New "Introduction to CMMI" Training Class in St. Louis, MO!

Hey Readers,

A new CMMI Training opportunity!

I'll be teaching a brand new "Introduction to CMMI" Training Class in St. Louis, MO September 15th-17th. If you're in the St. Louis, Chicago, or Indianapolis areas and need a CMMI class go to http://www.broadswordsolutions.com/ and sign up!

http://www.broadswordsolutions.com/

Jeff heading to Peru as Keynote Speaker at CMMI Peru!

Dear Readers,

I'll be heading to Lima, Peru next week to be the keynote speaker at the CMMI International Conference Peru Conference on July 23rd. If you're in Lima stop on by!

I'll blog a complete report when it's done!

www.broadswordsolutions.com

I have some general questions about the SCAMPI Appraisal "Final Review."

I frequently browse your blog and always get some real good insights. Thumbs up to you and your team! Further, I am an ATM team member in my company. My question is regarding the final review by the LA. I want to ask that...

1. What part do an ATM team member has to play in the final review? By final review, I assume you mean the "onsite" portion of the appraisal (also known as "Phase 2" in the SCAMPI Method). Every participant on an appraisal team plays an important role and will have responsibilities. Your role and responsibilities will be defined and explained to you during training and included in an Appraisal Plan. In general, you review the evidence, debate it's merit with the other ATMs, and agree upon a characterization (or "grade").

2. They say that our final review would be of 8 days. The first 3 days is some kind of training. is it right? Well that depends. You haven’t mentioned whether you have had any training up to this point. There are 2 types of training that are required before you can participate in an appraisal, the Introduction to CMMI v1.2 (typically a 3 day course) and SCAMPI Team Training V1.2 (typically 1 day). These training courses will answer your questions regarding CMMI and how the appraisal will be run. However, you should have taken these BEFORE the appraisal started. The appraisal team team training should last about two days.

3. if yes then What kind of training it is?

The Introduction to CMMI v1.2 is intended to expose you to the key components of CMMI. This class is required for anyone planning to participate on a SCAMPI Appraisal team.

The SCAMPI Team Training prepares you to be team members on an appraisal team. The course objectives include preparing students to effectively participate as team members, understanding how to support the appraisal plan goals and objectives, objective evidence data collection, data consolidation and ratings. This course includes portions of a guided case study to simulate activities in actual appraisal. The interactive lectures and exercises use a simulated appraisal and Appraisal Wizard® to further facilitate the learning experience.

4. For the rest of the 5 days, LA will interview and check the documents or the ATM will do this? The entire appraisal team is involved with interviews and checking documents. There are several different ways this could work depending on the size of the appraisal team. Typically the appraisal team is broken down into mini-teams that will address sets of project data during the appraisal either at the project level or by process area. Mini-teams are tasked with collection and verification of objective evidence, participating in interviews, and providing initial characterizations. As for interviews, as an ATM you will most likely participate in several but possibly not all interviews.

5. Do the LA interview the ATM team members? If yes then could you please give an idea that what areas we would be asked?

No, the LA will not interview the ATM’s. During an appraisal, interviews are conducted with the projects involved as well as Functional Area Representatives (FAR). Project interviews are for project managers (and any other team members if necessary) and specific questions are asked that focus on the project and all process areas under the appraisal. The specific responses are to verify process adaptation at the project level. FAR interviews are designed for a specific role, such as Project Manager, Line Manager, Sponsor, etc… These interviews include broad questions focused on roles and associated responsibilities. The general responses are not project specific, but are meant to verify process adaptation at the organizational level.

Good luck and have fun!

www.broadswordsolutions.com

If a supplier has achieved ML3 will they do ML3 work if we hire them?

Dear Appraiser,

I read this article written from a Navy expert and wanted to clarify the statement with you.

In the article, the author wrote "A supplier claiming to be Level 3 is no guarantee that the project within the supplier's organization is following the organization's processes. The only way an acquirer has to determine that the people actually doing the work are following mature process is to do a SCAMPI "B" or "C" assessment of the supplier. From the acquirer's perspective, SCAMPIs are used as a risk identification and mitigation tool, so they must be performed on the groups doing the acquirer's work."

So does this mean that just because an organization has a CMMI Level 3 certification does NOT necessarily mean they are doing CMMI Level 3 work. The SCAMPI process is to be an additional safeguard to ensure that they are?

Excellent question!

The answer is maybe….

