In most projects, the approach to the WBS use the 8 to 80 rule, which states that the WBS should be decomposed down to a work package containing between 8 and 80 hours of work to complete. To save space in this template, WBS examples are developed to the third level only. For instance, many Project Managers include a high level WBS within the project plan, and a more detailed version as an appendix to the plan.

Depending on where the WBS is placed in the project plan, a different layout may be more suitable. There are many ways to present the WBS for a project and this template provides many of the most popular layouts from which to choose. The objective should be to capture 100% of the work for the project. The Project Manager and project team use the WBS to develop the project schedule, resource requirements and costs. It is a tool which helps to easily communicate the work and processes involved to execute the project. The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a view into the project which shows what work the project encompasses.

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