Editing Capability Maturity Model (section)

===Prior need for software processes===
In the 1980s, the use of computers grew more widespread, more flexible and less costly. Organizations began to adopt computerized information systems, and the demand for [[software development]] grew significantly. Many processes for software development were in their infancy, with few standard or "[[best practice]]" approaches defined.

As a result, the growth was accompanied by growing pains: project failure was common, the field of [[computer science]] was still in its early years, and the ambitions for project scale and complexity exceeded the market capability to deliver adequate products within a planned budget. Individuals such as [[Edward Yourdon]],<ref name=yourdon89msa>{{cite book
 |last1=Yourdon
 |first1=E.
 |title=1989. Modern Structured Analysis.
 |location=New York
 |publisher=[[Prentice Hall.]]
 |year=1989
 |isbn=978-0135986240
 |url-access=registration
 |url=https://archive.org/details/modernstructured00your
 }}</ref> [[Larry Constantine]], [[Gerald Weinberg]],<ref name=weinberg92qsm>{{cite book
 |last1=Weinberg |first1=G. M. |author-link1=Gerald M. Weinberg
 |title=Quality Software Management: Anticipating Change. Vol. 1: Systems Thinking.
 |location=New York
 |publisher=[[Dorset House Pub.]]
 |year=1992
 |isbn=978-0-932633-72-9
}}</ref> [[Tom DeMarco]],<ref name=demarcolister97wwb>{{cite book
 |last1=DeMarco |first1=T. |last2=Lister |first2=T.
 |title=Waltzing with Bears: Managing Risk on Software Projects
 |location=New York
 |publisher=[[Dorset House Pub.]]
 |year=1997
 |isbn= 978-0-932633-60-6
}}</ref> and [[David Parnas]] began to publish articles and books with research results in an attempt to professionalize the software-development processes.<ref name="McKay"/><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://pep-inc.com/2011/01/23/cmmi-six-sigma-their-roots/|title=CMMI-Six Sigma, their roots|date=2011-01-23|work=Process Enhancement Partners, Inc.|access-date=2018-05-11|language=en-US}}</ref>

In the 1980s, several US military projects involving software subcontractors ran over-budget and were completed far later than planned, if at all. In an effort to determine why this was occurring, the [[United States Air Force]] funded a study at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI).