ADTmag.com tackles the topic of Capability Maturity Model vs. XP (Extreme Programming) in a brief report by Stephen Swoyer. As he points out:
The problem with CMMI, agile proponents like to argue, is it assumes that software development involves definite processes: That is, processes about which almost everything is known. As any agile programmer who's ever worked on a development project of any size will tell you, this is rarely the case.
Mr. Swoyer quotes Michael Spayd, Cogility Consulting Solutions and a former CMM process assessor, "There's a fundamental assumption in the CMMI that processes can be repeatable, and that they are predictive processes, basically not empirical processes… That is the fundamental flaw in the CMMI, and that's actually why I don't personally believe in level 4 and 5. They are ridiculous and do not create value."
Of course, the story has a happy ending and the author concludes that the two programming disciplines can co-exist.
