Capability Maturity Model Level 2 (CMM2)

The Capability Maturity Model for Software (also known as the CMM and SW-CMM) has been a model used by many organizations to identify best practices useful in helping them increase the maturity of their processes. Essentially, the CMM model can be broken down into five levels or stages that organizations will go through as they optimize their processes and best practices.

Process Areas By Maturity Level:

Level 1-2 (Repeatable)

• Configuration Management
  
• Quality Assurance
  
• Subcontract Management
  
• Project Tracking and Oversight
  
• Subcontract Management
  
• Project Planning
  
• Requirements Management

Level 3 (Defined)

• Peer Reviews
  
• Intergroup Coordination
  
• Product Engineering
  
• Integrated Software Management
  
• Training Program
  
• Organization Process Definition
  
• Organizational Process Focus

Level 4 (Managed)

• Quality Management
  
• Process Measurement and Analysis

Level 5 (Optimizing)

• Process Change Management
  
• Technology Change Management
  
• Defect Prevention
  

The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) is a government run organization that originally established the CMM2 model. They also define the strict assessment method by which an authorized assessor rates how well a company satisfies requirements at each level.

Level One:
At the first level, the organization typically does not provide a stable environment for developing and maintaining software. This leads to an organization that is unable to meet deadlines and commitments. If the organization does have success, it will be because of an exceptional team member or manager. Thus, this success is not repeatable without the same competent and exceptional team members being assigned to the next project. During a crisis, this type of organization will frequently abandon procedures and reverts to an ad-hoc method of coding and testing.

Level Two: Repeatable
At this level, projects are implemented according to well defined, documented, trained, measured, enforceable, and improvable processes. A level two organization will have a team that has been trained and will assign a full time coach. The practices and procedures are measured and enforceable according to pre-defined metrics and are improvable. Costs, schedules, and functionality issues are also identified and tracked

Level Three: Defined
At the third level, the organization’s processes are clear, integrated, and well defined within the software engineering and management teams. The metrics for this stage include readiness criteria, completion criteria, and verification mechanisms Because the processes are well defined and measurable, the management team will have good insight into the technical progress of the project.

Level Four: Managed
At this level the organization will comply with all the previous requirements as well as setting quantitative quality goals for both the software products and the software processes. Quality goals for products are set by functional tests and complete adherence is necessary.

Level Five: Optimizing
Software teams within organizations operating at this level will be analyzing defects quite carefully. This will allow them to both determine their causes and prevent them from reoccurring. Organizations in Level Five will sometimes implement tests that will display the defect and then fix the software so that the test runs.

For more information about CSOFT's use of the CMM2 model, please click here.