Hey Jeff, We're a growing engineering firm in Virginia that is serious about improving our product delivery. We've heard that the CMMI is a model of how great companies perform, and it could really help us, but we don't know much about it. Is there a quick way for us to learn where we stand with the CMMI, and identify places where we could improve? ~Norm
Thanks Norm!
I like the way you're thinking. The CMMI is a great model for "how work gets done" in the best way possible. CMMI is incredibly useful, but it's also quite large and, as you might expect, as complex as your business is (because it's nothing more than a model for how a great business does work).
Ultimately, you will want to engage with Certified Lead Appraiser to conduct an appraisal - it's the only way to really know where you stand. You'll also want to take some CMMI Training. But until you decide to do that, you can take our free "CMMI Micro-Assessment" online here to quickly get some feedback from yours truly, the CMMI Appraiser.
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Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Dear CMMI Appraiser, we are a defense contractor providing command and control systems, information technology, intelligence, engineering and networking professionals worldwide. As we scale, ensuring the success of our processes before we implement them is critical. What method do you recommend? ~ Holland W.
Dear Holland, great question! We agree that organizations need to ensure the success of their processes before they implement them, in order to successfully scale. Allow me to pass your question along to Laura Adkins, a Senior CMMI Consultant with Broadsword, who does amazing work with companies who are piloting processes that are strengthened by the CMMI. Take it away, Laura! ~ The CMMI Appraiser
Holland, we recommend piloting as the method for testing your process to make sure you have it right before deploying it. Projects selected for testing as pilot projects serve as guinea pigs versus those projects that are not tested.
So, what makes a good pilot project? And what should be considered when you are looking to pilot your processes? We recommend that you look at the following aspects of projects that you will select for a pilot project: Size, Complexity, Risk, Project Schedule, and People.
Let’s address these individually:
SIZE: When selecting pilot projects, you will want different sizes – a large project and a small project. You should also consider different project types, such as an Agile team approach versus a Waterfall approach, in your selecting.
COMPLEXITY: You want to look at the level of project complexity, depending on what the process areas are. If the process areas that you are piloting relate to technology or requirements, you are probably going to want to pilot a project that will allow you to fully execute your processes on that particular phase of a project.
RISK: You need to be somewhat practical and avoid projects that have a tight timeframe or budget and therefore won’t have the resources to devote the extra time to piloting the processes. If you know that there are time or budget constraints up front, it’s better to find an alternative.
PROJECT SCHEDULE: When looking for projects to pilot, you need to be sure the project is in the right phase of its current schedule or lifecycle. For example, if a project is nearing close-down, and you are looking to pilot project planning processes, then it wouldn’t make sense to select that one. You need to anticipate what’s coming up, so you can pick wisely. As another example, if you are only pilot testing for 6 weeks, you need to make sure that the pilot project is in the right phase, or will be executing the processes you want to pilot during that six week period. It’s about looking ahead.
PEOPLE: You need to select the right people, those who are willing and open to learning the processes and spending time participating in the process pilot, which helps with overall feedback at the end.
Focus on these criteria, Holland, and you will be sure to select the projects to pilot that will give your organization the most meaningful data as you scale.
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I thought his choice of words was very appropriate. He’s right: I am jazzed! And here’s why.
As I’ve mentioned on this blog before, I started my career journey as a classical musician. Although I ultimatley earned my degree in Computer Science, my first was in Music Performance. Today, while I still love to play music, I spend most of my time working with CMMI and helping companies improve performance. And I also play music semi-professionally whenever I can.
Making music is a wonderful metaphor for building software products.
If you read my article in Cutter IT Journal (download it HERE) you know that my favorite musician is Charlie "Bird" Parker. Bird was widely acclaimed as a genius for his ability to improvise freely with astounding dexterity and technical accuracy. For Bird (and for me) music is about engineering the craft.