I'll stick to the mechanics and ASSUME that any supplier is acting in good faith and embracing the processes they have demonstrated in their appraisal (with tongue firmly planted in my cheek.....).

When an appraisal is performed an “organizational unit,” or “OU” is defined. The OU is usually defined as a department, a location, a program, or some other logical (and credible) segmentation of the organization. The CMMI appraisal is conducted ONLY on the projects within the OU.

So, for example, if a company, in collaboration with the Lead Appraiser, defines their OU as the “Federal Government Business Unit” and they achieve ML3, it means that ONLY the projects who work in that business unit have achieved it, and any other projects outside of that OU have not.

In your scenario, if the supplier is claiming to be ML3, it’s only relevant to you if you are doing business with the same “OU” that was appraised, and only if that appraisal was conducted within the valid time period of three years.

There is often a lot of marketing hype around CMMI, with many offshore companies touting their ML5 credentials. Not that I would every question their credibility..... All I can say is “buyer beware.”

If you want CMMI ML3 performance, then you are entitled to insist that a current appraisal be performed against the actual team doing the work, especially if their OU differs from the one that achieved ML3.

A SCAMPI “B” would do nicely.

www.broadswordsolutions.com

Are Practices really "expected?" They really mean "required" don't they?

There often seems to be heavy debate about the implementation of Specific Practices. I know the model says they’re Expected, but aren’t they really required? Kind of like when your boss says “I expect you to have this done Monday morning,” he really means “I require you to…”

I’m just not sure how else you could satisfy a Specific or Generic Goal without doing the Practices. I was also told by a very seasoned SEI employee (teacher and certified high maturity lead appraiser) that he had never seen an “Alternative Practice” used to complete an SP. For example, is there any way we would complete the Requirements Management PA if we didn’t do bi-directional traceability or have a change proposal process? Could we pass Configuration Management without keeping CM records or performing CM audits?

We’re young in our CMMI deployment so I’m trying to set the expectation now as to what we really need to be doing. Thank you very much for your help and clarification.

I expect you to follow my advice…. Unless you have a better idea!

Seriously, it’s a great question. I interpret the “practices are expected” statement a little differently than you though.

In the CMMI model Goals are “Required” – no exceptions! Well….wait, except SG2 in OPD and SG3 in IPM (IPPD) . . .and both Goals in SAM if…. don’t get me started J

The practices are what the authors of the model “expect” you to do to achieve the goal – but they wanted to leave the door open for things they didn’t consider. If you were to ask a seasoned SEI employee (and a HMLA at that) about what things they didn’t consider, they might answer “nothing” – but on the other hand, they’re not practitioners they’re researchers. But they did want to leave open the possibility of “alternative practices” to satisfy the goals – so that’s the reason for the language.

Now, getting a lead appraiser to pay attention long enough to be properly educated on your alternative to the practices under a goal may be harder than it sounds…. but that’s another rant.

Someone told you none exist? Hogwash. Examples? Sure, here are some. TS.SP1.1/SP1.2 and practices in SAM and DAR all address decision making for the purpose of selecting technology or suppliers right? But what if your customer MANDATES a supplier? Or what if your company buys a product line from another company and you are obligated to use the same platform and development tools? Are you going to “select alternative solutions or “select suppliers?” Probably not. Those are both “alternatives.”

You’d be amazed at the useless work some companies perform just to be “compliant” when it makes no business sense. Dumb.

Do yourself a favor. Stop worrying about compliance. Worry about how to become a great company . . . .then if there are any gaps (there won’t be many) fill them in using the lightest process you can. And then find a Lead Appraiser who gets it and is willing to work hard to understand your business enough to fairly appraise you.

So, back to my first sentence. I expect you to follow my advice, unless you have a better way to achieve your goal!

What Process Areas have to be Capability Level 4 for us to be Maturity Level 4?

Dear Appraiser,

I have a few questions to ask you about CMMI. These questions came up during my lectures and I would like to confirm them with you.

1) For Maturity Level 4, which PAs need to have Capability Level 4?

None. To achieve a maturity level all PAs in ML2/ML3/ML4 must be at least Capability Level 3 and the PAs in ML4 must be applied to a business-appropriate set of sub-processes. Using the staged representation GG4 does not exist - only GG2 and GG3.

2) For Maturity Level 5, which PAs need to have Capability Level 5?

uhh....again, none. Using the staged representation PAs must only have GG2 and GG3 applied to them (equivalent to Capability Level 2/3). But GG4/GG5 are not required as they are redundant to the PAs in ML4.

