| The Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) is | | | | the company and its resources. You are also able |
| a tool that is used to measure the maturity of a | | | | to manage the growth of your company more |
| software development company's processes, to | | | | seamlessly, as new staff are easily trained and |
| see how well a company can deliver on a project. | | | | integrated into the smoothly running machine that |
| A software development process is made up | | | | is your company. |
| skills, tools and the procedure who develop a | | | | However, a CMMI rating is up for renewal in three |
| product or service. A good process has the skilled | | | | years. This ensures that a high level of quality |
| people required to do the job, the software | | | | processes is maintained even as the company |
| development tools, and good procedures that are | | | | grows and staff move on to other opportunities. |
| easily repeable to bring out products or servics or | | | | 5. Get into the game |
| services of the same high quality. | | | | Increasingly, large corporations and government |
| Companies that have high quality processes have | | | | institutions worldwide are making a high CMMI |
| a high rating of 5, while those who perform under | | | | rating a requirement to qualify to tender for the |
| par have a rating of 1. | | | | software development/upgrade business. |
| The CMMI model was developed at the Software | | | | It's not even about winning the tender. It's more |
| Engineering Institute of Carnegie Mellon in the US. | | | | about being allowed to play the game in the first |
| SEI's Programme manager Mike Phillips says the | | | | place. |
| use of CMMI is not limited to the software | | | | 6. Demonstrate your company is most likely to |
| development sector. A similar system is being | | | | succeed |
| developed for the manufacturing industry, he | | | | Barry Dwolatzky, director of the Joburg School of |
| says. | | | | Software Engineering at Wits University in South |
| So why should you consider using CMMI to | | | | Africa cites a recent Standish Group study which |
| measure your company's performance? | | | | says 65% of large-scale software development |
| 1. Learn how efficient your processes are | | | | projects fail. |
| Introducing CMMI into your company's operations | | | | So, government institutions and large corporations |
| will help you find out how efficient your processes | | | | use CMMI to determine how successful the |
| and which areas you need to beef up as things | | | | contract bidders have been in the past, helping |
| are prone to go wrong when your company is | | | | them minimize the risk of failure by hiring the |
| engaged in development projects. | | | | candidate most likely to deliver the project on |
| 2. Get in line with international trends | | | | deadline, on budget. |
| CMMI is increasingly being used to improve | | | | 7. Attract global business |
| processes in the software development industry. | | | | Nidhi Srivastava, a director of India's Tata |
| 3. Improve the quality of your products | | | | Consulting Service's North American operations |
| Dimension Data chairman for the EMEA region | | | | says delivering to best practice standards, as |
| Andile Ngcaba says quality of the product/ | | | | measured using CMMI, ITIL, Six Sigma, |
| service is strongly dependent on the quality of the | | | | contributed strongly to India's growth as a |
| processes followed. The better the process, the | | | | favored global IT outsourcing destination. |
| better the product/ service, he says. One of the | | | | The Indian IT seeing an average annual growth of |
| accepted ways to measure the quality of | | | | 28%, with over 255 Fortune 500 companies |
| processes is CMMI. | | | | served by the Indian IT industry, he says. |
| 4. Improve the way your teams work | | | | India has over 70 companies with a top CMMI |
| When processes are of a high-quality, you are | | | | rating of 5, with more than 45% of CMMI |
| able to take on more jobs and guarantee a | | | | maturity level 5 assessed companies are from |
| certain level of service or quality without stressing | | | | India, he says. |