Let me explain,  Anything new that gets created, is to serve a certain purpose. To address a problem or exploit an opportunity that exists. (of-course excluding Art). On Similar lines, in the mid 80’s the US DOD, was facing a problem. Their software projects were mostly delayed & had Quality issues. the problem was compounded because of the size of the projects & multiple Sub-contracted deliverable s. They approached Carnegie Mellon and took help from Academia to address this.

CMM was first envisioned to solve this. By assessing the software vendors on their capabilities & Maturity of Practices. the US DOD was given assurance of meeting a minimum threshold of performance & predictability.

It has been nearly 3 decades hence, Technologies, tools, programming paradigms have all evolved. Program management practices have improved significantly. Methodologies such as Agile, extreme programming, Test Driven development supported by Code Analysis tools, Continuous Integration & Deployment are the strengths of today’s most successful companies.  Looking back at the original purpose and current realities, the Value provided by CMMI Certification has significantly diluted.

Adaptability, Flexibility & Fast innovations are primary drivers in current environment of constant flux. If CMMI has to retain its value proposition, it will need to Re-purpose itself to Assess & certify organizations as capable & Mature enough to meet these new attributes. CMMI Certified Organizations has to meet current needs & future directions.