Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Have a Happy CMMI New Year!

Dear Readers,

We want to take this time to wish each and every one of you a happy and prosperous 2016!

Thank you for being one of the 350,000 readers of "Ask the CMMI Appraiser.  And thank you for your passion for learning new ways to get better.  Whether that means better software, better finance, better product development, better marketing or HR, you’re always ready to learn how taking a lighter, leaner approach to performance improvement can help you make immediate, lasting improvements in your company. You've worked hard to prepare your organization to be wildly successful, and it's time to celebrate!


Our pledge for 2016 is to continue to bring you strategies, tips and techniques for CMMI, Agile and performance improvement to help you be even more successful.

After all, life is a journey.  Make it a great one for your organization by setting the right goals and objectives, and by continually asking the right questions. With learning as your goal, you’ll stay on the path to greatness and increase your capability to become wildly successful in 2016 and beyond.

And THAT'S a New Year's resolution worth keeping!

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

Monday, December 21, 2015

Wishing You a Happy CMMI!

Dear Readers,

In this time of joy and reflection, this CMMI Appraiser is grateful for those who see our blog as a source of ideas for practical, agile, incremental ways to make their companies better, using the CMMI as one of the tools that can help. We welcomed our 300,000th visitor to the blog this year, and feel privileged to be traveling the “path to greatness” with you.

To show our appreciation, we have something for you.


Please accept as a token of our appreciation a FREE copy of our holiday classic, “CMMI for Executives: The 12 Days of CMMI”. This eBook takes you, as the leader of your organization, on a twelve-day celebration designed to show you the good times of CMMI, so you can help your organization be a great organization by adopting one Generic Practice (GP) per day.

Click here and enter our "Premium Content" section to download your FREE copy of “CMMI for Executives: The 12 Days of CMMI”.

The holidays are a wonderful time of year for parties and exchanging gifts. But every day is a holiday when you see the CMMI as we see it - as an ongoing celebration, a model for being joyful in the quest for becoming a great company.

So click and download the FREE eBook for yourself, or send it along to that special engineering or software professional on your list.

Have a happy CMMI!

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

Monday, December 14, 2015

What is the Capability Challenge?

Dear Readers, below is an excerpt from my recent interview with celebrating podcaster Tom Cagley of SPaMCAST, to let folks know about the CMMI Institute’s Capability Counts 2016 ongoing webinar series. Enjoy! ~ the CMMI Appraiser

Jeff, what is the Capability Challenge and how did it come about?

Well, Tom, it’s great to talk to you again. I was thinking that you and I have done online interviews many times, and have only met in person once. It’s nice to see you again in this virtual way.

The Capability Challenge was an idea that came up when we were doing some work at the CMMI Institute, planning for the Capability Counts 2016 conference, which takes place in Annapolis, MD on May 10-12, 2016.


Register for Capability Counts 2016 by March 11, 2016 and save $200.

The way it came about was, we started with a question: How could we give everyone in the industry access to the some of the many, many great stories out there, so that they can learn from them, and grow?

We thought, you know something, this really would be useful for the industry. So how we could give some of these people a platform to tell their stories? Webinars were a viable option, and so was the stage at Capability Counts 2016. And then we took it to the next level and said, wouldn’t it be fun to have a competition that takes place online AND in person, and is judged by a live audience? That’s how we came up with this idea of the Capability Challenge.

Tom: So how does the Capability Challenge work?

Jeff: On a series of webinars, and finally on stage, in person, people will tell their stories about what they did that was great, what kind of great results they got using the CMMI and other techniques. At the end of each presentation, the audience will vote for the winner. The story that gets the largest percentage of votes on each webinar, wins. So, each of the four webinars will have one victor, and the four of them will have the opportunity to speak in front of the entire capability conference in a plenary presentation. They’ll get to tell their story in front of an audience of government employees, purchasing agents and people that are professions in the process improvement and software and engineering worlds. The audience will vote using their cell phones. And the winner will be announced at the end of the conference as the 2016 Capability Challenge champion.

Tom: What you don't see me doing is rubbing my hands together! Do you see this becoming a little bit of blood sport?

Jeff: (Laughing) Well, you know I haven’t considered that, but would be something if people would get that excited about it.

We really think people will be excited to participate as audience members. The kind of stories being told here are stories of companies that have great cultures and companies that do great things. And, I’ve noticed, companies that do great things want to learn from one another. They don’t want to compete at that level. They want to learn from one another. That’s another great benefit of being a presenter. Some of the winners are going to find out that the other presentations that they were competing against are just as interesting and just as exciting and just as results-oriented as the stories they told. It’s a good opportunity for everybody to learn from everybody else in our community.

