August 1-15 
Chief Guest

 I'm concerned about how SEI^SM CMM® assessments are being done nowadays"

As the executive director of QAI, Navyug Mohnot has been a "quality" evangelist all his life. A B.Tech from IIT Delhi, who went to the University of Rochester, USA to do Masters in Information Systems Economics, Mohnot set up QAI in late 1994 as a joint venture with Quality Assurance Institute, USA. Over time, QAI became the market leader in process improvement and quality management in software organisations. firms in India.

Is the quality drive losing its sheen in India?

It's difficult to answer. If we are equating quality with any of the prevailing models like ISO 9000, CMM®, SPICE and Six Sigma, then yes, definitely. Quality benchmarking and certification services have so far been confined to the best and brightest in Indian software: TCS, Infosys, Satyam, HCL, Citicorp, Oracle, PwC, Motorola, Lucent and Digital, to name a few. Hence, a lot has been achieved at the high-end level. But I must admit that the novelty factor has worn out over the years and the noise level has also considerably reduced. There is less excitement about quality assessments now, as it has almost become mandatory for Indian software companies. Companies are moving up the value chain. Those which were at SEI^SM CMM® Level 3 are moving to Level 4 and on to Level 5. In my opinion, labels might change but quality processes remain sacrosanct. And the reason is obvious: These are just good management practices and even as the hype surrounding these quality models is gone, they have become an integral part of organisations.

In today's competitive market, does SEI^SM Level 5 bring any additional leverage?

With around 20-plus firms certified at Level 5, India has the largest number of companies in the world certified at that level. However, I am concerned at the way some assessments have taken place. In some cases, there have been dilutions in the assessment process and compromises have been made. In fact, now and then, SEI^SM representatives have come to India to assess and monitor how the assessments are being carried out. Eyebrows have been raised in industry circles when certain companies have been assessed at Level 5. It had also happened with ISO certifications. But, these are my concerns.

The Capability Maturity Model® generally concerned manufacturing excellence. The focus is now on the next level: how to inculcate a knowledge environment within an organisation. Innovation, best practices related to HR, business excellence, these are the next frontiers. In my opinion, the management of software organisations will start looking at these issues. In fact, in many companies it's already happening. The bottom line is: We need to move up the value chain.

What does getting a quality certification signify for an Indian company?

If one were to look at the pyramid structure of software organisations, then the base of the pyramid comprises of software developers, while the top level comprises of strategists. However, it is the middle management that generally handles risk, project, quality and change management. And, if one wants to achieve break-through performance in organisations, this middle management cannot be ignored. Essentially, there are two aspects to the quality process: Journey and goal. Firms need to know as to how they can institutionalise these quality processes, and get huge payoffs in terms of costs, cycle time, customer satisfaction and managing risks. I mean, an IIM label has its own value. Similarly, these quality models enhance the software lifecycle and have their own value.

What kind of quality certification is needed to enter non-US markets?

One cannot pinpoint that a particular quality model is prevalent in a certain geographical area. I would say CMM® is universal, while the Bootstrap quality model dominates the European markets. South-east Asian countries are once again predominantly CMM®-based. Japan has its own processes and methodologies, but CMM® is slowly catching up there also. Even as different quality models exist, CMM® is by far the most popular.

Isn't quality certification business worldwide and in India on the wane?

It's a wrong assessment. If you are pointing towards CMM® and PCMM®, then, definitely, the noise and hype is missing, but business is there. Till now, it was confined to the big software companies. But a lot of interest has been generated in the middle and small enterprises and they are adopting the quality models in a big way. The concept of CQA (certified quality analyst) is fast catching up in India. Recently, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) sent 1,000 professionals for the CQA certification. Lots of companies are looking at ISO 9000:2000. Then, there is the Certified Software Test Engineer (CSTE) programme, which is being launched. Six Sigma is also gaining popularity. So, assessments and certifications are still around and will continue to grow. It's only a reflection of the evolution of a business environment.

What are QAI's new avenues for growth?

QAI is like a boutique with a solid brand and we have always positioned it as a quality-oriented organisation that has competencies in improving software lifecycle. As a result, we have an elite clientele comprising American Express, Digital India, Lucent, Oracle, Intel, Wipro, HCL and Mastek, to name a few. We are now moving up the hierarchy of the pyramid, that is, upward expansion of the domain. We are repositioning ourselves from a consulting and training organisation to a knowledge corporation. We have developed a portal, softwaredioxide.com-an ecosystem for the software industry. At the core, it is basically a matrix of channels and domains and includes news, books, publications and papers, events, best practices and work exchange, among others.

Also, we are planning to go in a big way in promoting the E-learning initiative. It's expected to be launched in three months from now. The main motive behind this move is to reach a large number of professionals. This is essentially the use of Web technology and infrastructure to deliver and manage training and learning across distances to anyone, anywhere, anytime.

Although E-learning would not completely substitute traditional learning, it would help to overcome several drawbacks. We will be hosting all our training material and curriculum on the Web so that a large number of software professionals would have access to our course material. We would also be asking IT corporates to host our training material on their intranets. In short, we will be productising our services and create a global brand for our E-learning initiative.

In today's Internet era, how do you maintain quality processes in a company?

One has to understand that the Internet is just a technology for the people. It can be used to enhance quality. In fact, companies have used the power of the Internet to enhance quality of their offerings. So, it's just a facilitator.

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