Software Process Improvement using the
Capability Maturity Model
Kent Johnson

Overview of the Seminar:

A number of organizations have demonstrated that it is possible to increase software process capability through using the Capability Maturity ModelSM (CMM®) to guide their software process improvement program. Consequently, there is a heightened interest in the CMM for software. With this increased interest often comes confusion regarding the model and how best to conduct a process improvement program.

This professional development seminar provides attendees with solid evidence of the success of process improvement, an overview of the CMM, and some insight into the on-going integration activities.

Executives, engineering managers and engineers interested in understanding and improving the software engineering processes in their organizations can all benefit from this seminar. This seminar is particularly suited for decision-makers with a small amount of time to invest in obtaining an overall understanding of the concepts.

Outline:

Learning Objectives:

Students who complete this seminar will be able to:

  1. describe the business case for process improvement
  2. identify the unique aspects of CMM for software
  3. estimate the time and effort needed to improve their organization’s process capability
  4. understand the next step in process improvement
Prior Offerings of the Material:

Materials in this tutorial have been used in numerous workshops and executive level briefing for commercial clients in over a dozen countries. Lessons learned from these client engagements and integration efforts are constantly being used to update and refine the materials.


Kent A. Johnson is the Director of Systems Engineering for TeraQuest, where he provides training, consulting, and assessments for clients working to improve their systems and software development capabilities. He works with clients in a variety of industries world-wide, and he consults on the evolving systems engineering standards.

Kent has more than 20 years experience in development of complex software-intensive systems. He is a former Project Manager of the Process and Methods Program at the Software Productivity Consortium (SPC). While at the SPC he co-authored and led the team that created the software and system development method used by over 800 engineers in a dozen companies for the development of the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter. He is also a co-author of the book Ada 95 Quality and Style. Prior to joining the SPC, Kent was a Senior Engineering Scientist at the Electronics and Space Division of Emerson Electric Company, where he successfully managed the development and integration of several complex software-intensive systems.

Kent is involved with a number of professional organizations and is a past Chairman of the Systems Architecture Working Group of the International Council on Systems Engineering.