Please tell me you're not lecturing about CMMI.....

www.broadswordsolutions.com

Can any Process Areas in CMMI-DEV be skipped?

For Maturity Level 2, 7 PAs must be appraised. What if the company does not need SAM, does it still need to implement the SAM or not? How about the other 6 PAs, can any of them be skipped?

I had a client once that told me that they "didn't plan" so Project Planning was "not applicable" for them. That's a true story!

Supplier Agreement Management (SAM) is the only process area that MAY be deemed "not applicable" if the company truly has no need for it - in other words they do not use both external or internal suppliers. NO OTHER PROCESS AREAS CAN BE "NOT APPLICABLE!"

And even SAM requires that you and your Lead Appraiser agree on its applicability.

Have at it!

www.broadswordsolutions.com

Do you need an Intro to CMMI Class?

Good morning readers,

If you are going to be an Appraisal Team Member and need CMMI Training (Introduction to CMMI class) we have a few seats available in our May class. http://www.broadswordsolutions.com

If we roll out our processes to another part of our company will they then be Maturity Level Two like us?

If we roll out our CMMI process to another site within the company and they begin using it "as is" are they then certified under out CMMI Level?

If not, what steps are required to get them certified?

When an appraisal is planned and submitted to the SEI an "organizational
unit" is defined. That means that the group at your site(s) within that unit ("software," "Java Projects"...etc) can claim to be CMMI ML2. So if the other group consists of some teams in
the same location, or in the same "unit," then yes, you could "claim" to me CMMI ML2 . But if they were, for instance, at another site, or something other than the organizational unit, you would not.

If you wanted another site or group to be ML2 you could save a tremendous amount of
time and money by having them adopt your processes - then you could simply
have an appraisal conducted either on that site, or on both your sites
together. But beware . . . it aint so easy to deploy processes that other people use.

www.broadswordsolutions.com

I've been tagged with leading our company's CMMI effort - where do I start?

I just got the good news - a big promotion to drive our company's effort towards CMMI ML2. Where should I start?

Great question.

Assuming you have not already done so, try to locate an offering of the SEI's NEW CLASS "CMMI ML2 for Practitioners." This class is new, and may not be available everywhere, but is more focused than the traditional "Introduction to CMMI" course, which is also a great course to take, but is broader than what you need.

You could also read any of the great books by James Persse or Michael West, especially Michael's "Real Process Improvement with the CMMI."

Other than that, read every post on this blog, and check out the SEI's web site at www.sei.cmu.edu/CMMI for papers and presentations.

And get yourself a good, solid CMMI Consultant - make sure he/she is a Lead Appraiser or CMMI Instructor that has been CERTIFIED (not authorized) by the SEI.

www.broadswordsolutions.com

Can software itself ever be assessed at a CMMI Maturity Level?

I understand a software development organization can be CMMI accessed
at various levels, but software is not said to be CMMI accessed correct?

CMMI is a set of processes which guide the organization, but not the resulting software.


I often hear of companies proclaiming that their software is "CMMI Level x Compliant." I just had a company tell me that they methodology, which was for sale, was "CMMI Maturity Level 5." Both of these characterizations are misleading.

You are correct - an organization is the target of an appraisal, not the software or the methods used to develop it.

To your last point, that CMMI is a set of processes, I will have to disagree. The CMMI is a model that serves as a set of requirements (or a framework) that you would use to develop your process. Using it as a process would be a disaster.

Good luck!

www.broadswordsolutions.com

Why do we need to produce "indirect evidence" for an appraisal?

I'm a software manger that is leading a team being appraised for CMMI. Today one of my developers asked my why we needed to produce an "indirect" piece of evidence for each practice in the appraisal. We produced the direct for our Lead Appraiser - what, don't you trust us?

Ahhhh…. I love this question! No worries – many incredibly smart people struggle with the logic of this one, so you’re in good company! And yea, we trust you . . .trust by verify comrade.....

I like to say that the “Directs” are the least important thing in the model, with indirect evidence and the GPs being the most important things.

The indirect evidence (or affirmation) are the only thing that indicates that a process was actually followed to produce the end result (the “Direct”).

