What is a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)?

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a simple way to organize a project into smaller, manageable pieces.

Think of it as an outline that shows how the project is built from top to bottom.

Work in a WBS can be broken down into:

• Phase: A major section of the project that groups work by time or purpose

• Subsection: The categories within the phase to add activities to

• Task: The specific, schedulable work required to complete the project

A well structured WBS helps to represent how the project is organized as well as:

• Improves project visibility
• Creates better estimates
• Organizes tasks and teams
• Sets up your schedule in a logical way
• Makes it easier to navigate your schedule
• Promotes communication through the schedule

Follow these steps to build a high quality WBS:

Step 1: Identity Major Phases of your Project:

Start by identifying the major phases of your project, which may include:

• Preconstruction
• Procurement
• Site Preparation
• Construction
• Commissioning and Final Inspections
• Closeout

Step 2: Break Phases into Subsections:

Using your identified phases, break each one in subsections that represent the work distribution. These subsections (bolded) for phases may include:

• Preconstruction
  • Design work
  • Submittals
  • Permit
• Construction
  • Site clearing
  • Utility Work
  • Structural

Continue this process for as many levels as necessary until you have a sufficient outline for the entirety of your project and your WBS is ready to add individual tasks to. See example below:

• Construction
  • Site clearing
  • Utility Work
  • Structural
    • Foundation
    • Exterior Structure
      • West Room
      • East Room

Step 3: Populate your WBS:

Populate your WBS with activities that reflect the work needed to be performed throughout the project. 

• Construction
  • Site clearing
  • Utility Work
  • Structural/Civil
    • Foundation
    • Exterior Structure
      • West Room
        • HDPE
        • Rebar
        • MEPs
        • Form
        • Pour Concrete
      • East Room
        • HDPE
        • Rebar
        • MEPs
        • Form
        • Pour Concrete

Step 4: Assign Resources and Responsibilities:

Finally, if applicable, assign the resources and responsibilities or activity codes to each task to avoid confusion and maintain accountability.

Your WBS is the foundation of your schedule structure.

When built intentionally, it improves:

• Clarity
• Reporting accuracy
• Forecast reliability
• Claims defensibility