For ten years, John Maher was a key leader at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in implementing software process improvement in organizations. Based on the need to help clients implement improvement in the context of their organizations’ cultures, management styles, and structures, he created and managed the SEI’s organization change consulting practice. As one of the pioneers of software process improvement, he was co-creator of the SEI’s IDEAL model for process improvement in large organizations.
While leading the SEI’s organization change practice, John was a principal author of the Managing Technological Change, Consulting Skills Workshop, and Team Training courses. John consulted with the SEI in a redesign effort in 1994, and then implemented the process improvements for the next three years in his role as Quality Director. He left the SEI in late 1997 and is now in private practice in New York. He continues to serve as a Visiting Scientist with the SEI, and frequently consults with senior management teams on process improvement and organization design, as well as provides training at the SEI and at client locations.
Prior to his work with the SEI, John worked at both Digital Equipment Corporation and Bank of America, where he both developed software and training simulations and also managed software-intensive projects. His experience also includes starting an organization in Digital to acquire third-party software and creating a state-of-the-art distance-learning center for Arizona State University, where he received his Ph.D.
John specializes in implementation: designing and implementing the technical and process improvements within the context of the client’s work culture, creating more effective management approaches, and implementing cross-functional alignment of organizations. His focus ranges from small-scale team-based improvement to company-wide organizational transformation.
John’s current projects include ongoing process improvement consulting, teaching the CMMI suite of courses for the SEI, and writing. He recently led a project to develop a Code of Professional Practice for all SEI-related products and services, as well as developed and taught a Qualified Consultant’s Workshop for consultants using the eSourcing Capability Model for Service Providers (eSCM-SP) developed by the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).
John has over 35 years of training experience and nearly 30 years of experience implementing improvement in organizations, the last 20 of which were CMM and CMMI related. John is authorized by the SEI to lead SCAMPI appraisals, as well as teach the Introduction to the CMMI. He is a Qualified eSCM Consultant for IT-enabled service providers. He also has been certified as a Covey Facilitator, a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator consultant, and an Innovation Styles consultant. He is a member of the IEEE, the American Society for Quality, and the Organization Development Network.
John’s company, Organization & Process Improvement, is a licensed SEI Partner.