Establish and maintain the project’s defined process from project startup through the life of the project.

Refer to the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about organizational process assets.

Refer to the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about organizational process needs and objectives and deploying the organization’s set of standard processes on projects.

The project’s defined process consists of defined processes that form an integrated, coherent lifecycle for the project.

The project’s defined process logically sequences acquirer activities and supplier deliverables (as identified in the supplier agreement) to deliver a product that meets the requirements. The acquirer may require the supplier to align selected processes with the acquirer’s defined process.

The project’s defined process should satisfy the project’s contractual requirements, operational needs, opportunities, and constraints. It is designed to provide a best fit for project needs.

A project’s defined process is based on the following factors:

Establishing the project’s defined process at project startup helps to ensure that project staff and stakeholders implement a set of activities needed to efficiently establish an initial set of requirements and plans for the project. As the project progresses, the description of the project’s defined process is elaborated and revised to better meet project requirements and the organization’s process needs and objectives. Also, as the organization’s set of standard processes changes, the project’s defined process may need to be revised.

The project’s defined process is driven by the acquisition strategy. The acquirer’s defined process is affected, for example, by whether the acquisition strategy is to introduce new technology to the organization or to consolidate acquired products or services in use by the acquirer.

Typical Work Products

1. The project’s defined process

Typical Supplier Deliverables

1. Tailored supplier processes that interface with the acquirer’s defined process

Subpractices

1. Select a lifecycle model from those available in organizational process assets.

   Examples of project characteristics that could affect the selection of lifecycle models include the following:

   • Size of the project

   • Experience and familiarity of staff with implementing the process

   • Constraints such as cycle time and acceptable defect levels

   X-Ref

   IPM depends strongly on OPD. It is impossible to fully implement the specific practices in IPM without having in place the organizational infrastructure described in OPD.

2. Select standard processes from the organization’s set of standard processes that best fit the needs of the project.
3. Tailor the organization’s set of standard processes and other organizational process assets according to tailoring guidelines to produce the project’s defined process.

   Sometimes the available lifecycle models and standard processes are inadequate to meet project needs. Sometimes the project is unable to produce required work products or measures. In such circumstances, the project must seek approval to deviate from what is required by the organization. Waivers are provided for this purpose.

   Hint

   Tailor the organization’s set of standard processes to address the project’s specific needs and situation. Some questions to ask to determine specific needs include the following: Are stringent quality, safety, or security requirements in place? Are the customer’s needs still evolving? Is the team working with a new customer, a new acquisition strategy, or a new supplier? Are there stringent schedule constraints?

4. Use other artifacts from the organization’s process asset library, as appropriate.

   Other artifacts may include the following:

   • Lessons-learned documents

   • Templates

   • Example documents

   • Estimating models

5. Document the project’s defined process.

   Hint

   Maintain the process asset library to keep it current. Otherwise, it could become the dumping ground for all project information and quickly become unusable.

6. Conduct peer reviews of the project’s defined process.
7. Revise the project’s defined process as necessary.

Use organizational process assets and the measurement repository for estimating and planning project activities.

Refer to the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about organizational process assets and the organization’s measurement repository.

When available, use results of previous planning and execution activities as predictors of the relative scope and risk of the effort being estimated for the current acquisition.

Typical Work Products

1. Project estimates
2. Project plans

Subpractices

1. Use the tasks and work products of the project’s defined process as a basis for estimating and planning project activities.

   An understanding of the relationships among tasks and work products of the project’s defined process and of the roles to be performed by relevant stakeholders is a basis for developing a realistic plan.

2. Use the organization’s measurement repository in estimating the project’s planning parameters.

Establish and maintain the project’s work environment based on the organization’s work environment standards.

An appropriate work environment for a project comprises an infrastructure of facilities, tools, and equipment that people need to perform their jobs effectively in support of business and project objectives. The work environment and its components are maintained at a level of performance and reliability indicated by organizational work environment standards. As required, the project’s work environment or some of its components can be developed internally or acquired from external sources.

The supplier’s work environment should be compatible with the acquirer’s work environment to enable efficient and effective transfer of work products.

The work environment might encompass environments for both verification and validation or these might be separate environments.

Refer to the Establish Work Environment Standards specific practice in the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about work environment standards.

