8 Steps to CMMI Implementation

Here are eight steps for easy, common sense, cost effective way to set up the process improvement infrastructure and to implement the CMMI.

1. Let everyone know why you are implementing the CMMI and how important it is to the company. This should be done often and come from senior management – people need to know that senior management supports this.
2. Let employees know how the CMMI will affect them. People get nervous when anything new is to happen within their company. One of the biggest misinterpretations when implementing the CMMI is that people think that they will be told how to do their job – they will have no input on the processes they will be expected to follow.
3. Make the CMMI implementation a project, with a project manager. The CMMI implementation should have resources assigned, a plan, a schedule, and a budget. If the implementation is created and managed as a project, then a successful implementation is more likely.
4. Create an organization process improvement infrastructure. Establishing two groups within your organization is essential to a successful CMMI implementation.
   1. One is a group of persons typically from each department, project, or area; normally managers or leads. Often referred to as the organization process group (OPG), this is the heart of process improvement with the company.
   2. The other group is an executive group typically called the executive steering committee. This group is made up of the sponsor and senior managers and has the responsibility for executive level process improvement decisions, e.g., budget decisions.
5. Define the organization project types. There will be certain project types that are small and which it does not makes sense to have that project follow all CMMI practices. This will need to be defined in the organization policy. There can be several types or categories of projects. Some projects may be very small and should be excluded from following the organization’s standard processes.
6. Benchmark the company’s current processes. Before implementing the CMMI and making changes to your current processes, you need to know how compliant to the CMMI your processes are.
7. Document your processes. The best way to document your processes is to have company teams do. For example, have the designers document the designing processes, the testers document the testing processes, and so on. Be sure to work with a process improvement professional to review the processes your teams document.
8. Have a CMMI Institute-certified lead appraiser help and guide the organization along the way. No one can take the place of a CMMI Institute-certified lead appraiser who has experience implementing the CMMI in a variety of organizations in different industries.