ACHIEVING THE RIGHT BALANCE BETWEEN PROCESS MATURITY AND PERFORMANCE

The Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI®) for Development Version 1.2, which integrates bodies of knowledge that are essential for development and maintenance, has become the de facto standard in the world for organizations developing products and providing services relying heavily on technology. Organizations have come to recognize that in order to survive and to grow, they need to demonstrate to their clients that they are among the best. If not, they run the chance of becoming the next outsourcing statistic. Likewise, organizations in developing countries in Asia, South America and Eastern Europe that provide outsourcing services also need to demonstrate to their clients in North America and Europe that they are among the best in the world, in order to benefit from outsourcing opportunities. This paper summarizes observations made in the course of 58 assessments in based on the CMMI and on its predecessor, the CMM. It stresses, among other things, the challenges faced by these organizations in optimizing ways to improve the quality of their products and services using the CMMI as a starting point