ORGANIZATION
  Reuse Strategy Reuse Assessment Legal Issues Cost and Pricing Product Line
1 No reuse strategy exists. No planned assessment, and only ad hoc firefighting when projects go wrong. There is no awareness of legal or contractual constraints regarding reuse. If reuse exists, it is not dealt with explicitly when pricing products. The product strategy of the company relies on the vision of individuals.
2 Reuse strategies are defined, budgeted, and executed on a limited scale. Management understands the technical and organizational aspects of reuse. The reuse goals and resources of projects are approved by management, and the results are monitored. Legal and contractual constraints on reuse are identified and enforced. Reuse cost-accounting procedures are determined for the development and use of reusable components, i.e. who pays for what and how much? Incentives are established to encourage development for and with reuse. For each product line, all customer requirements are collected, to develop a short-term strategy for product evolution and for integration into the product line.
3 Management develops and implements a long-term strategy for improving the organization's reuse capability, in line with the general improvement program. The company has organizational structures to support reuse, and is organized to develop for and with reuse. Reuse is incorporated in standard communication and reporting at all levels. Long-term plans for funding reuse activities exist and are followed up quantitatively. The organization has a specific group dedicated to the assessment and improvement of the reuse capabilities of the organization. Legal and contractual constraints are reduced to increase the potential for reuse. Product pricing and funding strategies take into account expected costs and anticipated benefits of reuse throughout the product or product line. The requirements of customers for a specific product line are anticipated to develop a long-term strategy.
4 Product-line reuse strategies are developed to benefit from reuse across sets of related products. The reuse strategy is an explicit business and profit factor. The organization has reuse proccesses under quantitative control, and can assess any weaknesses in the processes.     An expert (a person or unit) is in charge of the capitalization of the expertise for an application domain and is in charge of developing the product line either for major customers or for a specific marketing area.
5   The organization makes planned improvements of its reuse processes and its organizational structures continuously.