OPP(Organizational Process Performance)

Process performance is a measure of the actual results achieved by following a process. Process performance is characterized by both process measures (e.g., effort, cycle time, and defect removal effectiveness) and product measures (e.g., reliability and defect density).

The common measures for the organization are composed of process and product measures that can be used to summarize the actual performance of processes in individual projects in the organization. The organizational data for these measures are analyzed to establish a distribution and range of results, which characterize the expected performance of the process when used on any individual project in the organization.

The expected process performance can be used in establishing the project's quality and process-performance objectives and can be used as a baseline against which actual project performance can be compared. This information is used to quantitatively manage the project. Each quantitatively managed project, in turn, provides actual performance results that become a part of the baseline data for the organizational process assets.

The associated process performance models are used to represent past and current process performance and to predict future results of the process. For example, the latent defects in the delivered product can be predicted using measurements of defects identified during product-verification activities.

When the organization has measures, data, and analytical techniques for critical process and product characteristics, it is able to do the following:

Determine whether processes are behaving consistently or have stable trends (i.e., are predictable)

Identify processes where the performance is within natural bounds that are consistent across process implementation teams

Establish criteria for identifying whether a process or process element should be statistically managed, and determine pertinent measures and analytical techniques to be used in such management

Identify processes that show unusual (e.g., sporadic or unpredictable) behavior

Identify any aspects of the processes that can be improved in the organization's set of standard processes

Identify the implementation of a process which performs best

SP 1.1-1 Select Processes
SP 1.2-1 Establish Process Performance Measures
SP 1.3-1 Establish Quality and Process-Performance Objectives
SP 1.4-1 Establish Process Performance Baselines
SP 1.5-1 Establish Process Performance Models

QPM(Quantitative Project Management)

The Quantitative Project Management process area involves the following:

Establishing and maintaining the project's quality and process-performance objectives

Identifying suitable subprocesses that compose the project's defined process based on historical stability and capability data found in process performance baselines or models

Selecting the subprocesses of the project's defined process to be statistically managed

Monitoring the project to determine whether the project's objectives for quality and process performance are being satisfied, and identifying appropriate corrective action

Selecting the measures and analytic techniques to be used in statistically managing the selected subprocesses

Establishing and maintaining an understanding of the variation of the selected subprocesses using the selected measures and analytic techniques

Monitoring the performance of the selected subprocesses to determine whether they are capable of satisfying their quality and process-performance objectives, and identifying corrective action

Recording statistical and quality management data in the organization's measurement repository

The quality and process-performance objectives, measures, and baselines identified here are developed as described in the Organizational Process Performance process area. Subsequently, the results of performing the processes associated with the Quantitative Project Management process area (e.g., measurement definitions and measurement data) become part of the organizational process assets referred to in the Organizational Process Performance process area.

To effectively address the specific practices in this process area, the organization should have already established a set of standard processes and related organizational process assets, such as the organization's measurement repository and the organization's process asset library for use by each project in establishing its defined process. The project's defined process is a set of subprocesses that form an integrated and coherent life cycle for the project. It is established, in part, through selecting and tailoring processes from the organization's set of standard processes. (See the definition of "defined process" in the glossary.)

Process performance is a measure of the actual process results achieved. Process performance is characterized by both process measures (e.g., effort, cycle time, and defect removal efficiency) and product measures (e.g., reliability, defect density, and response time).

Subprocesses are defined components of a larger defined process. For example, a typical organization's development process may be defined in terms of subprocesses such as requirements development, design, build, test, and peer review. The subprocesses themselves may be further decomposed as necessary into other subprocesses and process elements.

One essential element of quantitative management is having confidence in estimates (i.e., being able to predict the extent to which the project can fulfill its quality and process-performance objectives). The subprocesses that will be statistically managed are chosen based on identified needs for predictable performance. (See the definitions of "statistically managed process," "quality and process-performance objective," and "quantitatively managed process" in the glossary.)

Another essential element of quantitative management is understanding the nature and extent of the variation experienced in process performance, and recognizing when the project's actual performance may not be adequate to achieve the project's quality and process-performance objectives.

SP 1.1-1 Establish the Project's Objectives
SP 1.2-1 Compose the Defined Process
SP 1.3-1 Select the Subprocesses that Will Be Statistically Managed
SP 1.4-1 Manage Project Performance
 
SP 2.1-1 Select Measures and Analytic Techniques
SP 2.2-1 Apply Statistical Methods to Understand Variation
SP 2.3-1 Monitor Performance of the Selected Subprocesses
SP 2.4-1 Record Statistical Management Data