Comments on: Plan projects with a Work Breakdown Structure

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:12:41 +0000

Mycrazyhair:

Have you come across Life Balance “http://www.llamagraphics.com/LB/index.html”? This is a ToDo list that allows you to arrange your actions by Project and Context, and define Critical Paths i.e. what needs to be done first. It gives you a Next Action list that only shows the next possible action; once you tick that off, the subsequent step appears. Loads more useful features; maybe it’s what your looking for?

By: Elaine

Elaine — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 13:27:41 +0000

Part of the reason some people need this approach for tasks such as uncluttering is that the job as a whole seems so huge. Breaking something down into smaller components often helps crack that barrier of resistance. Whatever works…

By: Daniel Hoang

Daniel Hoang — Sun, 10 May 2009 20:24:38 +0000

http://www.gantter.com is a great, simple web-based, Gantt WBS tool. Not as intensive as MS Project but simple enough for the use you recommend in your article.

By: Dietmar Schoder

Dietmar Schoder — Thu, 07 May 2009 09:54:06 +0000

Dear Fazeel! You find at least a general sample on my homepage: http://www.wbs-tool.net/wbs/Be.....jektEN.gif.

By: Fazeel

Fazeel — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:32:04 +0000

hi to all.i am fazeel doing chemical engineering want to know abt work breakdown structure?
can anyone tell me from where i can get the work breakdown structure of any project(like water supply from water tank).
and if anyone have any project on work breakdown structure then plz send me to my mail address.i need it urgently plz

waiting …..

By: Dietmar Schoder

Dietmar Schoder — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 22:15:57 +0000

And use a cool, free tool: http://www.wbs-tool.net.

By: mycrazyhair

mycrazyhair — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 19:03:53 +0000

Richard, the goal here is to avoid more subtle versions of “painting yourself into a corner”. The work breakdown is particularly helpful when you’re trying to meet a deadline.

A WBS helps you to see all of the steps that must occur, in what order, and how long each will take. If I want to have my backyard ready for a party, a WBS will help me to remember to get to the hardware store to pick up sandpaper and paint early enough that the paint will have time to dry before I need to put up decorations. Similarly, if I want to write a will, I’ll need a full picture of my financial situation first. The WBS will help me to remember to gather all of my financial statements, etc. in time to review them before the meeting with the lawyer.

I use the WBS approach all of the time when developing my to do lists. I just wish I could find an inexpensive piece of software that would help me to organize my lists that way. http://www.rememberthemilk.com just isn’t working for me, because it doesn’t allow me to link my “to do” items together to show which ones depend on the others, and to determine when I need to start the first in order to meet my overall deadline.

By: Luisa

Luisa — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 01:18:58 +0000

I think the difference between WBS and conventional to-do list, as well as the take away of this is that… you need to break the task down. It might seem ridiculous to do WBS for household/daily chores, but I actually find it useful, esp for things I like to procrastinate on. I find that things I usually procrastinate on, like tax, yard cleaning, etc, are because they are big, or my to-do list are vertical and long, so that I either can’t do them in one go, or not sure which to tackle first. By breaking them down and prioritizing, I know each small task are very do-able, I know which should be done first, and being able to cross the subtask out shows that I’m making progress, and eventually I will actually get the task done.

By: j phillips

j phillips — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 23:47:45 +0000

i don’t understand how WBS is different from the conventional “make a to-do list.”

By: Keith_Indy

Keith_Indy — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:43:39 +0000

Hey Richard, come on over and “clean” my 1600 sq ft garage (2 levels) any time. I need a punch list so I know what order to do things in.

By: Rue

Rue — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:28:07 +0000

I definitely agree with Richard that for most tasks like cleaning out the garage, this would be a waste of time (at least, it would be for me). Most of the tasks I do at home and at work don’t require much planning, so it would end up taking me more time to make this plan of attack than to actually do the task!

However, for large projects that encompass numerous minute details (like planning a wedding or writing software programs as were mentioned), this would be much more useful. Have to agree with the person who said it’s basically outlining though!

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 04:17:47 +0000

Recently I just started doing using this process yet I didn’t know it had a name. I like to pin my individual tasks on a plastic wire that’s on my wall. The breaking down of specific steps helps me from hyperventilating! (jk)

By: Ken

Ken — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 02:59:46 +0000

I agree. Typically the first step of establishing your project timeline is to define the scope based on the deliverables/goals for your project. After you break out all the major tasks/milestones for your project, you assign durations for each task based on the approximate number of hours required to complete it. Only then do you have a general idea of when you could likely complete the project.

At least that’s how it works with IT projects. I agree, as Michael did, that event planning is different. But if I’m organizing my hours, my timeline will be based on the number of rooms and how many hours will be required to organize each one.

Someone said that this is “mind clutter”. I guess it all depends on scope. For even moderately-sized projects, though, project management actually saves time. Proper planning prevents poor performance.

-Ken (IT PM)

By: Michael Kirkham

Michael Kirkham — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 01:45:29 +0000

As a software developer, I tend plan out the scope of projects in this way, but with a couple GTD-based caveats. First, for most projects (I’ll grant something you have to book well ahead of time like a wedding is different), you’ve got this backwards:

“Once you define your final date for the project, your next step is to define the scope or magnitude of that project.”

That doesn’t work in practice. Figure out the scope and magnitude of the project, then you can get an idea how long it’s going to take based on the smaller parts, and then you can estimate your final date. In my industry we have a saying: “On time, feature complete, bug free: pick two.” If you’ve already set the date before figuring out what’s involved or what you’re going to deliver, you’re already doomed to fail.

Second, use wording that implies defined milestones and next actions as if to check them off later, not vague areas. “Research bands” isn’t so good because there’s no goal or actionable item; “Select band” is better, but “Band selected” would be better still. Researching would be a subproject of that, but you want a next action like “Email friends for band recommendations.” It’s something direct you can act on and be done with, unlike “research” that has no defined scope other than “band selected”.

By: Richard Riggs

Richard Riggs — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 01:45:23 +0000

This methodology seems to be simply “mind clutter.” You need this “approach” to unclutter a garage? Really? Spend more time with a broom, the trash can, a garden hose, a paint brush and some common sense. Please.

It’s not a software project, it’s the garage.