People CMM: A Framework for Human Capital Management

Organizations are now competing in two markets, one for their products and services and one for the talent required to produce or perform them. Success in the former is determined by success in the latter. The ability to compete is directly related to the ability to attract, develop, motivate, organize, and retain the talented people needed to accomplish strategic business objectives.

The People CMM, as documented in this authoritative book, is a framework for human capital management. Broadly adopted by small and large organizations worldwide, it provides proven tools for addressing strategic workforce and critical people issues. It helps organizations: 

• Establish workforce practices aligned with current and future business objectives
• Characterize the maturity of workforce practices
• Guide a program of continuous workforce development
• Integrate workforce development with continual process improvement

People CMM®, Second Edition, documents Version 2 of the People CMM and 

• Describes practices for each maturity level, with guidance on how to interpret and apply them
• Explains capabilities for workforce development at each maturity level
• Shows how to apply the framework as a workforce assessment standard and a guide in planning and implementing improvement
• Presents case studies to illustrate how the People CMM has lead organizations to effective, repeatable, and lasting success in workforce development

The book is aimed at people responsible for developing and implementing human capital strategies and plans in their organizations, managing or developing the workforce, implementing advanced workforce practices, nurturing teams, and transforming organizational culture. It is especially useful for businesses undergoing critical organizational changes.

Dr. Bill Curtis is the senior vice president and chief scientist at CAST, a leader in providing technology for measuring and evaluating application software quality. He coauthored the Capability Maturity Model (CMM), the People CMM, and the Business Process MM. Until its acquisition by Borland, he was the cofounder of and chief scientist at TeraQuest, a global leader in providing CMM-based services. He is a former director of the Software Process Program in the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University. Prior to joining the SEI, Dr. Curtis worked for MCC, ITT’s Programming Technology Center, GE Space Division, and Weyerhaeuser, and also taught statistics at the University of Washington. While a staff psychologist in Weyerhaeuser’s Human Resources Department, he codeveloped the training for their performance appraisal system and conducted organizational effectiveness interventions in several divisions. Dr. Curtis holds a Ph.D. with emphasis in organizational psychology and statistics from Texas Christian University. He has published four books and more than 150 articles, and was recently elected a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers for his contributions to software process improvement and measurement.

Dr. William E. Hefley is a clinical associate professor at the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and the College of Business Administration at the University of Pittsburgh. He is the managing principal consultant with Pinnacle Global Management, LLC, a global consulting firm. He is also associated with ITSqc, LLC, whose mission is to evolve capability models and certification methods for organizations involved in sourcing relationships. He is currently working in the areas of IT-enabled sourcing from the perspectives of both service providers (the eSCM-SP) and their clients, and he led the effort to develop the eSCM for Client Organizations (eSCM-CL). Dr. Hefley teaches IT, service science, service innovation, and sourcing management courses, and is a frequent lecturer on service innovation and global software delivery. He also supervises graduate studies and projects related to sourcing relationships, software process management, human capital management, and knowledge management. He was previously on the faculty at Carnegie Mellon University and was a senior member of the technical staff at the SEI, where he led the team that developed the People CMM. Dr. Hefley received his Ph.D. in organization science and information technology from Carnegie Mellon University. He also received an M.S. in engineering and public policy from Carnegie Mellon University and an M.S.S.M from the University of Southern California. He also received a B.S. in computer science and political science, and a B.A. (with distinction) in psychology. He is currently on the editorial boards of several journals and is series editor for the Springer book series on Service Science: Research and Innovations in the Service Economy.

Sally A. Miller, coauthor of the People CMM, is currently a visiting scientist at the SEI. Previously, she managed the SEI’s People CMM effort, including the completion of the product suite and the transition to SCAMPI with People CMM. Ms.Miller has more than 23 years of service to the SEI as a human resources professional, senior member of the technical staff, and People CMM interface to major organizations. She has led People CMM assessments and consulting engagements across the United States. Before joining the SEI, she worked for Pittsburgh-based Fortune 500 organizations focusing on marketing, training, and development. She is a guest lecturer at Carnegie Mellon University and a graduate of Grove City College with concentrations in business administration and psychology.