The Capability Maturity Model: Guidelines for Improving the Software Process / Edition 1

by Carnegie Mellon Univ., Software Engineering Inst., Software Engineering Institute Staff

Overview

Principal Contributors and Editors:
Mark C. Paulk, Charles V. Weber, Bill Curtis, Mary Beth Chrissis

'In every sense, the CMM represents the best thinking in the field today... this book is targeted at anyone involved in improving the software process, including members of assessment or evaluation teams, members of software engineering process groups, software managers, and software practitioners...' From the Foreword by Watts Humphrey

The Capability Maturity Model for Software (CMM) is a framework that demonstrates the key elements of an effective software process. The CMM describes an evolutionary improvement path for software development from an ad hoc, immature process to a mature, disciplined process, in a path laid out in five levels. When using the CMM, software professionals in government and industry can develop and improve their ability to identify, adopt, and use sound management and technical practices for delivering quality software on schedule and at a reasonable cost.

This book provides a description and technical overview of the CMM, along with guidelines for improving software process management overall. It is a sequel to Watts Humphrey's important work,Managing the Software Process,in that it structures the maturity framework presented in that book more formally.

Features:

• Compares the CMM with ISO 9001
• Provides an overview of ISO's SPICE project, which is developing international standards for software process improvement and capability determination
• Presents a case study of IBM Houston's Space Shuttle project, which is frequently referred to as being at Level 5

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Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780201546644
Publisher:	Addison-Wesley
Publication date:	10/01/1995
Series:	SEI Series in Software Engineering Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	464
Product dimensions:	6.57(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.98(d)

About the Author

About Software Engineering Institute

The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University provides leadership in advancing the state of the practice of software engineering to improve the quality of systems that depend on software. The guidelines described in this book were developed at the SEI. The CMM comprises one of the SEI's best known products, a software process framework that continues to have a significant effect on the work of the software engineering community worldwide.

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Read an Excerpt

The Capability Maturity Model for Software is one of the best known products of the Software Engineering Institute. Thousands of copies of the two technical reports that comprise the CMM Paulk93a, Paulk93b have been distributed around the world. The CMM and related process products are having a significant impact on the software community, as evidenced by the current international standards effort on software process described in Appendix G.

This book integrates and elaborates the description of the CMM and how to interpret its practices. It contains the text of the key practices from Paulk93b verbatim, except for a few minor grammatical corrections listed in Appendix H.

The authors have added the following material:

• A case study of IBM Houston's Space Shuttle project, which is frequently referred to as being at Level 5 (Chapter 6)
• Mapping between the key practices and the goals of the key process areas (Appendix E)
• A comparison of ISO 9001 and the CMM (Appendix F)
• An overview of ISO's SPICE project, which is developing international standards for software process improvement and capability determination (Appendix G)

The book is divided into two main parts. The first part consists of the chapters describing the evolution of the CMM, the concepts of software process maturity, the structure of the model, how to interpret and use the CMM, and the case study of IBM Houston. The second part consists of the key practices of the CMM, which describes the software management engineering practices of a maturing software process. Also included are a number of appendices that provide useful reference material.

This book is targeted at anyone involved in improving the software process, including members of appraisal teams, members of software engineering process groups, software managers, and software practitioners. It complements Humphrey's Managing the Software Process by formalizing the maturity framework described in that book.

This book does not describe all of the work being done by the SEI's Software Process Program. In particular, the SEI's work on software process definition, measurement, and organizational change may be of value to individuals working to improve the software process. For further information regarding the SEI, the CMM, or its associated products, contact:

SEI Customer Relations Software Engineering Institute Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E mail:[e-mail]

The CMM is a living document, shaped by the needs of the software community. The SEI solicits feedback from our customers. Instructions for requesting changes to the CMM and a form for doing so are contained in Appendix I.

Table of Contents

I. THE CAPABILITY MATURITY MODEL FOR SOFTWARE: BACKGROUND, CONCEPTS, STRUCTURES AND USAGE.

1. Introducing Software Process Maturity.

The Evolution of the CMM.

Immature versus Mature Software Organizations.

Fundamental Concepts Underlying Process Maturity.

Total Quality Management and the CMM.

Customer Satisfaction.

Benefits and Risks of Model-Based Improvement.

2. The Software Process Maturity Framework.

Behavioral Characterization of the Maturity Levels.

Skipping Maturity Levels.

Visibility into the Software Process.

Prediction of Performance.

3. The Structure of the Capability Maturity Model.

Internal Structure of the Maturity Levels .

Maturity Levels.

Key Process Areas.

Key Practices.

Common Features.

4. Interpreting the CMM.

Interpreting the Key Practices.

The Key Process Area Template.

Interpreting the Common Features.

