What approach CMMI Consultants should adopt for handling CMMI Assignments in the initial stages?

CMMI FAQ 0

3rd July, 2014

The CMMI Consultants adopt a variety of approaches while handling CMMI Consulting and Appraisal Programs. Many times the approach depends on the maturity of the customer. Customer makes many statements regarding their capability and maturity – for example – customer would say that they have Certifications like ISO 9001 and ISO 27001, or, that they have very matured employees or have project managers with PMP Certifications, etc. Ideally, CMMI Consultants would like to know the exact situation on the ground before they venture into making any commitments regarding the CMMI Consulting and Appraisal Assignments. In practical situations, it is not possible to have very exact information about situation on the ground and yet proposal with time-lines has to be given by the CMMI Consultants. In this situation, it is a good idea to collect as much information as possible through questionnaires and researching the customer. However, CMMI Consultants should not overdo it because sometimes they may disappoint the customer by asking too many questions. CMMI Consultants can start the assignment with an expectation management meeting in which the pros and cons can be discussed and various possibilities can be shared with the customer. CMMI Consultants should factor in a three-level gap assessment – at process level, at project level and people level. Post gap assessment, CMMI Consultants can build up an action plan for the entire project defining clear milestones with respect to Gap Assessment, Documentation, Implementation and Appraisal Phases. CMMI Consultants should have regular meetings with the customer and milestone analysis as this helps in expectation management. It can be said that a general framework with specific roadmap works well for CMMI Consultants.