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In-Depth Information
This is not to say that all fourteen specific practices in the CMMI model are
not important, but we found that by focusing on the five simplified steps,
project planning maturity at BOND could evolve and still be consistent with
the organization's culture and business needs.
Refer to Figure 5-1. The repetition in the figure of the five-step symbol before
contract award, and after the completion of step five, is intended to indicate
that planning isn't something that occurs only once, but rather is a continu-
ous process that we go through multiple times when using an Agile
approach.
The five steps are each discussed further in the following section. Refer to the
appendices for an example of a Project Management Plan template. Table 5-3
provides a mapping between the five steps discussed in this chapter and the
major sections of the template in the appendix.
Table 5-3
Mapping Five Planning Steps to Project Plan Template
Planning Step
Project Plan Template Section
“What”
1. Scope and System Overview
“Who”
2. Organization and Staffing
“When”
3. Life Cycle and Schedule
“How”
4. Project Monitor and Control
“How Much”
5. Metrics
5.7 “The What”—Scoping the Effort
In the front of the plan we requested a brief paragraph about the product or
service that was being provided, and a related diagram. This was intended to
be very high level, not to indicate design information, or requirements. Its
intent was to give the reader a high-level perspective, and a visual aid as to
the scope of the effort. The rationale provided was that experience has
shown you can't generate a useful plan if you don't have a good sense of the
scope of the effort you are planning. During the training, I explained that
even a simple diagram of what was being provided often stimulated valu-
able discussions as to what is inside the scope and what is outside the scope