Same goes for solving business problems – whether you are designing software, delivering electrical engineering solutions, or producing any other kind of work product. It’s about engineering your work. First, you need to learn the theory and history. Then you need to adhere to some sort of structured discipline (for musicians, it’s music theory and practicing; for engineers, it could be using the guidance provided in the CMMI framework). Then, you need the artistic sensibility to apply your own brand of creativity (your "Way"). Engineering requires a healthy dose of both.
This is the formula for putting yourself on the path to greatness, and no one did it better than Charlie Parker.
Without an understanding of how great accomplishments are achieved, nothing changes. Software projects are late or over-budget. Clients are unhappy. Top talent burns out and leaves. Profits go unrealized, and opportunities are lost.
Same goes for making music. If nothing changes in ones approach to the craft, the audience boos you off the stage, and you may never get booked again.
That’s why I’m “jazzed” about getting this right.
An excellent example of an organization that gets it right is CutTime Productions (www.cuttime.com). Led by former-Detroit Symphony Orchestra bassist Rick Robinson, CutTime Productions is an artistic venture committed to connecting curious but inexperienced music lovers with the beauty and power of classical music in new and innovative ways.
Broadsword has been a supporter of CutTime for some time now. We help them cover the costs of traveling the country and introducing their music and methods nationally. It's rewarding to see them make classical music accessible to a wider range of new listeners, particularly young people.
CutTime has the ability to apply science and discipline, and layer creativity on top of it. In that sense, CutTime Productions does for classical music what Charlie Parker did for Jazz, and what Broadsword does for software engineering.
We support this effort because we love music. We love innovation. But more importantly – and this applies to any organization in any industry – we love to help people apply art and science on the path to greatness.
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Dear CMMI Appraiser, I am part of the management team of an engineering firm in New York that is in high growth mode. We are just starting to research the CMMI and already there are concerns. Does the CMMI require documented processes? ~ Frances V.
Dear Francis, rest assured, the CMMI does not require anything - it's merely a set of guidelines. The CMMI recommends, in CMMI Level 3, that processes be defined at the project level based on a set of standards processes. But what it doesn't ask for is an immense amount of detail. This is one of the great misunderstandings about the CMMI. People often think they have to have "binders full of processes." They tend to treat every project – even projects as small as mapping a desktop computer to a printer – as though they were building a space shuttle.
The good news is, you don’t have to do that. You just have to provide the appropriate level of guidance for your situation. "Space-Shuttle" process is appropriate for the Space Shuttle, but not for building a website.
Engineers are really smart people that don’t always need a step-by-step process for everything, although many people will try to create one anyway.
Ultimately, Frances, adopting the CMMI is all about solving business problems. It’s not about documents. In fact, the more we use the CMMI, and the more we work with companies that are using the CMMI, the more we realize that this is a model that's about how great companies perform.
Once you grasp this distinction, you can take a different approach to the CMMI. You can think of it as a tool that you can use to help define “The Way” you do business.
I'm passionate about encouraging companies to think about establishing “The Way” – as in “The NASA Way” or “The (Insert Your Company Name) Way.” Your “Way” becomes the way you do things as an organization and as a group. You establish your “Way” not to document your processes, and not even to achieve a CMMI Level. You establish your “Way” to consistently be the great company that you are.
The CMMI is the perfect tool to do that. So if you do decide to adopt the CMMI, don't waste time with overly-detailed process documents - make it appropriate for your business.
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Last month my article in, "CMMI vs. Scrum? NO! CMMI + Scrum!" was published in the Cutter IT Journal. It is now available for download to YOU, our loyal readers!
In this article, Jeff Dalton walks us through a fairly thorough application of CMMI in Scrum settings. He further demonstrates an approach to CMMI that is not only compatible with Scrum, but also uses Scrum and agile thinking to facilitate CMMI! It's not merely a matter of such-and-so Scrum practices demonstrating this-or-that CMMI practice -- that would be both easy and disingenuous. Dalton practices what he preaches and would never lead a company down a path that only solves their performance needs once, leaving them with nothing with which to fend for themselves when circumstances change. Instead, he offers us a delightfully simple and robust architecture that we can use to build processes incrementally and iteratively. How agile!