Tom: So, if you’ve gotten to this level, you’ve actually done something fantastic within your own company to begin with. When they go head-to-head, that’s when the most different, the most interesting, the best emerges?

Jeff: Yes. Each of the contestants –

Tom: Gladiators. Let’s just call them gladiators. Kidding.

Jeff: Well, we’ll have the world-famous Tom Cagley moderating, and maybe acting as a referee, getting in between all of these people that are competing. Tom, you’re sort of like in the boxing match. You’re keeping people safe as possible, and you’ll be doing it in interview style! That’s the reason we asked you to come. We know you can evoke the best stories from of our contestants. With all of the SPaMCAST interviews you’ve done now, you’re an expert at pulling out information from people.

Tom: Well, I’m going to have fun doing that and I hope everyone else does too!

Jeff: Here's how to join the fun:
 
What:     2016 Capability Challenge Webinar Series: Round 1
When:    December 15th at 11 a.m. EST 
Sign up: Click here

[Check back soon for the next interview excerpt about Capability Counts 2016!]

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

Friday, December 11, 2015

What’s the best approach to process improvement?

Hey, CMMI appraiser, we’re considering adopting CMMI for process improvement, and my boss suggested that we need a CMMI consultant to tell us what to do.  Can you tell us, in your experience as a Lead Appraiser, what’s the best approach to process improvement?  We’re a mid-sized IT company using agile methods. Thanks ~ Tooley C.

Hey, Tooley,

Please tell your boss that it really won’t help for your CMMI consultant to tell you what you should do—that’s not even part of what we do.  We also don’t write a process for you.  It’s not even our responsibility to get you to write a process and propose one and deploy it, although that is useful. No the lasting value any CMMI consultant brings is teaching you to clear your biggest hurdle.

So what’s your biggest hurdle in a successful process improvement program?


For most companies, the biggest hurdle is how you deploy process improvement to the community. In other words, how you get people to embrace it and use it.

The approach my company Broadsword uses has been very successful.  It is an iterative and incremental approach we call agileCMMI, our branded approach.  Here’s how it works:
agileCMMI uses agile methods such as incremental delivery, continuous build, collaboration, etc. It applies the same techniques we use when writing software to deploy process and get people to embrace process.

The purpose of agileCMMI is to help organizations embrace processes successfully.  agileCMMI is an incremental method where we deploy small components of the process in releases over time. For example, we might release two or three sub-processes and test it out, and then once the company has embraced those small, easy to digest, useful things, we’ll give them another set of small, digestible, useful things.

We plan it all out in advance.  You are getting appropriate pieces at the appropriate times. And the reason it works is that’s how we learn. We learn as human beings by digesting things in very small pieces. So when you look at so many process implementations that have failed, you see some commonalities.  Typically the company tried to throw a big binder or a big website at all their employees and said, “This is going to be your new process.”  They were trying to get them to eat an elephant in one bite.

agileCMMI goes about this differently.  We're not going to force you to do anything.  We’re giving people very small components to start working with.  We'll keep feeding them those small bites over time until they have their complete process suite and their process improvement architecture and their methodology and everything they need will be implemented.  Sometimes this will take months.

During that time, you get these things in small, right-sized pieces, so that you can understand them, can put them in context.  Then you can start to embrace them and use them successfully.
Embracing the process is key to overall success.  After all, the best process in the world is useless if you can’t get people to actually embrace it and adopt it.  And until they embrace it and adopt it, you don’t even know if the process you developed is even useful.

That's what agileCMMI is all about, and that's why I would say it is the best approach to process improvement we've used.  It's how we learn.  It’s how we clear our biggest hurdles.

To learn more about combining agile and CMMI, check out our upcoming FREE webinars:

Monday, 12/14: “All About CMMI” -- This is a great place to start. Find out EVERYTHING you need to know about CMMI by signing up for the introductory webinar.

Tuesday, 12/15: “Agile Transformation” – Learn to take advantage of Agile for a lighter, leaner approach to solving business problems incrementally and iteratively.  Check it out!

Wednesday, 12/16: “Scaling and Strengthening Agile" -- By participating in this webinar, you'll come away with an understanding of the work that needs to be done to strengthen Agile in a way that makes sense for your organization, while staying true to Agile methods.

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Announcing the Capability Challenge – Round 1!

Ladies and gentlemen,

Hurry, hurry, hurry! Step right up for the main event! The contestants are entering the ring, and the 2016 Capability Challenge is about to get underway on Tuesday, December 15th at 11 a.m. EST. Register now for the webinar so you can watch the bout, learn from some real-life business success stories, and help choose the winner!


