• The TMMi Model is comprised of different components, falling into three categories:
  1. Required Components
     • Specific Goals
       
       
     • Generic Goals.
  2. Expected components
     • Specific Practices
       
       
     • Generic Practices.
  3. Informative components
     • Sub-practices
       
       
     • Typical work products
       
       
     • Notes
       
       
     • Examples
       
       
     • References
       
       
     • Elaborations
       
       
• Generic Goals are components that directly address the institutionalisation of a process across the organisation. Institutionalisation can be viewed as the process of establishing a practice as a norm in an organisation or culture
  
  
• Institutionalisation is relevant to the level of maturity.
  • At Level 2, processes can be institutionalised in each project, but different processes can be defined for different projects.
    
    
  • At Level 3, the processes are centrally managed and all projects conform to a single standard (with some agreed tailoring)
    
    
• Generic Practices describe activities addressing aspects of institutionalisation. There are CMMI Process Areas that support the implementation of Generic Practices
  
  
• Generic Goal 3 is only applicable when trying to reach Maturity Level 3 or higher.
  
  
• When assessing a Process Area it is necessary to review the elaboration of the Generic Practice that is appropriate for that Process Area.
  
  
• A defined process is a managed process that is tailored from the organisation’s set of standard processes according to the organisation’s tailoring guidelines
  
  
• Although TMMi can be used and implemented in isolation, it is also designed as a complementary model. CMMI process areas can support a TMMi implementation.

Overview of Level 2: Managed

• At TMMi Level 2 testing is a process that is managed and separate from debugging.
  
• The main objective of testing is to verify that products satisfy their specified requirements.
  
• Testing may be perceived as a project phase that only starts once coding is finished.
  
• An organisation- or programme-wide test strategy is established.
  
• Testing is monitored and controlled.
  
• Testing may start relatively late in the development life cycle.

Level 2 Specific Practices

Overview of Level 3: Defined

• Level 3 builds on the solid foundations provided in Level 2 to build an increasingly mature and capable test process.
  
• Level 3 is looking to add to the framework by ensuring:
  • There is a conscious approach to professional test organisation and resources
    
  • That the organisational test framework is managed by test professionals
    
  • That test training is identified and made available as required
    
  • That testing is fully integrated with the overall delivery life cycle activities
    
  • Specific elements of testing are implemented.
    

Level 3 Specific Practices

Overview of Level 4: Measured

• In TMMi Level 4 organisations, testing is a thoroughly defined, well-founded and measurable process.
  
• Testing is perceived as evaluation.
  
• It consists of all life cycle activities concerned with checking products and related work products.
  
• This includes constant measurement of product quality throughout the life cycle as well as implementing advanced reviews that inform other elements of the test life cycle.

Level 4 Specific Practices

Overview of Level 5: Optimisation

• At TMMi Maturity Level 5, an organisation is capable of continually improving its processes based on a quantitative understanding of statistically controlled processes.
  
• Improving test process performance is carried out through an incremental and innovative process with associated technological improvements.
  
• Testing methods and techniques are optimised and there is a continuous focus on fine-tuning and process improvement.

Level 5 Specific Practices

In previous lessons we covered Maturity Levels and the Process Areas contained in each Level.

• Each Process Area contains Specific Goals (required components)
  
  
• Each Specific Goal is supported by
  • Specific Practices (expected components)
    
    
  • Typical work products (informative components)
    
    
  • Sub-practices (informative components)
    
    
  • Notes (informative components)
    
    
  • Examples (informative components)

In order to understand each process, the model provides a hierarchy of detail as follows:

Maturity Levels and Process Areas

The Maturity Levels and Process Areas provide the grouping of capabilities.

Purpose, introductory notes and scope of Process Areas.

These are informative components.

Specific Goals

A number of definitions of elements that must be present and implemented within the organisation. They are required components and must be successfully demonstrated.

Specific Practices

To assist in identifying whether a Specific Goal is satisfied or not, the model provides a number of Specific Practices describing features, activities and deliverables that are part of the Specific Goal. These are expected to be present.

