Integrated process and project management

Abstract

The CMM (Capability Maturity Model) and, more recently, the CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integrated) have been widely adopted for improving the way engineering projects are managed and executed. Too often, however, these models have been abandoned as ineffective – usually because they were not implemented well and came to be viewed as inappropriate for particular organizations or projects. In the author’s experience, it is seldom the fault of the model but usually the fault of the organization! The purpose of this presentation is to discuss one of the most misunderstood and difficult to implement aspects of the CMM and CMMI - integrated process and project management. This critical process area requires cooperation from the entire organization. Departments with entirely different perspectives on what a plan entails, what is important for managing a project, and where priorities should be placed must somehow come together to plan and execute an integrated project. The CMM and CMMI rely on integrated product and project management to assure that the elements of a project are pulling together in the same direction and in an efficient manner. On larger projects, the tendency is for each department, each team, and each function to optimize its own activities, often at the expense of others. Yet large organizations can do business in a highly integrated way. To illustrate, the body of the presentation explains how integrated project and process management were implemented at Texas Instruments and Raytheon. We begin with the backbone – the integrated product development process (IPDP) – a collection of common, integrated processes encompassing all aspects of product development, a support infrastructure, and a tailoring mechanism to assure the processes fit the specific needs of each project. An example is provided and the steps required for successful implementation and deployment are explained. Particular emphasis is placed on the importance of effective process deployment, which is too often an afterthought of process improvement initiatives. Building on the IPDP are many tools for detailed project planning. This presentation highlights four: the integrated master plan, the integrated master schedule, integrated support plans, and the RACI chart for assuring effective stakeholder involvement. Each of these is explained and illustrated with examples.