Expert discusses process improvement models and ways small organizations can achieve process maturity

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – November 17, 2008 – A leading process improvement expert from Esterline AVISTA, the U.S. leader in critical systems software engineering services, will present at the National Defense Industry Association's (NDIA) annual CMMI® (Capability Maturity Model® Integration) Technology Conference and User Group held November 17-21, 2008. In its eighth year, the event works to advance CMMI process improvement and help companies achieve a higher state of process capability in engineering development to reduce cost, schedule and risk, and improve overall quality. One of Esterline AVISTA's own CMMI and process improvement experts, Mark Kelley, is presenting multiple sessions at the industry's leading process improvement conference.

In his first session, Mark Kelley is addressing the challenges in quantitative prediction in the session "Finding Useful CMMI Models", held Thursday November 20 from 8:45 to 9:30 a.m. Teams striving for process improvement need to go beyond the usual and be more creative to identify the most useful models and yield the best results. Attendees will get tips on how to identify models that support critical business objectives, and developing effective quantitative tools roadmap to manage progress towards the quality and process-performance objectives.

Mark Kelley is also presenting two sessions that address the specific challenges faced by smaller companies or teams in high-maturity appraisals and maintenance. The session, "Ongoing CMMI Level 4/5 for Smaller Teams", will be held on Thursday, November 20 from 10:45to 11:30 a.m. While most associated with large companies, teams of less than 250 employees can still benefit from the process capability model, particularly the process managed metrics and optimization from CMMI Maturity Levels 4 and 5. This session presents strategies identifying and evaluating appropriate projects for improvement and maximizing benefits.

Later that same afternoon, Mark Kelley will present "SCAMPI Appraisals for Small Companies," from 1:00 to 1:45 p.m.Getting started down the road of CMMI appraisals can be intimidating for smaller companies, since the CMMI model is really geared toward large organizations. Kelley will present strategies to help small companies, as well as smaller groups within large companies, successfully plan and execute CMMI appraisals.

More information about the event and a complete agenda is available online at: NDIA conference web site. To schedule a meeting with Esterline AVISTA at the event, please call 608-348-8815.

About Esterline AVISTA
Esterline AVISTA (AVISTA Incorporated®), a subsidiary of Esterline Corporation, is a full-lifecycle software engineering services company specializing in critical systems software development projects for aerospace, defense and medical electronics applications. Esterline AVISTA fields the strongest, most stable, and most capable DO-178B software development team in the industry. The company has completed more than 1,000 client projects over the last 20 years in systems design, requirements capture and analysis, software design and implementation, and software verification and validation. Esterline AVISTA, headquartered in Platteville, Wisconsin, is a SEI CMMI Maturity Level 5 rated company and an ISO 9001:2000 certified company.