Omnis enim, quae a ratione suscipitur de aliqua re institutio, debet a definitione proficisci, ut intellegatur, quid sit id de quo disputetur
M. TVLLI CICERONIS DE OFFICIIS LIBER PRIMVS
Every systematic development of any subject ought to begin with a definition, so that everyone may understand what the discussion is about
Marcus Tullius Cicero (196BC - 36BC), De Officiis, Book 1, Moral Goodness
So why do we start projects in the absence of clear and concise measures of DONE?
The Work Breakdown Structure
- Work: "Sustained physical or mental effort to overcome obstacles and obtain an objective result; a specific product, component, activity, duty, function, or assignment often being a part of a larger undertaking ..."
- Breakdown: "to divide into parts or categories; to separate into simpler substances; to undergo decomposition."
- Structure: "something arranges in a definite pattern of organization"
What does done look like?
Look at the Work Breakdown Structure. This WBS doesn't have to be a formal tree structured representation. But you need to have some representation of the components, the relationships, and a description of the tangible evidence that they are "DONE."
