Appendix A: Goals for Each Key Process Area

A.1 The Key Process Areas for Level 2: Repeatable

Requirements Management

e7f Goal 2 Software plans, products, and activities are kept consistent with the system requirements allocated to software.

Software Project Planning

Goal 2 Software project activities and commitments are planned and documented.

Goal 3 Affected groups and individuals agree to their commitments related to the software project.

Software Project Tracking and Oversight

Goal 2 Corrective actions are taken and managed to closure when actual results and performance deviate significantly from the software plans.

Goal 3 Changes to software commitments are agreed to by the affected groups and individuals.

Software Subcontract Management

Goal 2 The prime contractor and the software subcontractor agree to their commitments to each other.

Goal 3 The prime contractor and the software subcontractor maintain ongoing communications.

Goal 4 The prime contractor tracks the software subcontractor's actual results and performance against its commitments.

Software Quality Assurance

Goal 2 Adherence of software products and activities to the applicable standards, procedures, and requirements is verified objectively.

Goal 3 Affected groups and individuals are informed of software quality assurance activities and results.

Goal 4 Noncompliance issues that cannot be resolved within the software project are addressed by senior management.

Software Configuration Management

Goal 2 Selected software work products are identified, controlled, and available.

Goal 3 Changes to identified software work products are controlled.

Goal 4 Affected groups and individuals are informed of the status and content of software baselines.

A.2 The Key Process Areas for Level 3: Defined

Organization Process Focus

Goal 2 The strengths and weaknesses of the software processes used are identified relative to a process standard.

Goal 3 Organization-level process development and improvement activities are planned.

Organization Process Definition

Goal 2 Information related to the use of the organization's standard software process by the software projects is collected, reviewed, and made available.

Training Program

Goal 2 Training for developing the skills and knowledge needed to perform software management and technical roles is provided.

Goal 3 Individuals in the software engineering group and software-related groups receive the training necessary to perform their roles.

Integrated Software Management

Goal 2 The project is planned and managed according to the project's defined software process.

Software Product Engineering

Goal 2 Software work products are kept consistent with each other.

Intergroup Coordination

Goal 2 The commitments between the engineering groups are agreed to by the affected gr fe1 oups.

Goal 3 The engineering groups identify, track, and resolve intergroup issues.

Peer Reviews

Goal 2 Defects in the software work products are identified and removed.

A.3 The Key Process Areas for Level 4: Managed

Quantitative Process Management

Goal 2 The process performance of the project's defined software process is controlled quantitatively.

Goal 3 The process capability of the organization's standard software process is known in quantitative terms.

Software Quality Management

Goal 2 Measurable goals for software product quality and their priorities are defined.

Goal 3 Actual progress toward achieving the quality goals for the software products is quantified and managed.

A.4 The Key Process Areas for Level 5: Optimizing

Defect Prevention

Goal 2 Common causes of defects are sought out and identified.

Goal 3 Common causes of defects are prioritized and systematically eliminated.

Technology Change Management

Goal 2 New technologies are evaluated to determine their effect on quality and productivity.

Goal 3 Appropriate new technologies are transferred into normal practice across the organization.

Process Change Management

Goal 2 Participation in the organization's software process improvement activities is organization wide.

Goal 3 The organization's standard software process and the projects' defined software processes are improved continuously.