In the 1980s, the US Department of Defense (a large customer for software) found that their software projects were perennially in a crisis mode and subject to large time delays, cost overruns and poor quality. Looking for a long term solution, the DoD set up the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in 1986 at the Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
At the SEI, Watts Humphrey initiated the Software Process Program where he built a foundation for a process maturity framework in his seminal book Managing the Software Process. The concepts were refined to develop the Capability Maturity Model® for Software which was initially released in 1991 and subsequently as Version 1.1 in 1993. The CMM® later evolved into the CMMI®, currently in version 1.2.
While implementing the SW CMM®, many practitioners realized that the one of the cornerstones of successful projects relates to the workforce and people management issues. These include hiring, training, performance feedback, career opportunities, facilities and compensation. Some of these issues led to high staff turnover, loss of knowledge (along with the people), poor teamwork and inability to attract talent further affecting the software project success. The People CMM® project was therefore initiated.
The People CMM® was first published in 1995 by Bill Curtis, Sally Miller and William Hefley. Version 2.0 of the People CMM® was released in 2001. According to the information available, this version will continue for a while. Please visit the SEI site for more up-to-date information.