. Finish
6 hot water onto tea
7 brew tea  4. milk into cup 9. sugar into cup connect 9. to 8.
8 pour tea
9 add sugar
10 stir 

Shopping and the WBS.

Think of going to the supermarket. Shopping is your project. You make a list of all the things you need. Once the list is complete you group the items together under headings such as Meat, Vegetables, Frozen. These are you summary items. When you get to the departments you look at what is listed under these headings. Under meat you might have, Pork chops, Sausages. Under vegetables you might have: Broccoli, Turnips. Under Frozen you might have: Ice Cream, and Pizza. These purchase items are the same as the tasks items you could estimate on a WBS. If you were being paid to shop for someone you would add the time that it took to buy them times your hourly rate plus the cost of the item itself. This is the same as making up an estimate for the work packages on the WBS. Effort (# people/time, $ time value and resources $.)