Click on the cover below to download your free copy of this CMMI and Scrum article today - and thank you for reading "Ask the CMMI Appraiser!"
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Hey, CMMI Appraiser, can I earn PDUs in CMMI training? ~ Project Manager
Dear Readers,
When I speak at various process and performance improvement forums around the country, I am often asked by Project Managers if it is possible to earn PDUs (professional development units) by successfully completing CMMI training. The answer is, “Yes … BUT!” Here’s what I mean. CMMI Training can be a valuable experience that also helps you earn PDUs … BUT before you sign up for one, consider the following:
Over the years, I have found that there tend to be three groups of people who ask about earning PDUs by participating in CMMI training:
Those who should PROBABLY NOT participate in CMMI training;
Those who should CONSIDER participating in CMMI training; and
Those who are REQUIRED to participate in CMMI training.
Let’s address them individually.
Who should PROBABLY NOT participate in CMMI training?
Anyone who just wants PDUs to satisfy their PMI requirements, and is not at all interested in continuous improvement (do these people exist?...)
Who should CONSIDER participating in CMMI training?
Keep in mind, even if you are required, the best reason to participate in CMMI training is because you are interested in gaining new insights into addressing persistent problems (like late projects, over-budget projects, unhappy customers, etc., etc., etc.) and improving upon what you are ALREADY doing.
If that's what folks are REALLY after, then my answer is “Yes … AND!”
For example, next month, this CMMI Appraiser is conducting a CMMI training session, in partnership with CC PACE, a leading Agile IT Services firm. Our joint presentation of "Introduction to CMMI-DEV v1.3" takes place in Fairfax, VA, on February 11-13, 2013.
Yes, professionals can earn 21 PDUs (or 2.5 CEUs) by participating in this class, AND our "Introduction to CMMI-DEV v1.3" is designed to help CMMI-focused organizations who are looking for guidance on being lighter and more flexible, as well as Agile shops who are still seeking the kind of results they’ve been hoping for.
It's a long answer to a short question, I know. But CMMI Training is definitely NOT for everyone seeking PDUs!
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Hey, CMMI Appraiser – wouldn’t it be great if we knew what people really think about the CMMI? ~ fellow Lead Appraiser at an SEPG NA conference
Hey, CMMI Users,
Last year, we gratefully acknowledged a milestone here at Ask the CMMI Appraiser when we welcomed our 100,000th visitor. If you were one of them, you know how passionate this CMMI Appraiser is about interacting with users of the CMMI like you. We receive a lot of questions, and always do our best to give a comprehensive response.
But did you know that we also ask a lot of questions? For example, in 2012, my company, Broadsword, commissioned a study to ask CMMI Users what they really thought about the Capability Maturity Model Integration as one of the tools they were using to make themselves better.
We reached out to over 50 companies in industries such as aerospace, defense, finance, transportation, energy, and manufacturing. We spoke with CEOs, VPs, Directors, and Quality Assurance Managers from a wide variety of companies, large and small, who had adopted CMMI-DEV.
The purpose of the study was to understand their perception of the CMMI. Our report includes over 40 quotes from CMMI Users who made poignant observations, such as the following:
“Getting to CMMI Level 3 was extremely difficult because we were not ready to go to Level 3. What we were doing was the equivalent of trying to convince a salmon not to swim upstream. But, to our credit, when the client’s need for us to have the rating went away, our commitment to using the model did not go away.” ~ CMMI User
Well, we had so much fun, we’re doing it again! Only, this time, we’d like to give YOU a chance to share your opinion of the CMMI. In the coming weeks, you will be provided an opportunity to participate in an anonymous survey of CMMI Users.
Our hope in sharing the CMMI User Stories is that, whatever your role with the CMMI, your performance will improve through its adoption, as we all strive for continuous improvement.
