Level 3

At maturity level 3, an organization has achieved all the specific and generic goals of the process

areas assigned to maturity levels 2 and 3. At maturity level 3, processes are well characterized and

understood, and are described in standards, procedures, tools, and methods.

The organization’s set of standard processes, which is the basis for maturity level 3, is established

and improved over time. These standard processes are used to establish consistency across the

organization. Projects establish their defined processes by tailoring the organization’s set of standard

processes according to tailoring guidelines.

The organization’s management establishes process objectives based on the organization’s set of

standard processes and ensures that these objectives are appropriately addressed.

A critical distinction between maturity level 2 and maturity level 3 is the scope of standards, process

descriptions, and procedures. At maturity level 2, the standards, process descriptions, and procedures

may be quite different in each specific instance of the process (for example, on a particular project). At

maturity level 3, the standards, process descriptions, and procedures for a project are tailored from the

organization’s set of standard processes to suit a particular project or organizational unit. The

organization’s set of standard processes includes the processes addressed at maturity level 2 and

maturity level 3. As a result, the processes that are performed across the organization are consistent

except for the differences allowed by the tailoring guidelines.

Another critical distinction is that at maturity level 3, processes are typically described in more detail

and more rigorously than at maturity level 2. At maturity level 3, processes are managed more proactively

using an understanding of the interrelationships of the process activities and detailed measures of the

process, its work products, and its services.