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CMMI Certification and Appraisal

What Is CMMI Certification?

Whether you are interested in working with the CMMI for Development or CMMI for Services, CMMI version 2.2 or CMMI version 3.0, or in systems, software, hardware, security engineering or any combination, BTI has the experience and knowledge to help you get your organization CMMI certified with excellent return-on-investment.

Understanding where your organization is currently at with respect to your business needs and process goals.

How do your organization’s processes compare to the CMMI?  Without understanding where you are starting, getting to your goal is just a random walk.

The main idea is to obtain this understanding (1) without disrupting the organization and (2) as quickly and inexpensively as can be achieved.

The standard way to get this understanding is through a “gap analysis”—and informal, quick look at the organization’s processes.  But that is the standard way . . . BTI has pioneered using process data mining to automatically extract process performance data from an organization’s tools and databases.  Although this does not entirely replace the standard gap analysis, it does make the gap analysis more thorough than could otherwise be achieved for the same effort.

Adapting your processes to meet the intent and value of the CMMI levels to work in the context of your organization.

Capability Maturity Model Integration certification provides a unique approach to improving an organization.

CMMI Model Structure
used with permission of ISACA

CMMI Maturity Levels

Within the five levels of CMMI, each level builds on the previous one. Each goal and practice influences how well the specific goals and practices are performed.

CMMI Maturity Level 2 companies are consistent within a project or team, but may act differently across projects or teams.

CMMI Maturity Level 3 companies act consistently across projects and teams. As opposed to CMMI Level 2, teams with CMMI Level 3 certification treat their processes as organizational assets.

CMMI Maturity Level 4 companies leverage the abundance of process performance data to model processes and predictively manage performance outcomes using quantitative measures.

CMMI Maturity Level 5 companies are able to diagnose and repair process defects with a predictive understanding of benefits versus costs.

BTI has helped organizations to implement the CMMI that are small (12 people) and large (40,000 people), that are doing Agile or traditional life cycles, and that are working in systems, software, or hardware engineering.

Getting CMMI appraisal to achieve the rating.

We have worked in small, single-location organizations to organizations doing technology development across multiple locations from Europe, North America, to Asia, to organizations that process payments accounting for 2.5% of the US government’s annual budget.

Our CMMI appraisal is thorough, flexible, and efficient.  BTI pioneered using the statistical sampling technique Design of Experiments (DoE) to identify exactly what needed to be looked at in an organization to maximize information gained per appraisal cost. Most other CMMI appraisers do not even know how to spell DoE. To learn more about CMMI certification and maturity levels, contact us today!

CMMI Certification Services Up to Level 5

“If you don’t know where you are, a map won’t help.” Watts Humphrey, Managing the Software Process (1989)

BTI is authorized by ISACA (previously known as the “CMMI Institute”) to assist organizations at any CMMI Maturity Level, from CMMI Level 2 all the way up to Level 5.  Less than 25% of CMMI Institute partners have this authorization. Members of our team will be there every step of the way to help you navigate how to get CMMI certification for your company.

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Types of CMMI Appraisal

Benchmark appraisals, which are a formal, structured appraisal of an
organization’s processes implementation that uses a Random Sampling approach. 
Benchmark appraisals are used to award Maturity Level or Capability Level Ratings for
an organization and are valid for 3 years.

Prices vary by organization and scope. Contact us for a quote tailored to your needs.

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Sustainment appraisals, which are a formal, structured appraisal of an
organization’s processes implementation.  Sustainment appraisals are used following a
Benchmark appraisal to sustain the Maturity Level or Capability Level Ratings for an
organization and extend the validity of an organization’s rating for 2 years. Sustainment
appraisals also use a Random Sampling approach but only look at approximately one
third of the original model scope which provides a cost savings to the organization. Up to
three Sustainment appraisals can be conducted before another Benchmark must be
performed.

Prices vary by organization and scope. Contact us for a quote tailored to your needs.

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Evaluation appraisals, which are less formal and also sometimes referred to as
Gap Analysis. This appraisal type can be tailored to meet the specific needs of the
organization. They are typically used to prepare for a Benchmark appraisal and to
investigate areas where process improvement is needed. There are no Maturity Level or
Capability Level ratings from an Evaluation appraisal. These appraisal types only provide
a risk rating of High, Medium, or Low against a practice.

