Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1
• SEI Report
Publisher
Software Engineering Institute
CMU/SEI Report Number
CMU/SEI-95-MM-001DOI (Digital Object Identifier)
10.1184/R1/6575993.v1Abstract
The People Capability Maturity Model (P-CMM) adapts the maturity framework of the Capability Maturity Model for Software (CMM), to managing and developing an organization's workforce. The motivation for the P-CMM is to radically improve the ability of software organizations to attract, develop, motivate, organize, and retain the talent needed to continuously improve software development capability. The P-CMM is designed to allow software organizations to integrate workforce improvement with software process improvement programs guided by the CMM. The P-CMM can also be used by any kind of organization as a guide for improving their people-related and workforce practices.
Based on the best current practices in the fields such as human resources and organizational development, the P-CMM provides organizations with guidance on how to gain control of their processes for managing and developing their workforce. The P-CMM helps organizations to characterize the maturity of their workforce practices, guide a program of continuous workforce development, set priorities for immediate actions, integrate workforce development with process improvement, and establish a culture of software engineering excellence. It describes an evolutionary improvement path from ad hoc, inconsistently performed practices, to a mature, disciplined development of the knowledge, skills, and motivation of the workforce, just as the CMM describes an evolutionary improvement path for the software processes within an organization.
The P-CMM consists of five maturity levels that lay successive foundations for continuously improving talent, developing effective teams, and successfully managing the people assets of the organization. Each maturity level is a well-defined evolutionary plateau that institutionalizes a level of capability for developing the talent within the organization.
This document provides an overview of the P-CMM. The P-CMM and its key practices are fully described in the People Capability Maturity Model (CMU/SEI-95-MM-002, September 1995).
Cite This SEI Report
Curtis, W., Hefley, W., & Miller, S. (1995, September 1). Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1. (SEI Report CMU/SEI-95-MM-001). Retrieved September 17, 2026, from https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1.
@techreport{curtis_1995,
author={Curtis, William and Hefley, William and Miller, Sally},
title={Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1},
month={Sep},
year={1995},
number={{CMU/SEI-95-MM-001},
institution={Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University},
doi={10.1184/R1/6575993.v1},
url={https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1},
note={Accessed: 2026-Sep-17}
}
Curtis, William, William Hefley, and Sally Miller. "Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1." (CMU/SEI-95-MM-001). Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University. Software Engineering Institute, September 1, 1995. https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1.
W. Curtis, W. Hefley, and S. Miller, "Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1," Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University. Software Engineering Institute, SEI Report CMU/SEI-95-MM-001, 1-Sep-1995 [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1. [Accessed: 17-Sep-2026].
Curtis, William, William Hefley, and Sally Miller. "Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1." (SEI Report CMU/SEI-95-MM-001). Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Software Engineering Institute, 1 Sep. 1995. https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.
Curtis, William; Hefley, William; & Miller, Sally. Overview of the People Capability Maturity Model, Version 1.1. CMU/SEI-95-MM-001. Software Engineering Institute. 1995. DOI: 10.1184/R1/6575993.v1. https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6575993.v1