Informative components

To assist in understanding Specific Practices, a number of Informative components are defined. These help to ensure that Specific Practices are satisfied. They are:

• Sub-Practices
  
  
• Notes
  
  
• Examples
  
  
• Typical Work Products

The hierarchy is illustrated by the diagram below, which we have seen in an earlier lesson:

Alternative view

Another way to view this hierarchy is to understand that using the notes, examples, Sub-practices and references, the Specific Practices are evaluated as being appropriately implemented by projects across the test organisation.

• If all Specific Practices are present (and carried out sufficiently well) then the associated Specific Goal has been demonstrated as being implemented – at least largely.
  
  
• If all Specific Goals are demonstrated as being (at least largely) implemented , then the associated Process Area is achieved

For this section of the course (TMMi Model) there are eight learning objectives:

• LO 5.1 [K2] Summarise the TMMi Level 2 Process Areas (Test Policy and Strategy, Test Planning, Test Monitoring and Control, Test Design and Execution and Test Environment) and Specific Goals
  
  
• LO 5.2 [K1] Recognise the Specific Practices of the TMMi Level 2 Process Areas (Test Policy and Strategy, Test Planning, Test Monitoring and Control, Test Design and Execution and Test Environment)
  
  
• LO 5.3 [K2] Summarise the TMMi Level 3 Process Areas (Test Organisation, Test Training, Test Life-cycle and Integration, Non-functional Testing and Peer Reviews) and Specific Goals
  
  
• LO 5.4 [K1] Recognise the Specific Practices of the TMMi Level 3 Process Areas (Test Organisation, Test Training, Test Life-cycle and Integration, Non-functional Testing and Peer Reviews)
  
  
• LO 5.5 [K2] Summarise the TMMi Level 4 Process Areas (Test Measurement, Software Quality Evaluation, Advanced Reviews) and Specific Goals
  
  
• LO 5.6 [K1] Recognise the Specific Practices of the TMMi Level 4 (Test Measurement, Software Quality Evaluation, Advanced Reviews) Process Areas
  
  
• LO 5.7 [K2] Summarise the TMMi Level 5 Process Areas (Quality Control, Defect Prevention and Test Process Optimisation) and Specific Goals
  
  
• LO 5.8 [K1] Recognise the Specific Practices of the TMMi Level 5 Process Areas (Quality Control, Defect Prevention and Test Process Optimisation)

In a classroom-based situation, the syllabus for this course expects this section of the training to take approximately 270 minutes, but I recommend you spend about double that time on it as it is the largest and most detailed part of the course.

The diagram below illustrates the hierarchy of the TMMi Model.

The TMMi Model has 5 Maturity Levels, 4 of which contain Process Areas.

Each Process Area contains Specific Goals and Generic Goals

Each Specific Goal has a number of Specific Practices and each Generic Goal has Generic Practices.

Specific Practices consist of:

• Sub-practices
• Typical work products
• Other informative comments may be included:
  • notes
  • examples

Generic Practices may contain informative components:

• Elaboration
• Notes
• Examples
• References

For this section of the course (Structure of the TMMi) there are nine learning objectives:

• LO 4.1 [K2] Summarise the components of the TMMi model
  
  
• LO 4.2 [K2] Explain the difference between a required, expected and informative component
  
  
• LO 4.3 [K2] Categorise the components of the TMMi model by type (required, expected, informative)
  
  
• LO 4.4 [K2] Summarise the Generic Goals of the TMMi model
  
  
• LO 4.5 [K2] Understand the two levels of institutionalisation related to the Generic Goals GG2 and GG3
  
  
• LO 4.6 [K1] Recognise the Generic Practices of both GG2 and GG3
  
  
• LO 4.7 [K2] Summarise the relationship between TMMi and CMMI
  

In a classroom-based situation, the syllabus for this course expects this section of the training to take approximately 70 minutes, but I suggest you take at least 120 minutes.

In this section we will continue our high-level look at the Process Areas, this time for Maturity Level 3. As with Level 2, we begin with a review of the overall purpose of the Maturity Level, then examine at each of the Level’s Process Areas, considering their main purpose, scope, and some points to consider when assessing a test organisation for TMMi compliance or when deploying new or improved processes and procedures.

I know I keep saying this, but you will have seen some of this content in previous lessons and topics, but this is intentional, as we are attempting to improve your knowledge of the model incrementally, using repetition as one of the methods of reinforcing memory.