Organizational Structure and Roles.

Understanding Software Process Definition.

The Evolution of Processes.

Applying Professional Judgment.

5. Using the CMM.

A CMM-Based Appraisal Method.

Process Assessments and Capability Evaluation.

Software Process Improvement.

Using the CMM in Context.

6. A High-Maturity Example: Space Shuttle Onboard Software.

Introduction.

Background.

Approaches to Process Improvement.

Overall Lessons.

II. THE KEY PRACTICES OF THE CAPABILITY MATURITY MODEL FOR SOFTWARE.

7. The Key Areas for Level 2: Repeatable.

Requirements Management.

Software Project Planning.

Software Project Tracking and Oversight.

Software Subcontract Management.

Software Quality Assurance.

Software Configuration Management.

8. The Key Process Areas for Level 3: Defined.

Organization Process Focus.

Organization Process Definition.

Training Program.

Integrated Software Management.

Software Product Engineering.

Intergroup Coordination.

Peer Reviews.

9. The Key Process Areas for Level 4: Managed.

Quantitative Process Management.

Software Quality Management.

10. The Key Process Areas for Level 5:Optimizing.

Defect Prevention.

Technology Change Management.

Process Change Management.

Appendix A: References.

Appendix B: Acronyms.

Appendix C: Glossary.

Appendix D: Abridged Version of the Key Practices.

Appendix E: Mapping the Key Practices to Goals.

Appendix F: Comparing ISO 9001 and the CMM.

Appendix G: An Overview of ISO's SPICE Project.

Appendix H: Change History of the CMM.

Appendix I: Change Request Form.

Index. 0201546647T04062001

Preface

The Capability Maturity Model for Software is one of the best known products of the Software Engineering Institute. Thousands of copies of the two technical reports that comprise the CMM Paulk93a, Paulk93b have been distributed around the world. The CMM and related process products are having a significant impact on the software community, as evidenced by the current international standards effort on software process described in Appendix G.

This book integrates and elaborates the description of the CMM and how to interpret its practices. It contains the text of the key practices from Paulk93b verbatim, except for a few minor grammatical corrections listed in Appendix H.

The authors have added the following material:

• A case study of IBM Houston's Space Shuttle project, which is frequently referred to as being at Level 5 (Chapter 6)
• Mapping between the key practices and the goals of the key process areas (Appendix E)
• A comparison of ISO 9001 and the CMM (Appendix F)
• An overview of ISO's SPICE project, which is developing international standards for software process improvement and capability determination (Appendix G)

The book is divided into two main parts. The first part consists of the chapters describing the evolution of the CMM, the concepts of software process maturity, the structure of the model, how to interpret and use the CMM, and the case study of IBM Houston. The second part consists of the key practices of the CMM, which describes the software management engineering practices of a maturing software process. Also included are a number of appendices that provide useful reference material.

This book is targeted at anyone involved in improving the software process, including members of appraisal teams, members of software engineering process groups, software managers, and software practitioners. It complements Humphrey's Managing the Software Process by formalizing the maturity framework described in that book.

This book does not describe all of the work being done by the SEI's Software Process Program. In particular, the SEI's work on software process definition, measurement, and organizational change may be of value to individuals working to improve the software process. For further information regarding the SEI, the CMM, or its associated products, contact:

SEI Customer Relations
Software Engineering Institute
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E mail:[e-mail]

The CMM is a living document, shaped by the needs of the software community. The SEI solicits feedback from our customers. Instructions for requesting changes to the CMM and a form for doing so are contained in Appendix I.

Editorial Reviews

Fatbrain Review

The Capability Maturity Model is a ten-year-defined international development standard to best manage technical, monetary, and staff resources within a defined software development plan. This development plan specifies five levels of project competence, identifying each with a lessons learned from many large scale software projects, and support the International Standards Organization 9000 series quality assurance requirements. The CMM asks questions of projects planners rather than limiting the planner to a methodology, a tool environment, a data scheme, or a customer application. It defines quality factors of design, production, installation, and maintenance of ISO 9001 as well as configuration management, document accounting, software measurement, and interactive tools of ISO 9000-3. The text is divided into two parts. The first part describes the Capability Maturity Model and includes a Spaceshuttle software delivery example. The second part of the book defines key processes that comprise the top four of the five project levels. The appendices give include a list of acronyms, a glossary, a matrix of key software practices within each of the five project levels. A fifth appendix compares the ISO 9001 with the CMM.

The first part of the book describes the evolution of the CMM (Capability Maturity Model), the concepts of software process maturity, the structure of the model, how to interpret and use it, and the case study of IBM Houston. The second part consists of the key practices of the CMM, which describe the software management engineering practices of a maturing software process. Also includes a number of useful appendices. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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