How does Scrum support CM SP3.2 - Configuration Audits?

Dear Appraiser, I would like to comment on the CM SP 3.2

I learned a lot in your Scrum + CMMI Training presentation and per your suggestion, I've used my imagination to show that during the Demonstration at the end of a sprint, the Product Owner effectively does a FCA (Functional Configuration Audit) by accepting the work that was presented by the Agile team. By accepting the work, I am saying that the Product Owner recognizes that the user story has been completed satisfactorily, and that it has achieved the functional and quality attributes expected at this stage of development.  Is that what the practice is talking about?  Scrum doesn't seem support any type of "configuration audit."

First of all, it's great that you're looking at how Scrum+CMMI can work together.  That's awesome!

Integrity of the code, and of other work products (User Stories, charts, metrics, test results, designs),  is not specifically addressed in Scrum - but that doesn't mean we shouldn't make sure that we're not screwing it up!

As I say in my workshop "CMMI+Scrum Learning Experience" neither Scrum nor CMMI are suicide pacts!  Scrum doesn't address writing code either - are we going to "follow Scrum" and produce no code? Of course not!

The neat thing about CMMI is that it can (and should) be used to IMPROVE the teams who are using Scrum (or any other technique).  Scrum is a minimalist approach to developing products in an iterative and incremental way, but it does not cover everything required to successfully deliver software.  Many of those things exist within CMMI.

The trick it to make it "scrummy."  Iterative, incremental, and lightweight.  Conduct incremental reviews of the status of your baselines - the CMMI might use the language "Configuration Status Accounting" but don't let that scare you.  You can do it incrementally and in a lightweight (and useful) way.  Be creative and let your imagination take over!

Good luck!

 Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, Candidate SCAMPI Appraiser Observer, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations.  Jeff has taught thousands of students and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

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