CompTIA Project+ (PK0-005)Project Life Cycle PhasesMedium
A project manager is decomposing the project scope into a hierarchical structure. She continues breaking deliverables down until each component represents a manageable unit of work that can be assigned, estimated, and tracked as a single unit. What is this lowest-level component called?
- AControl account
- BPhase gate
- CWork package
- DMilestone
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Work package
In a WBS, decomposition continues until deliverables are broken into work packages, the smallest units of work that can be estimated, scheduled, and assigned to a resource. Milestones mark significant points in time, control accounts group work packages for cost/schedule tracking, and phase gates are review checkpoints.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. A control account groups multiple work packages for management purposes, one level above.
- B. A phase gate is a decision point between phases, not a WBS component.
- D. A milestone is a significant zero-duration event, not a unit of assignable work.
Work Package
The lowest level of a work breakdown structure (WBS), representing a discrete, manageable unit of work that can be estimated, scheduled, and assigned.
- Decomposition stops when work is estimable and assignable
- Sits below deliverables/phases in the WBS hierarchy
- Forms the basis for activity definition and cost estimating
Memory trick: 'Project, Phase, Package, Task' - decomposition gets smaller like Russian nesting dolls.