Assessing the Business Value of CMMI® in South Africa

The Capability Maturity Model Integration or CMMI® remains the dominant standard for software process improvement globally. The lack of software quality standards such as CMMI® is seen as one of the causes of the current uncompetitive state of the South African software industry and so in 2007, a pilot programme called “Bringing CMMI® to South Africa” was launched. This research focused on the experiences of the South African organisations participating in the South African CMMI® pilot study. The aim was to assist future managerial decision making to assess the business value CMMI® can bring to South African software organisations. The research found that the adoption of CMMI® improved both the internal quality and efficiencies as well as opportunities for growth. The research also established that CMMI® cannot be regarded as a silver bullet solution and that while process improvements can cause short-term upheaval, there are longer-term tangible and intangible benefits. The recommendations resulting from the research, including a model, are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.