Selecting, Using, and Creating Maturity Models: A Tool for Assurance and Consulting Engagements

Selecting, Using, and Creating Maturity Models: A Tool for Assurance and Consulting Engagements

Maturity models establish a systematic basis of measurement for describing the “as is” state of a process. A process’s maturity can then be compared to management’s expectations or contrasted with the maturity of other similar processes for benchmarking purposes.Insights also can be derived from the model for determining improvement options that help a process to satisfy its intended objectives over time. A maturity model describes process components that are believed to lead to better outputs and better outcomes. A low level of maturity implies a lower probability of success in consistently meeting an objective while a higher level of maturity implies a higher probability of success.The organization’s risk tolerance should be considered when determining the level of maturity that management expects to have in place. Auditors may want to use maturity models as criteria to assess business processes as part of assurance engagements, thus providing an easy-to-communicate understanding of the governance, risk, or control environment under review.In the absence of defined criteria for a process, the auditor can work with management to define adequate criteria using a maturity model.This practice guide provides guidance on the uses of maturity models, identifies considerations for their selection, and provides instructions on how to build them. Care must be taken to appropriately apply maturity models in assurance or consulting engagements, including validating their applicability to the process under review. Components of existing maturity models are provided for use “as is” or as the foundation for a model tailored specifically to an organization’s process.