WBS – Why Deliverables Based?

01. August 2011 · Write a comment · Categories: Project Management

There is a fundamental reason why it is logical for a WBS to be deliverables based and not life-cycle based. The WBS is a key component in the establishment of a project performance measurement using earned value. Given that the purpose of a project is to deliver outcomes requested by the customer it naturally gives that measurement of progress against these outcomes should be measured against the value as related to (or easily understood by) the customer and not the the project team.

In the context of IT software application development, the customer is buying functionality, not the analysis, design, development or testing components of work required to deliver that functionality. When measuring progress and determining earned value, it needs to be reflected in a language understood by the customer. As such, 25% progress on the design is meaningless to the customer, whereas 25% progress in the delivery of a particular capability is meaningful indeed.

When constructing a WBS don’t forget that the purpose of the WBS is not as a management tool for managing the team’s work. The WBS is a hierarchical breakdown of the project’s scope and is used as such for tracking and reporting purposes.

Think about it!