CMMI practices are designed to provide value across a range of different situations and thus are stated in general terms. Because CMMI does not endorse any particular approach to development, little information that is approach-specific is provided. Therefore, those who don’t have prior experience implementing CMMI in situations similar to the one they are now in may find interpretation non-intuitive.

To help those who use Agile methods to interpret CMMI practices in their environments, notes have been added to selected process areas. These notes are added, usually in the introductory notes, to the following process areas in CMMI-DEV: CM, PI, PMC, PP, PPQA, RD, REQM, RSKM, TS, and VER.

All of the notes begin with the words, “In Agile environments” and are in example boxes to help you to easily recognize them and remind you that these notes are examples of how to interpret practices and therefore are neither necessary nor sufficient for implementing the process area.

Multiple Agile approaches exist. The phrases “Agile environment” and “Agile method” are shorthand for any development or management approach that adheres to the Manifesto for Agile Development [Beck 2001].

Such approaches are characterized by the following:

·   Direct involvement of the customer in product development

·   Use of multiple development iterations to learn about and evolve the product

·   Customer willingness to share in the responsibility for decisions and risk

Many development and management approaches can share one or more of these characteristics and yet not be called “Agile.” For example, some teams are arguably “Agile” even though the term Agile is not used. Even if you are not using an Agile approach, you might still find value in these notes.

Be cautious when using these notes. Your ultimate interpretation of the process area should fit the specifics of your situation, including your organization’s business, project, work group, or team objectives, while fully meeting a CMMI process area’s goals and practices. As mentioned earlier, the notes should be taken as examples and are neither necessary nor sufficient to implementing the process area.

Some general background and motivation for the guidance given on Agile development approaches are found in the SEI technical note CMMI or Agile: Why Not Embrace Both! [Glazer 2008].