7-identify project activities

Dr Zain Yusufzai Identify Project Activities Chapter # 7 (33-166)

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)Definition of Project Activities

Project plan represent the project as a list of thee work to be done.This list of work to be done will be generated in a top-down fashion. Work activities will have specific characteristics that allow us to estimate time, cost, and resource requirements First at an elementary level and then aggregate these figures to the project level.

The work breakdown structure (WBS) is a hierarchical description of the work that must be done to complete the project as defined in the project overview statement (POS). Activity: an activity is simply a chunk of work. A task is a smaller chunk of work. The terms activity and task have been used interchangeably.Work Package the list of things to do to complete an activity

Goal

Activity ActivityActivity Level # 1

Activity ActivityActivity Level # 2

Effective Project ManagementRobert K. Wysocki, Robert Beck Jr, David B. Crane

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ActivityTask # 1 Task # 2 Task # 3 ……… Task # n

Dr Zain Yusufzai Identify Project Activities Chapter # 7 (Page 133-166)

Work Package Breaking down work into a hierarchy of

activities, tasks, and work packages is called decomposition. A. Functional Decomposition In principal there is no difference between a WBS and a functional decomposition of a system.

B. Granularity In the final analysis it is the project manager who will decide on the architecture of the WBS and the level of detail required. This is important because the project manager is accountable for the success of the project.

Use for the WBS There are four uses for the WBS1. Thought process tool how the work of the

project can be defined and managed effectively2. Architectural design tool how items of work

are related to one another3. Planning tool detailed representation of the

project as s collection of activities that are to be completed; for project to be completed

We estimate effort, elapsed time, and resources requirement; build a schedule of when the work will be completed; and estimate deliverable dates and project completion

4. Project status reporting tool completion of activities

Generating the WBSThe best way to generate the WBS is as part of the Joint Project Planning (JPP) session. Two approaches can be used to identify the project activities.1. Top down approach

The top down approach begins at the goal level and successively partitions work down to lower levels of definition until the participants are satisfied that the work has been sufficiently defined.


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Two variations of the top down approach.i. Team Approach

ii. Sub team Approach

2. Bottom Up Approach Identifying the activities in the project is to

take a bottom up approach. This approach is more like a brainstorming session that an organized approach to building the WBS.

Six criteria to test for completeness in the WBS1. Measurable Status

Project manager can ask for the status of an activity at any point in time during the project.

2. Bounded Each activity should have a clearly defined start

and end event.3. Deliverable

The result of completing the work that makes up the activity is the production of a deliverable.

4. Cost/time estimate Each activity should have an estimated time and cost of completion. Being able to do this at the lowest level of decomposition in the WBS allows you to aggregate to higher levels and estimate the total project cost and the completion date.

5. Acceptable duration limits Activities have duration of less than two calendar weeks. This seems to be a common practice in many organizations.

6. Activity independence It is important that each activity be independent. Once work has begun on the activity, it can continue reasonably without interruption and complete.

Approaches to building the WBS There are many ways to build the WBS.There is no one correct way to create the WBS.

There are three general approaches to building the WBS:1. Noun type approaches There are two type approaches

1. Physical Decomposition:


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In projects that involve building products, it is tempting to follow the physical decomposition approach.

2. Functional Decomposition: The functional components include the steering system, gear-shifting system, breaking system and pedaling system.

2. Verb type approach There are two verb type approachesi. Design build test implement. The design build test implement approach is commonly used in those projects that involve a methodology.ii. Objectives. Used when progress reports at various stages of project completion are prepared for senior management. iii. Other approaches

Geographic Departmental Business Function


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7-identify project activities

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