{"id":4699,"date":"2012-10-05T04:32:40","date_gmt":"2012-10-05T04:32:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bridge-global.com\/blog\/blog\/\/?p=4699"},"modified":"2023-01-20T09:41:50","modified_gmt":"2023-01-20T09:41:50","slug":"agile-cmmi-combining-strengths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bridge-global.com\/blog\/agile-cmmi-combining-strengths\/","title":{"rendered":"Agile CMMI: Combining Strengths"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Some years ago the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) published the technical report CMMI or Agile: Why Not Embrace Both<\/a>, to describe that CMMI and agile can co-exist. I was surprised that such a report was needed. All the projects that I have managed or worked in used techniques that are now considered agile, like iterative development, frequent feedback from customers, time boxing, pair programming, and test driven design. And most of the organizations that I worked with used the CMM(I) to assess their processes, and improve the way they developed and managed software. I have also done process improvement projects in an agile way<\/a>. Agile and CMMI always somehow support and even strengthen each other.<\/p>\n

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Of course there were good reasons why the SEI published the report. They saw that people who were using the CMMI, opposed against Agile. They opposed that Agile is not a managed process, and could be used as an excuse for not writing any documents. On the other hand there were also Agile evangelists who considered the CMMI to be too big and unworkable, and didn\u2019t see any focus on people and collaboration in the CMMI. The technical report makes clear how Agile and CMMI support each other. The SEI has also included Agile support in CMMI V1.3<\/a> to make again clear that Agile and CMMI can co-exist. My opinion is that Agile CMMI is a strong combination, to deliver valuable software in a managed way. Let\u2019s see how deploying the CMMI version 1.3<\/a> delivers value for Agile organizations<\/a>. <\/p>\n

CMMI and Agile complement each other<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think that a lot of the opposition was mainly due to people that didn't understand both the CMMI and Agile. There are subjects where CMMI and agile can be interpreted in conflicting ways. Like the emphasis in the CMMI on plans, where agile puts more value in responding to change, and how agile values individuals and interactions over processes and tools, where the CMMI focuses more on processes.  But I have always considered agile and CMMI to be complementary, and luckily I\u2019m not alone in this. I see much (practical!) support in a book from Barry Boehm and Richard Turner, Balancing Agility and Discipline, a Guide for the Perplexed<\/a>. This book helps you understanding how much planning is needed (yes planning, not plans as Eisenhower<\/a> taught us!), and how the disciplined way of working that agile contains makes it a very effective process.<\/p>\n

In CMMI V1.3<\/a>, agile has been included with interpretation guidelines and by adding notes to the applicable process areas in the introduction of the process area and on how to interpret agile practices. This way of including agile information is very helpful, you find information at the spot, condensed and to the point. It also make the CMMI easier to understand when you are working in an agile organization. And in case you didn't know it, there is also a Dutch version of the CMMI V1.3<\/a>, with agile support, available.<\/p>\n

Agile Techniques and CMMI practices<\/strong><\/p>\n

The CMMI uses practices to give examples of activities that can be used to reach the process goals. CMMI version 1.3 has been extended and now mentions agile techniques in several process areas. For example, the process area Process and Product Quality Assurance describes that retrospectives can be used to evaluate processes, and the process area Quantitative Project Management mentions Agile velocity as a project measurement.<\/p>\n

Some agile techniques are not mentioned in the CMMI V1.3 practices. It doesn\u2019t mention specific methods, like Scrum<\/a>, XP<\/a> or DSDM<\/a>. It mentions some agile techniques, like user stories, backlogs, story cards, pair programming<\/a>, frequent builds, retrospectives<\/a>, but doesn\u2019t mention others like planning poker, test driven development, burn down charts, etc. There is room for interpretation in the CMMI process areas, which in my opinion is both bad and good. Bad because not including certain agile term makes it more difficult to recognize and map agile practices to the process area. But the good thing is that the CMMI defines the \u201cwhat\u201d, and not the \u201chow\u201d, leaving room for organizations to deploy agile in such a way that they reach the business (and CMMI) goals.<\/p>\n

Improve Continuously<\/strong><\/p>\n

CMMI uses two representations: staged and continuous. The staged representation is the most used representation, although the continuous representation is commonly perceived to be a more flexible option. Often, potential CMMI users do not select the continuous representation because they find it difficult to pick \u201cthe right set and order\u201d of process areas for their situation. CMMI roadmaps<\/a>, which are a goal-driven approach to selecting and deploying relevant process areas from the CMMI model, can provide guidance and focus for effective and continuous CMMI based improvement.<\/p>\n

Similar to the CMMI, Agile also focuses on continuous improvement. The sprint review or demo provides feedback from the customers and stakeholders, and retrospectives help teams to reflect and improve. It\u2019s not being, but becoming Agile and Lean<\/a> that brings benefits. The journey, where you learn and improve continuously<\/a> is more important then the destination. The concepts on how to do continuous improvement in Agile and the CMMI complement and strengthen each other.<\/p>\n

How agile is the CMMI V1.3?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I find it a bit strange that agile has only been added to the CMMI Development model, and not to the CMMI for Services (except for Service System Development). In my opinion, services can (and probably should) also be developed and deployed in an agile way to ensure timely delivery and maximum benefit for the customers. I am sure that there are companies that have used agile to develop services (just like I have used agile to do process improvement<\/a>). The CMMI for Acquisition contains agile information in several process areas to support acquiring from organizations that work agile, however I see very limited information on how to do the acquisition in an agile way. Also the agile interpretation guideline is missing in the CMMI for acquisition. But maybe that\u2019s a step to far for now.<\/p>\n

If you use the CMMI as an assessment model, then the many elaborations on agile will certainly help you to recognize an agile implementation of a process area. By adding agile information to the CMMI, CMMI assessors will have less questions about how to interpret the CMMI, and thus save time and money in an assessment. If you use the CMMI as an improvement model<\/a>, then the agile additions are helpful but not sufficient to implement agile practices into an organization.<\/p>\n

Learning from each other<\/strong><\/p>\n

The LinkedIn group Agile CMMI<\/a> (over 12.000 members) is where professionals share their experience on CMMI in organizations that are (becoming) Agile. A great source of inspiration and solutions, I'm an active member of this group, and highly recommend it!<\/p>\n

everal CMMI experts have published about the CMMI V1.3<\/a>, including how to deploy it in Agile organizations. One available solution is to use the People-CMM to implement agile practices<\/a>. There are also some Golden Rules for Process Improvement<\/a>, that fit neatly with the Agile manifesto and practices.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n

CMMI and Agile support and strengthen each other, and CMMI V1.3 is a significant improvement for organizations that are using agile practices, and makes it much easier assess an agile organization. If you want to migrate to agile, the CMMI V1.3 is valuable as an improvement model, but you will probably need other supporting models for the implementation of agile. <\/strong><\/p>\n

More information<\/strong> <\/p>\n

Several articles are available that cover the agile topics mentioned in this blog:<\/p>\n