Typical Work Products

1. Equipment and tools for the project
2. Installation, operation, and maintenance manuals for the project work environment
3. User surveys and results
4. Usage, performance, and maintenance records
5. Support services for the project’s work environment

Subpractices

1. Plan, design, and install a work environment for the project.

   The critical aspects of the project work environment are, like any other product, requirements-driven. Work environment functionality and operations are explored with the same rigor as is done for any other product development.

   Tip

   A facilities group can use input from the project to create the work environment.

   It may be necessary to make tradeoffs among performance, costs, and risks. The following are examples of each.

   • Performance considerations may include timely interoperable communication, safety, security, and maintainability.

   • Costs may include capital outlays, training, a support structure, disassembly and disposal of existing environments, and the operation and maintenance of the environment.

   • Risks may include workflow and project disruptions.

   Examples of equipment and tools include the following:

   • Office software

   • Decision support software

   • Project management tools

   • Requirements management tools and design tools

   • Configuration management tools

   • Evaluation tools

   • Test and evaluation equipment

2. Provide ongoing maintenance and operational support for the project’s work environment.

   Maintenance and support of the work environment can be accomplished either with capabilities found inside the organization or hired from outside the organization.

   Examples of maintenance and support approaches include the following:

   • Hiring people to perform maintenance and support

   • Training people to perform maintenance and support

   • Contracting maintenance and support

   • Developing expert users for selected tools

3. Maintain the qualification of components of the project’s work environment.

   Components include software, databases, hardware, tools, test equipment, and appropriate documentation. Qualification of software includes appropriate certifications. Hardware and test equipment qualification includes calibration and adjustment records and traceability to calibration standards.

4. Periodically review how well the work environment is meeting project needs and supporting collaboration, and take action, as appropriate.

Integrate the project plan and other plans that affect the project to describe the project’s defined process.

Refer to the Project Planning process area for more information about establishing and maintaining a project plan.

Refer to the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about organizational process assets and, in particular, the organization’s measurement repository.

Refer to the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about organizational process needs and objectives.

This specific practice extends the specific practices for establishing and maintaining a project plan to address additional planning activities such as incorporating the project’s defined process, coordinating with relevant stakeholders, using organizational process assets, incorporating plans for peer reviews, and establishing objective entry and exit criteria for tasks.

The development of the project plan should account for current and projected needs, objectives, and requirements of the organization, customer, suppliers, and end users, as appropriate.

Typical Work Products

1. Integrated plans

Typical Supplier Deliverables

1. Supplier plans

Subpractices

1. Integrate other plans that affect the project with the project plan.

   Other plans that affect the project plan may include the following:

   • Quality assurance plans

   • Configuration management plans

   • Risk management strategy

   • Documentation plans

2. Incorporate into the project plan the definitions of measures and measurement activities for managing the project.

   Refer to the Measurement and Analysis process area for more information about defining measures and measurement activities and analyzing measurement data.

3. Identify and analyze product and project interface risks.

   Refer to the Risk Management process area for more information about identifying and analyzing risks.

4. Schedule tasks in a sequence that accounts for critical development factors and project risks.

   Examples of factors considered in scheduling include the following:

   • Size and complexity of tasks

   • Needs of the customer and end users

   • Availability of critical resources

   • Availability of key personnel

5. Incorporate plans for performing peer reviews on work products of the project’s defined process.
6. Incorporate the training needed to perform the project’s defined process in the project’s training plans.
7. Establish objective entry and exit criteria to authorize the initiation and completion of tasks described in the work breakdown structure (WBS).

   Refer to the Project Planning process area for more information about the WBS.

   Tip

   Because of the organizational inputs from the organization’s set of standard processes, many of the activities in PP are performed in IPM in more detail; and because of the historical data and experiences captured in other organizational process assets, the detail is more reliable.

   Because of the historical data and experience captured in organizational process assets, IPM allows a more detailed and more reliable approach to planning.

8. Ensure that the project plan is appropriately compatible with the plans of relevant stakeholders.
9. Identify how conflicts will be resolved that arise among relevant stakeholders.

   Refer to the Agreement Management process area for more information about resolving supplier agreement issues.

Manage the project using the project plan, other plans that affect the project, and the project’s defined process.

Refer to the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about organizational process assets.

Refer to the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about organizational process needs and objectives and coordinating process improvement activities with the rest of the organization.

Refer to the Risk Management process area for more information about managing risks.

Refer to the Project Monitoring and Control process area for more information about monitoring and controlling the project.

