An analysis of excluded IS processes in the capability maturity model and their potential impact

As an ever larger number of businesses embrace the principles of quality management and process improvement, IS organizations are feeling growing pressure to follow suit and implement similar types of programs to improve systems development and operations services. IS organizations embarking in these programs often follow a standardized, stepby-step methodology to improve their processes. The prevailing standardized process improvement methodology for IS organizations is Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute’s Software Process Maturity Framework. The original intent of the Software Process Maturity Framework was to provide a methodology for improving the software development processes and assess the software engineering capabilities of contractors (Humphrey, 1989). This framework has since undergone a number of revisions and become what is now known as the Capability Maturity Model Process improvement efforts are becoming pervasive within IS organizations as they attempt to meet the growing challenges of today’s complex and dynamic environment. A popular framework often used in these efforts is the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) developed by the Software Engineering Institute. The model focuses specifically on software process improvement, neglecting the other functions of IS. This paper assesses which IS functions are excluded by the CMM by comparing it to a earlier, more comprehensive model, the Information Systems Management Architecture developed by IBM. The comparison of models is followed by a discussion of the potential ramifications of a model with such a narrow focus.