A Process Management Process Area at Maturity Level 3

The purpose of Organizational Process Definition (OPD) is to establish and maintain a usable set of organizational process assets, work environment standards, and rules and guidelines for teams.

Organizational process assets enable consistent process execution across the organization and provide a basis for cumulative, long-term benefits to the organization. (See the definition of “organizational process assets” in the glossary.)

The organization’s process asset library supports organizational learning and process improvement by allowing the sharing of best practices and lessons learned across the organization. (See the definition of “organizational process assets” in the glossary.)

The organization’s set of standard processes also describes standard interactions with suppliers. Supplier interactions are characterized by the following typical items: deliverables expected from suppliers, acceptance criteria applicable to those deliverables, standards (e.g., architecture and technology standards), and standard milestone and progress reviews.

The organization’s “set of standard processes” is tailored by work groups to create their defined processes. Other organizational process assets are used to support tailoring and implementing defined processes. Work environment standards are used to guide the creation of work environments. Rules and guidelines for teams are used to aid in their structuring, formation, and operation.

A “standard process” is composed of other processes (i.e., subprocesses) or process elements. A “process element” is the fundamental (i.e., atomic) unit of process definition that describes activities and tasks to consistently perform work. The process architecture provides rules for connecting the process elements of a standard process. The organization’s set of standard processes can include multiple process architectures.

(See the definitions of “standard process,” “process architecture,” “subprocess,” and “process element” in the glossary.)

Refer to the Strategic Service Management process area for more information about establishing and maintaining standard services in concert with strategic needs and plans.

Refer to the Organizational Process Focus process area for more information about deploying organizational process assets.

Specific Goal and Practice Summary

SG 1 Establish Organizational Process Assets

SP 1.1       Establish Standard Processes

SP 1.2       Establish Lifecycle Model Descriptions

SP 1.3       Establish Tailoring Criteria and Guidelines

SP 1.4       Establish the Organization’s Measurement Repository

SP 1.5       Establish the Organization’s Process Asset Library

SP 1.6       Establish Work Environment Standards

SP 1.7       Establish Rules and Guidelines for Teams