The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) is a framework developed by Carnegie Mellon University that outlines a structured path for software organizations to evolve from immature processes to disciplined ones. It consists of five maturity levels: Initial, Repeatable, Defined, Managed, and Optimizing, each representing varying stages of process capability and control. CMM provides organizations with guidelines for improving their software development processes and measuring performance to achieve higher quality and efficiency.