Software process improvement at Hughes Aircraft

In 1987 and 1990, the Software Engineering Institute conducted process assessments of the Software Engineering Division (SED) of Hughes Aircraft in Fullerton, CA. The first assessment found the SED to be a level two organization, based on the SEI´s process-maturity scale of one to five, where one is worst and five is best. The first assessment identified the strengths and weaknesses of the SED, and the SEI made recommendations for process improvement. Hughes then established and implemented an action plan in accordance with these recommendations. The second assessment found the SEP to be a strong level three organization. The authors outline the assessment method used, the findings and recommendations from the initial assessment, the actions taken by Hughes, the lessons learned, and the business and product consequences.<>