Typical Work Products

1. Work products created by performing the project’s defined process
2. Collected measures (i.e., actuals) and progress records or reports
3. Revised requirements, plans, and commitments
4. Integrated plans

Typical Supplier Deliverables

1. Supplier project progress and performance reports

Subpractices

1. Implement the project’s defined process using the organization’s process asset library.

   This task typically includes the following activities:

   • Incorporating artifacts from the organization’s process asset library into the project, as appropriate

   • Using lessons learned from the organization’s process asset library to manage the project

2. Monitor and control the project’s activities and work products using the project’s defined process, project plan, and other plans that affect the project.

   Tip

   The organization’s process improvement plan is another plan that might affect the project.

   This task typically includes the following activities:

   • Using the defined entry and exit criteria to authorize the initiation and determine the completion of tasks

   • Monitoring activities that could significantly affect actual values of the project’s planning parameters

   • Tracking project planning parameters using measurable thresholds that will trigger investigation and appropriate actions

   • Monitoring product and project interface risks

   • Managing external and internal commitments based on plans for tasks and work products of the project’s defined process

   An understanding of the relationships among tasks and work products of the project’s defined process and of the roles to be performed by relevant stakeholders, along with well-defined control mechanisms (e.g., peer reviews), achieves better visibility into project performance and better control of the project.

3. Obtain and analyze selected measures to manage the project and support organization needs.

   Refer to the Measurement and Analysis process area for more information about obtaining and analyzing measures.

4. Periodically review and align the project’s performance with current and anticipated needs, objectives, and requirements of the organization, customer, and end users, as appropriate.

   This review includes alignment with organizational process needs and objectives.

Establish and maintain integrated teams.

The project is managed using integrated teams that reflect the organizational rules and guidelines for team structuring and forming. The project’s shared vision is established prior to establishing the team structure, which may be based on the WBS. For small acquirer organizations, the whole organization and relevant external stakeholders can be treated as an integrated team.

Refer to the Establish Rules and Guidelines for Integrated Teams specific practice in the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about establishing organizational rules and guidelines for structuring and forming integrated teams.

One of the best ways to ensure coordination and collaboration with relevant stakeholders, specific goal 2 of this process area, is to include them on an integrated team. For projects within a system of systems framework, the most important integrated team may be with stakeholders representing other systems.

Typical Work Products

1. Documented shared vision
2. List of team members assigned to each integrated team
3. Integrated team charters
4. Periodic integrated team status reports

Subpractices

1. Establish and maintain the project’s shared vision.

   When creating a shared vision, it is critical to understand the interfaces between the project and stakeholders external to the project. The vision should be shared among relevant stakeholders through their agreement and commitment.

   The development of the CMMI Product Suite is an example of a project that uses integrated teams. The CMMI project communicated its shared vision broadly so that the management team guiding CMMI activities, the home organizations that sponsored project team members, and the broad community had a clear understanding of the project’s objectives, values, and intended outcomes.

   Tip

   It may be useful to “sunset” a team once the specific needs of the team are satisfied. It may also be useful to create new teams at various points in the acquisition lifecycle to meet new acquisition challenges.

2. Establish and maintain the integrated team structure.

   Cost, schedule, project risks, resources, interfaces, the project’s defined process, and organizational guidelines are evaluated to establish the basis for defining integrated teams and their responsibilities, authorities, and interrelationships.

   Tip

   Each member of the integrated team should have dual aspirations and expectations: those specific to the project and those related to their home organization.

   Although the integrated team sponsor helps to form the team, he or she is usually not involved in daily activities. The sponsor may be part of the management team.

   The leader of an integrated team is often a member of the integrated team one layer up in the team structure.

   The charter is reviewed by all members of the team to ensure buy-in.

3. Establish and maintain each integrated team.

   Establishing and maintaining integrated teams encompasses choosing team leaders and team members and establishing team charters for each team. It also involves providing resources required to accomplish tasks assigned to the team.

4. Periodically evaluate the integrated team structure and composition.

   Integrated teams should be monitored to detect malfunctions, mismanaged interfaces, and mismatches of tasks to team members. Take corrective action when performance does not meet expectations.

   Hint

   Often, each team member represents a specific and essential perspective. When team composition changes, you must review the roles of departing team members to see whether their perspectives are still represented on the team.

Contribute work products, measures, and documented experiences to organizational process assets.

Refer to the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about process improvement proposals.

