Welcome to the July edition of the Demix Monthly Newsletter

If you missed the live session, don’t worry—the recording link is below. But for now, let’s dive into the key takeaways!

Pieter kicked off the core discussion with a powerful framing of a persistent challenge: the strategy execution gap. Organisations across industries excel at building bold strategic plans, but many falter when it comes to translating them into results.

The Data Speaks:

• 48% of organisations fail to achieve even half of their strategic objectives (Bridges Business Consulting, 2020).

• That number jumps to 85% when measuring success against two-thirds of strategic goals.

• Studies from HBR, McKinsey, Gartner, and the Cascade Report echo similar failure rates—around 70%.

The main culprits? Two critical areas:

1. Organisational Capability Deficits – Lack of the required internal competencies to execute plans.

2. Leadership & Change Management – Failure to lead and adapt at the human level.

Pieter made a compelling case that CMMI is a robust, proven toolset to address these gaps—by building capabilities that empower sustainable, measurable execution.

Real-World Cases

Coca-Cola (1985)

Attempted to reformulate its product to combat Pepsi. The failure? Misjudging emotional brand loyalty. The missed capability? Understanding customer needs—a core CMMI practice area.

Boeing

Delayed launches, cost overruns, and poor coordination in their Space Launch System initiative gave competitors like SpaceX the upper hand. Missing capabilities included:

• System engineering

• Supply coordination

• Cost control

• Process planning

By mapping these gaps to relevant CMMI capabilities, organisations can better prepare for strategic execution at scale.

Introducing a Structured 3-Step Process

To operationalise the connection between strategy and execution, we propose a 3-step approach using CMMI:

This structured loop ensures that strategic intent turns into measurable outcomes.

A Closer Look at Strategic Tools (And How CMMI Supports Them)

SWOT Analysis

CMMI supports internal Strengths and Weaknesses (via appraisal), and external Opportunities and Threats (through business resilience).

Balanced Scorecard

Tracks KPIs across dimensions like finance, customer satisfaction, internal processes, and learning. CMMI aligns with each domain via:

• Performance Improvement

• Customer Quality Assurance

• Continuous Learning

Business Model Canvas

Nine building blocks map directly to CMMI practice areas, reinforcing core operational and value-delivery functions.

Porter’s Value Chain

Primary and support activities benefit from CMMI’s process-based analysis and improvement recommendations.

What is CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration)?

As Ron Lear explained, CMMI is a performance improvement ecosystem composed of five pillars:

The Model – A modular, domain-agnostic structure of practice areas and value-driven principles.

The Appraisal Method – Evaluates current capabilities and tracks improvements.

Training & Certification – Builds internal skills and knowledge.

Support Tools – Digital platforms and content to manage adoption.

Adoption Guidance – Extensive documentation to tailor implementation.

CMMI’s flexibility allows it to integrate with frameworks like ISO, NIST, and industry-specific standards.

The Numbers Behind Performance

These results underscore CMMI’s strength: excellence in process = excellence in performance.

Myth-Busting: CMMI Isn’t Just for Big Business

Contrary to popular belief, 90% of CMMI-appraised organisations have fewer than 100 employees. It’s scalable, modular, and equally valuable to SMEs and multinationals alike.

Coming Soon: AI Capability in CMMI

From Strategy to Sustained Execution: A Practical Loop

Pieter wrapped up with the “closed-loop” path from strategic planning to institutionalisation:

• Strategic Planning – Define mission, goals, and direction.

• Capability Mapping – Identify required capabilities and map them to CMMI.

• Appraisal Execution – Scope, plan, and conduct CMMI appraisal.

• Improvement Planning – Prioritise gaps, define processes, allocate resources.

• Process Deployment – Execute improvements, train teams, gather metrics.

• Institutionalisation – Quality assurance ensures long-term adoption.

• Continuous Improvement – Re-enter the cycle with updated insights.

Key to this process: Organisational Change Management, supported by:

Vision   |   Skills   |   Incentives   |   Resources   |   Clear action plans

Lack of any one element results in common failure modes—confusion, anxiety, resistance.

Leadership’s Role: Who Should Own This?

While ownership may vary by industry (Engineering Process Group, PMO, or Quality Director), we strongly recommend the Chief Strategy Officer own the strategic execution process using CMMI.

An exciting word from Bianca

The European Medical Device Summit

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to attend the European Medical Device Summit (EMD) in Düsseldorf, Germany and what an experience it was!

It’s always exciting to be in a different country, experiencing new cultures and ways of life. This trip was extra special because it was my first official worktrip. I’m someone who thrives when thrown into the deep end, exposed to new situations and people, and this was exactly that. But at the same time, I felt at home to connect with industry professionals on a topic I’m deeply passionate about: the Voluntary Improvement Program (VIP) and CMMI.

It was a real privilege to represent the Voluntary Improvement Program as part of the Demix team, in partnership with ISACA. This was my first time participating in a summit of this scale, and I was blown away by the level of insight, collaboration, and shared purpose in the room.

Over the course of two days, we heard from industry leaders, discussed emerging challenges and opportunities, and exchanged ideas on how to strengthen quality and performance in the medical device sector.

A special thank you to Mike Cook and Rick Borges from ISACA, not only for the expertise, experience, and passion they brought to the Summit, but also for their warmth and humanity. It was such a joy to share stories, laugh (a lot!), and build new friendships.

Also, a heartfelt thanks to Dr Pieter van Zyl and Johann (Elmo) Scheffer from Demix for the depth of knowledge and real-world experience they brought to the table around the CMMI model. It’s always a privilege to share these kinds of opportunities with colleagues I look up to and admire.

It was a fantastic learning experience, and I’m incredibly grateful to have been part of it.

If you’d like to learn more about the Voluntary Improvement Program feel free to reach out:
📧 [email protected]