Presentation: Panel: Misuse of Work Breakdown Structures (WBS)
Abstract: The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a well-known tool for aiding in defining the total scope of any project, program, or portfolio. Its use is considered the foundation for good management, the basis for collecting data, the means for defining and expressing the specific outcomes of a project – their end products and results, and ultimately the cornerstone for communicating with the stakeholders on a project, program or portfolio.
But what can go wrong in this process? Why are work breakdown structures so hard to define and why does everyone have a different opinion of how they should be created – given their use is to identify the outcomes of the project? What makes up a WBS and is it process oriented, product oriented, results oriented or does it reflect how the project is managed, developed or delivered? Given the fluidity of these questions, is the 100% rule always required; and what happens when new technology and innovative concepts for creating, building, and delivering are infused into a project? Does that change the WBS? These and other topics of WBS use and misuse will be discussed at this session.
Biography: Aydin Mohtashamian is the Director of Program Management at L-3 Communications at Maritime Systems, an industry leader in providing Naval Propulsion and Power systems, Control systems, innovative products for ship control, and responsive product services. Maritime Systems is a lead systems integrator for multiple customers, and executes large complex programs with product inputs from various L-3 Divisions. With two locations located in Massachusetts and Virginia, Maritime Systems has 200 employees and 2014 sales of $70 Million. Maritime Systems costumers include the US Navy, Military Sealift Command, Coast Guard, and Allied International Navies.
As Director of Programs, Mr. Mohtashamian is fully accountable for execution of all programs at Maritime Systems. A certified program manager with over 10 years of experience managing large and complex programs, he joined L-3 in 2008 as a program manager at L-3 Power Paragon. Mr. Mohtashamian joined Maritime Systems as Director of Programs in 2012, and has managed the DDG-51 Hybrid Electric Drive Program (HED), a major automation system overhaul for the Sealift Command TAOE ships, and had oversight over various other programs with contract values exceeding $200M. He has been co-author on several papers regarding the advantages of a Hybrid-Electric System for Naval Vessels. Prior to joining L-3, Mr. Mohtashamian was a project manager in the oil and gas industry. He also served 8 years in the US Army, where he was decorated with the Legion of Merit and 2 Bronze Stars.
Mr. Mohtashamian holds Program, Schedule and Risk Management certifications from the Program Management Institute. A certified Scrum Master, he holds a Six Sigma Black Belt certification from Villanova University along with several Program Management certificates. He holds a Master’s of Business Administration from University of Maryland, a Master’s of Science in System Engineering from Texas A&M, and a Bachelor’s of Science Degree from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