Prices vary by organization and scope. Contact us for a quote tailored to your needs.

Get Started

 

BTI is one of only a handful of ISACA’s partners who is able to work at any Maturity Level with full access rights on US government-sponsored projects with sensitive data.

See how our CMMI services reduced Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems’ appraisal costs by 43%

CASE STUDY

BTI knows the CMMI. We helped write the CMMI, and the CMMI appraisal methodology, and the CMMI training materials. Give us an opportunity to share our knowledge and practical experience with you!

Get Your Company CMMI Certified With Expert Guidance 

A lot has happened since Watts Humphrey and others first wrote the Software Capability Maturity Model (SW-CMM). The Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) has expanded from software to include hardware, firmware, systems, security, and more! The CMMI has also become a world-wide phenomena, growing from its start in the USA to every continent of the world, except Antarctica. (Penguins are stubborn in adopting new methods.)

The idea is still the same though: becoming better at whatever you do depends on knowing where you are starting from. We’ve progressed beyond maps, though. BTI has a GPS to determine where you are and the CMMI path to get to the next place!

Get Started With CMMI

Any roadmap, standard, or improvement model never makes sense unless it can be used in a positive way to help your organization have measurably better results. BTI succeeds in our mission when your organization is measurably better in a way that makes a real difference to customers and staff, is able able to sustain the change for the better, knows that it is better, and is satisfied with the result. CMMI is a tool–one of many in our toolbox–to help achieve that success.

 

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What to Expect from a CMMI Appraisal

BTI makes the CMMI appraisal process easier for you with the knowledge and experience to help you succeed with excellent return-on-investment. Every member of our team has been an engineer, a software developer, or a project manager that’s been through this process and knows what it’s like to adopt processes and be appraised.

  • Because of our experience, we take a practical, not academic, approach to appraisals. As a result, we don’t try to force fit you to the CMMI model. We work with you to tailor your CMMI appraisal to fit your needs and deliver business value.
  • The BTI team will be there every step of the way to help you navigate how to get your company CMMI certified.
  • BTI is authorized by ISACA/CMMI Institute to assist organizations to any CMMI Maturity Level 1-5. Less than 25% of CMMI Institute partners have this authorization and members of our staff have helped coauthor the CMMI model.
  • BTI is one of very few ISACA/CMMI Institute partners who can work at any Maturity Level with full access rights on US government-sponsored projects with sensitive data.

 

Get Started With CMMI Certification

CMMI certification costs vary depending on your organization’s needs. Contact BTI to learn more.

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    Here’s What Our Clients Are Saying About Us

    BTI succeeds in its mission when an organization is measurably better in a way that makes a real difference, is able to sustain the change for the better, knows that it is better, and is satisfied with the result.

    Business Transformation Institute, Inc. (BTI) joined in partnership with Raytheon SAS to help us bring together many diverse business units and to stabilize and improve our performance.  Throughout the years we have worked together and achieved CMMI Maturity Level 5 while bringing together geographically and process diverse units. This has allowed us to have a much higher fluidity in our staff and contract execution locations without suffering performance degradation.  Also, BTI has led the way in choreographing novel appraisal methodologies that have significantly reduced the cost of maintaining CMMI certification and ensuring that the programs do not suffer “set-back” during the gap between certification renewals.

    Alan Perkowski 1 E1695234482260

    Alan Perkowski

    Process Maturity Technical Director from Major Aerospace Company

    Having BTI’s LSS black belts onboard means that I can now safely retire.  Thank you!

    Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt

    Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt from National Security Agency

    CNI was going to graduate from the federal government’s 8(a) program.  We had to be prepared to compete. Part of this is having good processes.  BTI helped us to do it.

    Phil Ricks 1 E1695234421930

    Phil Ricks

    Corporate Quality Manager from Chickasaw Nation Industries

    I was fortunate to work with the BTI team on deploying the CMMI Level 2 practice at Western Union. There were a number of obstacles in garnering top-down changes and support everyone that the team was able to work through and make it successful.

    Implementing CMMI practices and procedures in an unstructured environment is surely difficult, but the BTI team was able to see the big picture and also make sure that the details were correctly addressed and implemented.

    I highly recommend the BTI team!

    John Oyhagary 1 E1695234675445

    John Oyhagaray

    Western Union Systems Development