What is this “Random Sample” about, and why do I need it?

New for CMMI V2.0, the “RGS” is a way to ensure that projects for your appraisal are not “cherry picked,” and that ALL of your organizational unit is, in fact, performing at ML3.

First, a little history.

Back in the bad-old days, there wasn’t a lot of guidance about what should be included in an appraisal.  For v1.0, Lead Appraisers could identify whatever scope they wanted, and also exclude whatever Process Areas they wanted.  This was OK for credible and ethical Lead Appraisers, but like any other business opportunity, the scammers showed up and were awarding ratings for companies that only showed one project (when they had hundreds) and excluded important PAs like Requirements Management and Planning!  One appraisal, conducted outside of the US, was for a 50,000 person “Organizational Unit” that looked at one 4-person project without Planning, Requirements, or Measurement.  Oy!

As you might expect, the Quality Department started scrutinizing appraisals more closely, even rejecting some, which caused people to ask “how many is acceptable?”  It’s kind of a crazy question, given the unlimited number of combinations there are in the world, but backed into a corner, they said “three.”

So

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