CMMI – “Capability Maturity Models Integration” – the model is recognized internationally as the most important certification for the best practices of software production process, both for its completeness, or by high standards and rigor of his method of evaluation? SCAMPI method? that assigns a classification of the maturity of the practices of the production process at levels 1 to 5, and of these levels, the third is the most currently required by international clients.

The CCG has acted within the Centre of Excellence for Software Industry – CEIS, which is a partnership with ISD Brazil? Integrated Systems Diagnostics Brazil, a company “SEI Partner” (accredited by the Software Engineering Institute) whose specialists, certified by the SEI, joined also by a team of consultants and researchers from the CCG and SEMAG (Software Engineering and Management Group) from the ALGORITMI Research Centre – University of Minho.

Being working for some time in this plan for process improvement, innovation PT requested in the first instance, the CEIS, the official completion of the course “Introduction to CMMI Version 1.2” for 12 of its professionals, but eventually, after completion thereof, to require the support of the CEIS for the provision of other services necessary to achieve the Level 3 CMMI Maturity.

The services provided by CEIS were consulting, training, diagnosis and evaluation officer (SCAMPI Class A) for the award of Level 3 CMMI Maturity Portugal Telecom Innovation. The interventions contemplated two directions of PT Innovation: SSO – Operations Support Systems, and IAD4 – Applied Research and Knowledge Dissemination – Division of Training and eLearning.

The total absence of cultural and linguistic barriers between the consulting team and the company was one of the aspects pointed out by PT Innovation as one of the strengths of this partnership, which contributed decisively to the imposition of a good rate of progress of the work, whose volumeis very significant for the direct taking of Level 3 of CMMI maturity. Indeed, in every interaction, from consulting, training and official CMMI SCAMPI assessments, was conducted in Portuguese, not only determining factor for the correct interpretation of the interaction, but also for the clarity and precision of language essential to many documents describing processes in accordance with CMMI.

The scope of this initiative included the SSO and IAD4 directions, involving a total of 57 people.The final evaluation “official” SCAMPI A was carried out by a mixed team (composed of 5 elements and 3 internal elements external to the organization), focusing on a sample of 10 projects, representing 50% of total projects under way in these directions.

Although the return of such projects is typically observed in a progressive way, the very positive evaluation of the favorable impact that this effort has produced in the organization not only encourage the spread of the implementation of CMMI to other directions of PT innovation, but also the option to pursue to progress to the maturity levels 4 and 5 of CMMI.

The importance of certification in “Capability Maturity Models Integration”

It is increasingly recognized the importance and impact of the software industry in the Portuguese economy, either for their important role in the employability of many young graduates, either in place of Portugal in the map of countries that have a say in the field of new technologies through increased production for the international market. But this internationalization requires the industry to present itself with quality attributes recognized worldwide, as is the case of certification “Capability Maturity Models Integration”? CMMI

source: Universia