Breakdown structure

InfoPulse PM Cource

ContentsBreakdown Structure for Project Management.................................................................2

Work Breakdown Structure..............................................................................................................
Phase-based structures......................................................................................................................
Deliverable-based structures............................................................................................................
Responsibility-based structure.........................................................................................................
Other Use Cases of Breakdown Structure.......................................................................................6
Resource Breakdown Structure........................................................................................................
Risk Breakdown Structure................................................................................................................
Organizational Breakdown Structure..............................................................................................8
The Various Views of a Breakdown Structure.................................................................................9
Tree Structure View..........................................................................................................................
Outline View.....................................................................................................................................
Hierarchical Structure.....................................................................................................................10

Breakdown Structure for Project Management

1
 Also known as tree diagrams, breakdown structures are widely used in
project management when there are needs in visualizing parent-to-child
relationship. Typical use of breakdown structure as a project management tool
includes Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), Resource Breakdown Structure, Risk
Breakdown Structure and Organization Breakdown Structure (OBS), or sometimes
known as Organization Chart. In this article we will go through some of the
breakdown structure examples.
Work Breakdown Structure
The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is developed to establish a common
understanding of project scope. It is a hierarchical description of the work that
must be done to complete the deliverables of a project. Each descending level in
the WBS represents an increasingly detailed description of the project deliverables.
Here is a Work Breakdown Structure example:

The development of Work Breakdown Structure involves subdividing the

major project activities or sub-activities into smaller, more manageable activities
until the activities are defined in sufficient detail to support the management and

2
development of project works. The items at the lowest level of a branch are known
as work packages.
Here are some tips in developing a Work Breakdown Structure that can
express works effectively:
 Always express Work Breakdown Structure activities at the lowest levels of
granularity in verb form.
 Review the Work Breakdown Structure. Make sure all deliverables have
been fully covered by the works defined in the Work Breakdown Structure.
 Ensure that testing and training have been taken into account.
 Ensure that non-IT work packages are also included such as, documentation
and review activities are included in the structure.
 Ensure that other supporting activities such as, product/service launch and
implementation activities are planned.
 Ensure that delivery approval cycles are taken into account.
 Include project management deliverables on the project as well (e.g.
production of Project Plan). Include any deliverables that must be met or delivered
by the customer or any external parties. Check the Work Breakdown Structure
against the project approach specified in Project Charter for any activities that
needs to be included in the Work Breakdown Structure.

Generally speaking, there are three typical ways in structuring works with a
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). They includes phase-based structures,
deliverable-based structures and responsibility-based structures.

Phase-based structures
Define and structure project activities based on the project phases.

3
Deliverable-based structures
Define and structure project activities based on the deliverables agreed to deliver.

Responsibility-based structure
Define and structure project activities based on the organization units that will
work on the project.

4
Other Use Cases of Breakdown Structure
Resource Breakdown Structure
Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS) is a project management tool that
provides a hierarchical decomposition of resources, either structured by resource
category, types or by IT/business function that has resource needs.

5
Here is a Resource Breakdown Structure example:

Here are some examples of resource types.

 Customer Support - The kind of customer and the type of support required
for the project
 Facilities: The facilities required for project (e.g. conference room, data
center)
 Equipment: Describe the hardware needed for the project (e.g. printer,
scanner).
 Software Tools: Describe the software requirements for the project (e.g.
Visual Paradigm).

Risk Breakdown Structure

Risks are everything in any IT project. The existence of risk causes negative
impact on project schedule, costs and quality. In project management, Project
Manager is responsible for managing risks and to ensure that the project will be
delivered on time, within project and up to the standard user expected. One of the
popular risk management tool is the Risk Breakdown Structure.

6
 Risk breakdown Structure is the hierarchical decomposition of risks, starting
from the root node element that represents the project, and going down to the
various risk categories, and then finer level risks.
Besides presenting project risks in a Risk Breakdown Structure, it is possible
to combine the use of Color Legend in representing the impact of risk. Take a look
at the Risk Breakdown Structure example below, a legend of Impact with five
items has been setup, representing the five levels of impacts that risks may have on
the project with five distinct color code.

Here is a Risk Breakdown Structure example:

There are many Risk Management Tool you can use in structuring risks.
Besides Risk Breakdown Structure, you may consider using the Cause and Effect
Diagram as well (also known as Fishbone Diagram).

Organizational Breakdown Structure

Organizational Breakdown Structure, or sometimes known as Organization
Chart, is a widely used project management tool for representing project
organization. It typically begins with the project sponsor, and with all key
stakeholders included. In presenting the organization structure, consider the

7
organization or group that is requesting the project and the level of their
sponsorship and authority.
Here is an Organizational Breakdown Structure example:

The Various Views of a Breakdown Structure

Tree Structure View
The tree structure view is the visualization of a breakdown structure. Among the
various views, it's most popular and easy-to-understand.

8
Outline View
The outline view presents an easy to view and understand layout for the breakdown
structure.

Hierarchical Structure
The hierarchical structure presents breakdown structure elements in a tabular
form. It is similar to the outline view but with information presented in a table
(without indentation). This view is extremely useful when your breakdown
structure has many nested levels, which would make an outline view hard to
presents elements' neatly.

9
Level WBS Code Element Name
1 1 E-Octopus
2 1.1 Planning
3 1.1.1 Conduct Planning Kickoff Meeting
3 1.1.2 Develop Work Breakdown Structure
...

10