So keep asking questions. Keep improving. And we’ll keep sharing valuable information about organizational performance improvement and engineering strategy, using the CMMI as one of the tools that can help put your company on the path to greatness.
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Dear Appraiser, This year I've been working to arrange a CMMI Appraisal at our company. We want to appraise a larger group, so we can get the whole picture, but my boss is pushing back. He says we should just appraise one team, assume everyone else is the rest, and move on from there. That dog don't hunt with me. What say you? ~Leroy
Thanks Leroy - I feel your pain.
We always need to separate "implementation strategy" (i.e.; starting implementation with one unit and expanding it) from "appraisal strategy" (getting a clear picture of organizational strengths and weaknesses). These are two completely different things.
The implementation strategy is like a product development strategy. It will determine what order we implement things in and how they impact one another. Implementing one team at a time makes sense to a point, but not without first understanding the needs of the entire group. But be careful - what's good for software will not all work for systems, hardware, or validation.
Trying to implement something designed for software process improvement in the hardware team will require some amount of process retrofitting - that's the OPPOSITE of what management thinks will happen. Then who do you think will be left cleaning up THAT mess Leroy? Yes... you.
On the other hand, the Appraisal strategy is designed to get a broad understanding of the process needs for the next couple of years. Think of it as strategic requirements gathering. The data generated from the appraisal will tell us what the strengths and weakness of the entire group are, what needs they have in common, and where their differences are. It will give us clues about what order to implement in, how to sequence the processes, and how to resource the work.
The data generated during a CMMI Level 2 Appraisal is largely about project management, measurements, quality, and other "price of admission" capabilities. The data generated during a CMMI Level 3 Appraisal is focused more on engineering and process improvement.
The real problem with an appraisal strategy that only looks at one, and then tries to implement based on the results, is that you will probably implement something that won't be useful to the rest of the company - it will be sub-optimized for the one team. In that scenario the team wins (sort of), but the rest of the team loses . . . and the quality team is left to clean up the mess.
In the end there isn't really much cost difference, so why not just go ahead and do it right?
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Download Jeff's eBooks on Amazon: "How to Spell CMMI!"
Dear CMMI Appraiser – I appreciated your post about a “failure of imagination” being the biggest problem most companies face when adopting the CMMI for their software process improvement program. But now I fear there may be other common problems we don’t know about that will cause headaches this year if we don’t have the foresight to avoid them – please advise. ~ Cynthia S., Quality Assurance Manager
Dear Cynthia, fear not! Unless you suffer from triskaidekaphobia (an irrational dread of the number 13), there is no need to fear the year ahead …
Instead, I encourage you to embrace this year as an opportunity to think about the CMMI as one of the tools that can help you change behaviors and establish the type of environment that can make you a great company.
But I don't want to minimize your concerns about potential pitfalls. In fact, there are many problems that companies commonly experience when adopting the CMMI, often because they have received misinformation from a so-called CMMI consultant from one of the "Appraisal Preparation" companies.
Here is a list of 13 reasons that your CMMI adoption will fail in 2013:
You’ve bought a tool that promises “CMMI compliance in six months or less”
You've hired a "CMMI Preparation" consultant who is helping you "create the evidence"
No one has any idea why you’re “doing CMMI,” but you’re doing it anyway
Two dozen consultants descend on your company to “do CMMI” to you
Your boss keeping uttering the phrase “implementing CMMI”
Your CMMI “consultant” says, “The CMMI makes you do it.”
Your CMMI “consultant” says, “The CMMI Institute makes you do it.”
Two minutes after achieving Level Two, your boss says, “When is Level Three?”
Your boss says, “We need to go right to Level Five (or Four, or Three)
Your boss tells your team to go “get a level” by Tuesday
No one captures data about whether or not your team is benefiting from the CMMI
You blindly follow your parent company’s binder full of processes (we've got "binders full of 'em!")