For instance, let’s say an ATM is reviewing an estimating worksheet. It has all the attributes required of the direct. It has sizing, counts of requirements, test, functions, etc. It takes into consideration all of the phases of the lifecycle, it was approved, and signed off on. All in all, one FINE direct. A chip off the ‘ol “CMMI block." Fully Implemented, right? Whooooaaa! Hold on a second there big fella!

Did some developer just sit at her desk and plug these numbers in? Did the approver actually look at it before their admin signed it with his signature stamp? Was it peer reviewed? Hell, is this even REALLY an estimate from the project being appraised?

Hmmmmm, vewwwy twicky qwestions. We need some other method to increase the odds that we’re right when we make all those assumptions and lay a big, fat “FI” on them. Ah ha! Bring on the indirects!

That’s what I would say . . just like that J

www.broadswordsolutions.com

What is CMMI Certification?

What is CMMI Certification? Please give details.


What a great question!

Sometimes we get so buried in process areas, practices, and software process improvement that we forget that there are new people coming into the fold everyday. Thanks!

To begin with, the SEI discourages the word "certification" and instead likes us to refer to a company as having "achieved CMMI Level 2" (or 3/4/5). Organizations achieve CMMI, people do not. Many people use to the word "certification" so you often see it in the metatags of sites (like this one, Broadsword's, and the SEI's). You "achieve" a level of CMMI by building, deploying, and managing a process within your engineering and project management organizations that refelects the best-practices identified in the process areas of the CMMI model, and then, once institutionalization is apparent, having an SEI authorized SCAMPI Lead Appraiser lead you through a SCAMPI Appraisal.

Depending on the appraisal type you select, it will result in either a gap analysis or a set of formal findings that identify your company as having achieved (or not achieved) Level X. You can visit our website at hppt://www.broadswordsolutions.com/resources.php to learn more or go the the SEI's site at http://www.sei.cmu.edu/CMMI. Wikipedia also has a good description of the CMMI as well.

What electronics engineering, software engineering/software development trade magazines do you read?

Dear Readers:

AskTheCMMIAppraiser has been asked to write articles for a number of trade magazines, but before we do we want to hear from you on YOUR favorite engineering, software engineering, electronics, software development, or technology trade magazines. We want to hear straight from you, the professionals, so please leave a comment with your favorite. Thanks!

Do we need a policy for each Generic Practice?

Should policies (Gp2.1) address every Generic Practice (Gp2.1-GP2.10) in a given Process Area?

Hold on a second while I consult my 3725 page policy manual . . . hmmm here it is, policy number 1634111a.7....

I don't mean to make fun of your question, but its circular nature sure gave me a headache!

The purpose of GP2.1 "Establish an organizational policy" is to set the expectation that the processes that are adopted by the organization are to be used. If you have a mature, self-disciplined organization then maybe something very limited is all that is necessary. We test this on appraisals by asking people how they know they're supposed to use a certain process. There answer SHOULD be that management has set that expectation in some way. Sometimes for a less mature organization more detail is needed, but if they need a policy for each practice then you have bigger problems!

GP2.1 i specific to a process area - not the practices in the process area. Sure, we test the institutionalization of a process at the practice level, but it is almost never performed at the practice level. A Process may have practices from many different PA's represented in it, so it's a little tough to set the expectation that a specific practice be performed in a vacuum.

And, since most of the GPs are mirrors of the PAs anyway (GP2.2-2.4 is like PP, GP2.6 is iike CM, GP2.8 is like PMC, etc) then does it really make sense to have policies for each GP?

There is no requirement for this level of granularity in the CMMI - and if it doesn't make sense for your business then there is no reason to do it.

That's what I think. Good luck!

www.broadswordsolutions.com

I don't understand CMMI Certification. Can you clear it up?

I am preparing a presentation on CMMI but I am a bit confused about CMMI certification. I know for example that a person can have a Prince2 certification, but I do not know if there is an equivalent for people on CMMI, about certifications. Indeed, I have read on the internet that a CMMI certification is gained by a company (and not by a person like Prince 2). Is a "CMMI Appraiser" someone who has that "certification"? Is it then obtained by level? What is his role?

 

It is a company (or part of a company) that achieves a CMMI Maturity Level, not an individual. So, for example, XYZ Company is CMMI Maturity Level Three. A "Certified Lead Appraiser" is an individual who is authorized to conduct a CMMI (SCAMPI) Appraisal and award a Maturity Level to a company. This person has been through extensive training, has decades of experience, has passed both written and verbal exams at the SEI, works for an SEI Partner, and pays annual license fees. Hope this helps.