Refer to the Organizational Process Definition process area for more information about organizational process assets, the organization’s measurement repository, and the organization’s process asset library.

This specific practice addresses collecting information from processes in the project’s defined process.

Typical Work Products

1. Proposed improvements to organizational process assets
2. Actual process and product measures collected from the project
3. Documentation (e.g., exemplary process descriptions, plans, training modules, checklists, and lessons learned)
4. Process artifacts associated with tailoring and implementing the organization’s set of standard processes on the project

Subpractices

1. Propose improvements to organizational process assets.

   X-Ref

   Improvements are proposed using “process improvement proposals.” For more information, see OPF SP 2.4.

2. Store process and product measures in the organization’s measurement repository.

   Refer to the Project Planning process area for more information about recording planning and replanning data.

   Refer to the Measurement and Analysis process area for more information about recording measurement data.

3. Submit documentation for possible inclusion in the organization’s process asset library.

   Examples of documentation include the following:

   • Exemplary process descriptions

   • Training modules

   • Exemplary plans

   • Checklists

4. Document lessons learned from the project for inclusion in the organization’s process asset library.
5. Provide process artifacts associated with tailoring and implementing the organization’s set of standard processes in support of the organization’s process monitoring activities.

   Refer to the Monitor the Implementation specific practice of the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about monitoring the implementation of the organization’s set of standard processes and use of process assets on all projects.

Manage the involvement of relevant stakeholders in the project.

Stakeholder involvement is managed according to the project’s integrated and defined process.

The supplier agreement provides the basis for managing supplier involvement in the project. Supplier agreements (e.g., interagency and intercompany agreements, memorandums of understanding, memorandums of agreement) that the acquirer makes with stakeholder organizations, which may be product or service providers or recipients, provide the basis for their involvement. These agreements are particularly important when the acquirer’s project produces a system that must be integrated into a larger system of systems.

Refer to the Project Planning process area for more information about identifying stakeholders and their appropriate involvement and about establishing and maintaining commitments.

Typical Work Products

1. Agendas and schedules for collaborative activities
2. Documented issues
3. Recommendations for resolving relevant stakeholder issues

Subpractices

1. Coordinate with relevant stakeholders who should participate in project activities.
2. Ensure work products that are produced to satisfy commitments meet the requirements of the recipients.

   Tip

   These commitments may be external commitments that the project staff is addressing.

3. Develop recommendations and coordinate actions to resolve misunderstandings and problems with requirements.

Participate with relevant stakeholders to identify, negotiate, and track critical dependencies.

Refer to the Project Planning process area for more information about identifying stakeholders and their appropriate involvement and about establishing and maintaining commitments.

Typical Work Products

1. Defects, issues, and action items resulting from reviews with relevant stakeholders
2. Critical dependencies
3. Commitments to address critical dependencies
4. Status of critical dependencies

Typical Supplier Deliverables

1. Status of critical dependencies

Subpractices

1. Conduct reviews with relevant stakeholders.

   It is particularly important that acquirers or owners of systems that interact with the project in a system of systems be involved in these reviews to manage critical dependencies these types of systems create.

2. Identify each critical dependency.
3. Establish need dates and plan dates for each critical dependency based on the project schedule.

   X-Ref

   You can facilitate coordination on critical dependencies by determining need and plan dates for each critical dependency and then establishing and managing commitments as described in these subpractices and in PP and PMC.

4. Review and get agreement on commitments to address each critical dependency with those responsible for providing the work product and those receiving the work product.
5. Document critical dependencies and commitments.

   The acquirer documents supplier commitments to meet critical dependencies in the supplier agreement. Supplier dependencies and acquirer dependencies are documented in an integrated plan.

6. Track critical dependencies and commitments and take corrective action, as appropriate.

   Refer to the Project Monitoring and Control process area for more information about tracking commitments.

Resolve issues with relevant stakeholders.

Typical Work Products

1. Relevant stakeholder coordination issues

   Tip

   This specific practice is critical if integrated teams are to perform in a manner that is consistent with the project’s shared vision.

2. Status of relevant stakeholder coordination issues

Subpractices

1. Identify and document issues.
2. Communicate issues to relevant stakeholders.
3. Resolve issues with relevant stakeholders.
4. Escalate to appropriate managers those issues not resolvable with relevant stakeholders.
5. Track issues to closure.
6. Communicate with relevant stakeholders on the status and resolution of issues.