No one believes that new behaviors can be learned
Many organizations, in their rush to solve these problems, fall victim to them. They get so focused on "CMMI Certification," achieving CMMI Level 2 or CMMI Level 3, they set themselves up for failure.
To assure that 2013 is productive and profitable for you and your team, I encourage you to remember three things about the CMMI:
The CMMI is a time-tested, industry-proven model for positive outcomes
The CMMI is a framework and set of guidelines for changing behaviors and changing culture
The CMMI allows you to do what you are already doing, better – in 2013 and beyond
So go forward with confidence, Cynthia, and made the decision that 2013 will be a lucky year for your CMMI adoption.
Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
Hey, CMMI Appraiser, what's the #1 problem most companies face when adopting the CMMI for their Process Improvement program? ~ Software Engineering Executive, client
Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed in the studio. CMMI-TV is a place where we can add value to the engineering and software development community by offering advice on engineering strategy, performance innovation and software process improvement. Below is a video clip with my answer to a frequently asked question, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!
OVERVIEW
Clients sometimes ask, “What is the #1 thing we have to be worried about, in terms of failing in our project to use processes using the CMMI?”
The #1 thing you have to worry about is a failure of imagination.
WHAT IS A FAILURE OF IMAGINATION?
It is a failure of imagination to take literally what’s in the CMMI Book.
For example: it is a failure of imagination to read that you must “establish a work breakdown structure,” and “establish an organizational policy,” and take those statements literally.
WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE: WITHOUT IMAGINATION
A work breakdown structure is a list of tasks, a list of resources, a list of things that need to be done and the sequence that they need to be done in.
A lot of projects will suffer a failure of imagination, and will put together a massive MS Word Project work plan, with a list of all the tasks, and everything sequenced with predecessors and resources and timelines and all the things associated with a traditional work breakdown structure. And they will never use it.
A work breakdown structure is nothing more than a set of tasks, a set of sequences and a set of resources.
Have some imagination! Why not take a Scrum shop and have a product backlog, a sprint backlog and user stories that are sequenced in some way? The content of those things equals the content of the work breakdown structure.
The imaginative way to use the CMMI is not to emulate what’s in the examples within the CMMI.
The imaginative way to use the CMMI is to take what you are already doing and use the guidance that’s in the CMMI book to make what you are doing better.
If you want to think of ways to make managing your product backlog better, take a look into the Project Planning and Project Monitoring and Controlling sections of the CMMI book, and interpret what’s in that book to fit into your particular context.
ORGANIZATIONAL POLICY: WITHOUT IMAGINATION
Policy is something that tells people what it is that they are supposed to do.
Often, I will walk into a client organization and they will say, “Hey, let me show you our policies!” and they pull a big binder off the shelf, and it’s filled with 22 chapters, each one of the chapters is marked with the name of the Process Area of the CMMI. And there is a bunch of text around these things and how they have to do them if they want to work there. And then, at the very end of the document, there are a bunch of signatures of the managers of the organization.
The problem is, if you talk to people in the organization, they have no idea that that kind of book even exists.
Well, a binder signed by everybody sitting on a dusty shelf doesn’t necessarily set the expectations for the organization.
ORGANIZATIONAL POLICY: WITH IMAGINATION
Policies are nothing more than a set of expectations.
Have some imagination! Imaginative ways to have an organizational policy might include having town hall meetings and team meetings, and talking about the expectations as part of your daily stand-ups. Or maybe having posters around the organization that say, “You must wear your badges,” or “You must do these things in order to work at this establishment.”
There are many different ways to go about setting expectations in the organization, other than what’s literally in the CMMI book that says, “Have a Policy.”
So as you are working through the improvement effort of the organization, make sure that you are doing things in an imaginative way, that make sense for your organization, and not just doing exactly what it says in the book.
ABOUT CMMI-TV: CMMI-TV is a place where we can add value to the engineering and software development community by offering advice on engineering strategy, performance innovation and software process improvement. If you find this useful, please forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!
Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.
