Learn in the textbookScope and Schedule Management
DefinitionA WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) is a chart that takes a project's deliverables and the work that produces them, breaks them down level by level from the whole, and arranges them as a tree.
ExplanationHigher levels of the tree are larger groupings, and lower levels come closer to the individual tasks someone actually carries out. Only creating the materials goes down to level 4, because slides and printing lumped together are still too large to assign an owner and a number of days. The lowest unit is called a work package (ワークパッケージ), and a document called the WBS dictionary fills in what each element contains.
AnalogyIt resembles a toolbox with many compartments. Open a big drawer (a group) and you find small slots (individual tasks), so you can see at a glance where everything is and what is missing.
Memory hookBreakdown means an itemised split, as in a breakdown of household spending by category. A WBS is the project's own breakdown, drawn as a tree.