This chapter illustrates the evolutionary differences between CMM for Software and CMMI and presents an incremental approach for organizations interested in moving or evolving from a strict CMM for Software process improvement focus to the integrated focus offered by CMMI . This incremental approach is also a compliant means by which organizations on the threshold of adapting a model can methodically embrace CMMI .

Many individuals and companies have argued in the past and continue to argue today about whether it is reasonable or worth it to move from a process improvement initiative based on CMM for Software to one that is based on CMM Integration. Certainly for those companies whose products are predominantly software, it does not seem to make sense to disrupt what they already know. Besides, what if the company moves to CMMI and it loses its maturity level?

I have a different point of view based on my experience in helping to develop CMMI and in teaching, appraising, and consulting with companies throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. CMMI represents an upgrade to the concepts that were recorded in CMM for Software more than 10 years ago. CMMI represents 10 years of lessons learned from thousands of external and internal consultants, from CEOs, CIOs, presidents, and vice-presidents, and from project managers and practitioners whose organizations used CMM for Software in many different applications, industries, sizes of companies, military, commercial, and so forth. It represents the continuous process improvement that was always the theme of any quality...