We’ve now come to the part of the course where we will be looking in more detail at the TMMi Process Areas. We will go through each Maturity Level in turn, starting with Level 2 (since there are no Process Areas associated with Level 1). We will begin with a review of the overall purpose of the Maturity Level, then look at each of the Level’s Process Areas, considering its main purpose, what it is meant to cover (in other words, its scope) and some points to consider when assessing a test organisation for compliance of the Process Area or deploying new or improved processes.

You will have already seen, in previous lessons, some of the content we are going to cover, but as has already been indicated, this is intentional, as we are building up your knowledge of the structure and content of the model slowly and carefully, using repetition as one of the ways to ensure you remember the important points for the exam.

The diagram below illustrates the main structure of the TMMi Model using Specific Goal 1 (Establish a test policy) of Process Area 2.1 – Test policy and strategy – as an example.

Maturity Level 2 has five Process Areas, including Process Area 2.1 – Test policy and strategy.

Process Area 2.1 in turn contains Specific and Generic Goals. For clarity we have only illustrated the Specific Goals here.

Each Specific Goal is supported by several Specific Practices. Each Generic Goal is supported by several Generic Practices. Again, we have omitted the Generic Practices to keep the diagram simple.

Specific Goal 1 has three Specific Practices, SP 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3.

Specific Practice 1.1 – Define test goals – This says what needs to be achieved in simple, high-level terms. Under the Specific Practices in the model, at the lowest level in the TMMi structure, are the Sub-practices. There are five of them for the Specific Practice ‘Define test goals’. They provide examples of the activities that could be carried out in order to achieve the associated Specific Practice.

The diagram below illustrates the main structure of the TMMi Model.

Each of the five Maturity Levels indicates a test process capability. Each Maturity Level (except Level 1) contains Process Areas covering groups of test activities that can be evaluated together.

Each Process Area is associated with several Specific and Generic Goals. These Goals must be achieved to demonstrate that the organisation is capable of undertaking the activities within the Process Area.

Each Specific Goal is supported by Specific Practices and each Generic Goal is supported by Generic Practices. The Practices describe the things that need to be implemented so as to achieve the associated Goals.

All Specific Practices (apart from just two) have associated Sub-practices. The Sub-practices provide a more detailed description of the associated Practice, giving  guidance for how it should be interpreted or implemented – in other words, how a test organisation can undertake the activities described in the Practice.

There are 5 Maturity Levels defined in the TMMi Model.

The descriptions below provide a progressive road map to higher levels of process capability.

• Level 1 – Initial
  • A chaotic and undefined process often seen as part of the development process
  • When pressure is applied, any existing practices tend to be abandoned and ad-hoc processes are employed
    
    
• Level 2 – Managed
  • Testing is a process that is managed and clearly separated from development
  • In times of stress existing practices are carried out as normal
  • Practices are retained from project to project
    
    
• Level 3 – Defined
  • Testing is no longer a phase which simply follows coding
  • It is fully integrated into the project life cycle with testing involvement starting as early as requirements definition
    
    
• Level 4 – Measured
  • The testing organisation is thoroughly designed, well-founded and measured, with established quantitative objectives for product quality.
    
    
• Level 5 – Optimisation
  • A fully-defined and continually self-improving process, clearly fulfilling its improvement objectives.
  • Capable of controlling the cost and effectiveness of testing

• TMMi has 5 Levels of Maturity
  
  
• Apart from Level 1, each Maturity Level contains several Process Areas. A Process Area is a group of activities which can be evaluated together.
  
  
• Level 1 has no Process Areas and is awarded without any due process. If you test in any way, no matter how badly or inconsistently, you automatically achieve Level 1 (although you don’t get a certificate and you won’t be listed on the TMMi Foundation’s website).
  
  
• Each Level above 1 is empirically validated, in other words, measured based on solid evidence seen or experienced by assessors.
  
  
• TMMi is a staged model – in essence this means that to gain certification at higher levels of maturity the lower Levels must also be achieved. So, to achieve Level 4 you must also achieve Levels 2 and 3 (Level 1 is ignored for this purpose).
  
  
• While each Process Area deals with a specific set of activities, there are still relationships between them – both in the same Maturity Level and other Levels. You can think of it as building a house: The Process Areas at Level 2 are the solid foundations on which to put your house. Once these foundation blocks are in place and working well, then look to develop the next floor (the next level of maturity).