5.4 Create WBS
Break the total work down into smaller pieces small enough to plan.
Planning / Scope · ← PMBOK reference · See it on the map
Why it matters
A single giant task is too big to estimate, staff, or track. Breaking it down is what makes the rest of planning possible at all.
What done looks like
Every piece of work is decomposed into a work package small enough to assign and track.
First time tip
Stop decomposing once a piece is small enough to estimate and assign to one owner. Breaking it down further just adds bookkeeping.
What you need (Inputs)
- Scope Management Plan
- Project Scope Statement
- Requirements Documentation
How Scrum/Kanban projects satisfy this — counted from: backlog items (driftless/models/agile.py:BacklogItem) — a backlog item's description IS its requirement statement; present once any item has one, healthy once every item does - Enterprise Environmental Factors
- Organizational Process Assets
How you do it (Tools & Techniques)
What you get (Outputs)
- Scope Baseline
How Scrum/Kanban projects satisfy this — counted from: committed backlog items and definition-of-done items (models/agile.py) — a committed backlog (status ready/in_progress/done) plus a written definition of done is what an agile team baselines scope against
Worked example
"Renovate the reading room" becomes work packages: demolish old shelving, repair the water-damaged wall, repaint, install new shelving, wire the teen room's outlets — each small enough for one contractor crew to own and estimate.
Common pitfalls
- Stopping decomposition too early, leaving a work package too big to estimate.
- Decomposing so far that tracking the pieces costs more than the work itself.
- Missing a piece of work entirely because nothing in the WBS names it.
How driftless helps
- Decomposition can be run here.
- Scope Baseline can be created in the wizard.