Here’s the scoop on the Capability Challenge. Hosted by the CMMI Institute, and moderated by celebrity podcaster Tom Cagley of SPaMCAST, it’s a contest strictly for successful engineering and software organizations who have agreed to square off against other successful companies to demonstrate how improving capability has brought them business value and superior results. The purpose of the competition is to extend the impact of Capability Counts 2016 conference beyond the physical gathering that takes place in Annapolis, MD on May 10-11, 2016.

What:     2016 Capability Challenge Webinar Series: Round 1
When:    December 15th at 11 a.m. EST
Sign up: Click here


Help us crown the 2016 Capability Challenge Champion. The webinar is informative. It’s free. It’s a whole lot of fun, and it all starts on Tuesday. Be there!

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

What is CMMI and how does it work with Scrum?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, so that I can assess whether there is a fit with our growing, Virginia-based health care technology company, I need to know exactly what the CMMI is. Please tell me what it helps companies do, and how it works with Scrum, if at all. Thank you. ~ Betsy F.

Hey, Betsy, welcome to the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI)! As a certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser who has worked in the industry for many years – including with several health care technology clients – I’m always thrilled when someone new asks about the Model and whether it works with Scrum. There are so many great ways to use CMMI and Scrum together to put your company (and your career) on the path to greatness!


First, practically speaking, there are three things to know about the CMMI. Here’s what CMMI is:

  • The CMMI is a tool to help solve business problems 
  • The CMMI is a framework and set of guidelines for changing behaviors and changing culture
  • The CMMI is a time-tested, industry-proven model for positive outcomes

And here are just six of many things the CMMI helps you do:

  • The CMMI helps you change and improve requirements churn and volatility, so that you can spend less time and money on requirements
  • The CMMI helps you be on-time and on-budget 
  • The CMMI helps you motivate your staff, and make them better at what they do
  • The CMMI helps you understand and deal with risk, before it hurts you 
  • The CMMI helps you avoid having too many meetings, unhappy customers and unpredictable projects 
  • The CMMI allows you to do what you are already doing, better

As to your question about how the CMMI and Scrum work together, the secret of CMMI and Scrum is that they are more alike than they are different. A lot of folks see CMMI and Scrum as polar opposites. But CMMI and Scrum both exist to solve problems. This makes CMMI and Scrum allies, not adversaries.

To learn how to make CMMI and Scrum work for you, check out our upcoming FREE webinars:

Monday, 12/14: “All About CMMI” -- This is a great place to start. Find out EVERYTHING you need to know about CMMI by signing up for the introductory webinar.

Tuesday, 12/15: “Agile Transformation” – Learn to take advantage of Agile for a lighter, leaner approach to solving business problems incrementally and iteratively.  Check it out!

Wednesday, 12/16: “Scaling and Strengthening Agile" -- By participating in this webinar, you'll come away with an understanding of the work that needs to be done to strengthen Agile in a way that makes sense for your organization, while staying true to Agile methods.

We hope to see you on one, two, or all three webinars ... and good luck!

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Friday, December 4, 2015

Don’t miss the December 11th Webinar: “Integrating CMMI, ISO9001 AND A-SPICE”

Dear Readers,

Good news for those who need to know EVERYTHING about integrating CMMI, ISO9001 and A-SPICE! Broadsword is hosting another FREE Webinar on Friday, December 11, 2015 at noon EST, specifically to address your challenges. Click here to join us for “Integrating CMMI, ISO9001 AND A-SPICE.”


From the "Everything You Need to Know" Webinar Series
Integrating CMMI, ISO9001 AND A-SPICE


What would it look like if your company were effectively able to integrate CMMI, ISO9001, A-SPICE and other process models into a single program for performance innovation? Here are some of the benefits:

  • Improve communication between management and engineering
  • Streamline and strengthen the way you do business
  • Have better quality products 

Who should sign up for the webinar? Are you an executive, engineer and/or business professional who is trying to create an environment in which your organization can manage its uniqueness in a structured way, by integrating the frameworks and methodologies you use to do your work? This fast-paced, in-depth webinar shows how to reach these outcomes, and more. Typically those who receive the most value are dealing with the following challenges:

  • You are frustrated by the lack of communication between management and engineering, who use process models that aren’t aligned
  • You are concerned about the widening gap between the “ISO/TS side of the business” and the “CMMI and Auto SPICE side of the business”
  • You are tired of wasting effort by doubling your work – i.e., doing your work in one tool and reporting in another

The great take-away of this webinar is that it helps you learn to see the CMMI as one of the tools that can help drive the transformation of the culture of your company. By aligning the frameworks, models and methodologies you are using, you’ll be improving and changing the way your company behaves, so that you build better products, win new business and retain the customers you have.

So spread the news! And we’ll see you on the webinar.

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.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI program.