SPiCE in action - experiences in tailoring and extension

Today the standard ISO/IEC TR 15504: software process assessment commonly known as SPiCE has been in use for more than 5 years, with hundreds of software process assessments performed in organizations around the world. The success of the ISO 15504 approach is demonstrated by its application in and extension to all sectors featuring software development, in particular, space, automotive, finance, healthcare, and electronics. As the current Technical Report makes the transition into an international standard, many initiatives are underway to expand the application of process assessment to areas even outside of software development. This paper reports on experiences in the use of ISO 15504 both in tailoring the standard for particular industrial sectors and in expanding the process assessment approach into new domains. In particular, three projects are discussed: SPiCE for SPACE, a ISO/IEC TR 15504 conformant method of software process assessment developed for the European space industry; SPiCE-9000 for SPACE, an assessment method for space quality management systems, based on ISO 9001:2000; and NOVE-IT, a project of the Swiss federal government to establish and assess processes covering IT procurement, development, operation, and service provision.