Systematic process improvement using ISO 9001:2000 and CMMI

184 Transitioning from Legacy Standards
Institutionalization begins by establishing a management council and an
engineering process group as the focal points for process improvement and
transition as required by OPF.
With management commitment in place, the next step is development
of organizational policies. A policy is a senior management vehicle used
to communicate expectations, principles, and direction for performing and
improving the processes. A policy typically establishes broad organizational
direction. It should not simply restate PA requirements or specific practices,
unless the organization feels that this is what has to be enforced and communicated.
The policy should clearly state expectations at a fairly high level,
leaving room for interpretation and implementation freedom when applied.
We also recommend that organizations consider four ‘‘basic’’ GPs in order
to provide a foundation for the forthcoming specific practices.
Next, two project management PAs (PP and PMC) and three support PAs
(CM, PPQA, and MA) are implemented. Because this is the institutionalization
approach, these PAs will enable the GPs described in previous sections
and, in turn, will help the future stable and systematic implementation of
all other PAs.
How long will it take an organization to implement and institutionalize
these PAs 14 Typically, this takes 8 to 12 months, but may take longer,
depending on organizational priorities and commitment. If senior management
is committed and the organization is ready for change, a shorter implementation
time may be possible. In contrast, if priorities are constantly
changing and process improvement forces are scattered, implementation will
be slower.
After these PAs are implemented and institutionalized, the organization
will be ready for additional process implementation and institutionalization.
We recommend implementing and institutionalizing all remaining generic
practices for the previously selected PAs (PP, PMC, CM, PPQA, and MA)
thus achieving, but not necessarily appraising, capability level 2 for those
areas.
If projects participating in process improvement have subcontractors, the
SAM PA, up to capability level 2, should be implemented to help them select
and manage their subcontractors.
Next, as shown in Table 6.10 and Figure 6.7, we may implement either
all of the process management PAs and IPM or all engineering PAs. Implementing
IPM is important when institutionalizing capability level 3 goals
14.Here, implement means that capability level 1 generic goals, GG 1, Achieve Specific Goals, in all relevant PAs are
satisfied. Institutionalize means that generic goal GG 2 is satisfied in all relevant PAs.