SEI White Paper: Process Maturity Model

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SEI White Paper Process Maturity Model

• Present by Hui Huang
• November 16, 2000

CMM is Registered in the US Patent and
Trademark Office
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Overview of the article(CMM for Software)

• Overview of CMM
• Background discussion Why CMM is crucial
• Developing History
• Detailed Summary
• Description of Uses for
• Process Improvement
• Evaluation of software supplier
• Pros and Cons
• State of Practices and Future Directions

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Clarification of Terms

• Software process
• Software process capability
• Expected results
• Software process performance
• Actual results
• Software process maturity

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What is CMM ?

• A SEI Patent
• A Five-Level Hierarchical Model
• A set of known GMPs and an improvement strategy
  for building consistent and predictable software
  products

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Why CMM is crucial

• Determine the current process maturity level
• Identify a vital few issues
• Focus on limited set of activities
• Enable steady, continual and lasting gains

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Maturity Levels in CMM
Maturity Level Focus KPAs (e.g.)
5 Optimizing Continue Process Improvement Change Management
4 Managed Product and Process Quality Quality Management
3 Defined Engineering Process Organizational Support Product Engineering
2 Repeatable Project Management Processes SCM, QA/QC
1 Initial Competent People and heroics Competent People and heroics
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Key Process Areas (KPAs)

• Each KPA identifies a cluster of related
  activities that achieve a set of goals considered
  important for process capability
• The path of a key process may differ

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The IDEAL approach to using the CMM

• The five phase of the IDEAL approach
• I Initiating (the groundwork)
• D Diagnosing (the distance to the goal)
• E Establishing ( the plan)
• A Acting (doing the work)
• L Learning (from the experience)
• CMM is part of the IDEAL approach

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Cons

• CMM is Not comprehensive
• non-software disciplines are not addressed
• Counter-argument CMM is deliberately focused on
  software process
• CMM is Difficult to Understand
• The solution is for Large organization
• The maturity levels oversimplifies issues
• The KPAs are static

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Pros

• Normative components are short 18 KPAs and 52
  Goals organized in hierarchical model
• CMM has been reviewed by many software developers
  and has many successful applications
• Training available from SEI and authorized
  distribution partners

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State of the Practices

• In 1989, 90 of the organization assessed are at
  level one and only 1 at level 5
• In 1999, gt70 of the organization assessed are at
  level 4 or 5
• Commercial Users 60
• Government/Military Users 40

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Suggested Reading

• Paulk Mark et al. 1995 The Capability Maturity
  Model Guidance for Improving the Software Process

Questions ?