Why did SEI come out with CMMI?
CMMI focuses more completely on the business needs, and it integrates better with the overall organization. At least one major company plans to first move up the old SW-CMM ladder then move to CMMI at Level 5. Is that a good idea? I wouldn’t recommend that. Moving up the maturity levels takes a long time, and there’s a substantial investment. Doing SW-CMM and then moving to CMMI adds cost unnecessarily. What advice would you offer the IT manager just embarking on one of the CMM programs? The first thing I’d strongly recommend is, don’t get hypnotized by a number. The maturity levels are purely for guidance, and they are useful; but if you are focusing on getting to Level 3 or Level 4, you are making a mistake. The focus should be on improving the process in an orderly way. Second lesson, very important — get senior management backing. Without that, this won’t work. Third, make line management responsible. Make bonuses, etc., applicable to line managers as well, not just the CIO. But m
