Experts in the field generally advise companies and organizations to tailor implementation to their organizations. There are tradeoffs in the process of changing the organization to meet the standards for CMMI and or ISO certification.

Consider these nuances and complexities in the context of the following continuation of the Professional Praxis:

A note sits on your keyboard asking, “How long would it take your team to gain CMMI, level 3, or ISO Standards Certification? Once you know, please get back to me. Thanks.
– Morgan from Marketing”
Wanting more information, you call Morgan. “Hi, Morgan.”
Morgan responds, “Hi! Did you get my message?”
You reply, “Yes, I got your message. I am wondering why you want to know about these certifications.”
Morgan responds, “Well, this is really exciting! We have had a lot of interest from potential customers and stakeholders who would like to work with us. We have had a lot more interest in our work this year than last year. But, one thing that a number of potential customers and stakeholders are asking for is CMMI, level 3, and or ISO Standards Certification. So, I want to know how feasible this is for our team.”
You smile and say, “More interest in our work is always good. I will have to run the numbers and get back to you.”
Morgan says excitedly, “I look forward to your estimate of the amount of effort and time required to prepare for this certification. Also, be sure to give me reasons for or against becoming certified, beyond the new interest our clients have had in it. If we do want it, I need to convince our sponsors to pay for the extra cost. If we don’t, I need to explain that choice as well.”

To prepare:

• Read “Do Small IT Firms Benefit From Higher Process Capability?” and “Software Quality, Metrics, Process Improvement, and CMMI: An Interview with Dick Fairley,” focusing on CMMI, potential benefits, and the impact organizational environment and culture can have on its use.
• Read “Extending Extreme Programming User Stories to Meet ISO 9001 Formality Requirements,” “Standard Based Software Process Assessments in Small Companies,” and “Lightweight SPI Assessments: What Is the Real Cost?” focusing on the potential positives and negatives of becoming ISO certified.
• Read “CMMI-ISO: ‘Can’t We All Just Get Along?’” and “Using CMMI-ISO 9001:2000 Synergy in a Process Improvement Strategy,” focusing on attaining CMMI and ISO certification.