ITIL Qualifications Explained

ITIL Qualifications Explained

ITIL is the most widely adopted approach to IT Service Management. This White Paper explains the structure of ITIL Version 3 training and qualifications that are available

ITIL Certification

ITIL certification is for individuals and it signifies different levels of awareness and capability with regard to ITIL

ITIL training is undertaken in the UK by over 30 specialist training companies- All accredited on behalf of the OGC. They use approved course materials based on the official ITIL manuals ? and they prepare delegates for exams which are usually included in the training course.

ITIL Qualification Structure

There are 4 levels within the ITIL Version 3 qualification structure, providing a systematic route from Foundation through to higher level management qualifications

— Foundation

— Intermediate

— ITIL Expert

— ITIL Master

The new ITIL qualifications scheme recognises the value of existing v2 qualifications and introduces a system that gives credits for both ITIL v2 and v3 courses.

To achieve the ITIL Expert qualification, candidates must achieve at least 22 credits, two of which can be gained at Foundation level. (Full details of the credits system, examinations and pre-requisites can be found via the www.best-management-practice.com website.)

ITIL Foundation

This is the first step on the ITIL v3 education programme. The course explains the basics of ITIL, its terminology and common processes. It also travels through the Service Lifecycle, defining the roles and responsibilities involved.

Who should attend: Anyone involved in IT or the business

Duration: 3 days

Exam: 40 Questions multi choice ? pass mark 26

Credits: 2

ITIL Intermediate

At the intermediate level there are 9 modular courses from which students will typically need to acquire 15 credits in order to move on to the «cap-stone» Managing Across the Lifecycle Course and achieve the ITIL Expert qualification

The courses are grouped into 2 streams. It will be possible to «pick and mix» from these various modules to suit the requirements of you and your organisation. There are some constraints to ensure a good mix of topics is covered.

The Service Lifecycle courses (each worth 3 credits) align to each of the 5 core ITIL manuals.

Service Strategy

Service Design

Service Transition

Service Operation

Continual Service Improvement

The Service Capability courses (each worth 4 credits) focus on ITIL processes:

Planning, Protection and Optimisation

Service Offerings and Agreement

Release, Control & Validation

Operational Support & Analysis

Who should attend: IT professionals interested to develop specific ITSM skill sets and those who seek to achieve ITIL Expert status

Duration:Service Lifecycle ? 21 hrs minimum (3 or 4 day course), Service Capability ? 30 hrs minimum (4 or 5 day course)

Exam:90 minute graduated multiple choice with scenario based questions. Pass mark 65% (75% for a Distinction)

Credits:Service Lifecycle ? 3, Service Capability ? 4

ITIL Expert

The ITIL Expert will replace the current ITIL Manager certification which distinguishes experienced IT service leaders who have studied the application of ITIL in depth.

The version 3 ITIL Expert qualification is obtained upon achievement of 17 or more credits from the Foundation, Intermediate, Bridge or v2 Courses — followed by the broad and high level course — «Managing Across the Lifecycle».

Managing Across the Lifecycle

The purpose of this module is to consolidate and test the content of the 5 core guidance ITIL manuals. The focus is on business, management and supervisory aspects, with attention given to the interactions between the different ITIL processes.

Who should attend: CIOs, IT Managers, IT Professionals

Duration: 5 days

Exam: 8 multiple choice, scenario based, gradient scored questions.

Pass Mark 28 marks (70%)

In addition, candidates must be able to demonstrate at least 5 years of IT experience and have at least 2 years of experience in an IT service Management environment in a supervisory, managerial or consultancy role.

ITIL Master

Candidates for this level will be required to have achieved the ITIL Expert certification and to have demonstrated practical application and experience. They will be assessed on the broader issues of ITSM implementations including:

?Managing cultural and organisational change

?Responding to industry change

?Continual improvement of ITSM capability

?Preparing organisations for audit and certification

This qualification will not be associated with an accredited course.

ITIL Bridging Courses

An interim set of Bridging Courses has been introduced for those who have already undertaken training under earlier versions of ITIL and who wish to update their knowledge to reflect the latest release.

Foundation Bridge

Who should attend: Existing holders of the Foundation Certificate. Active members of Service Management teams.

Duration: 1 day

Content: An overview of the lifecycle approach to ITIL ? highlighting key changes and explaining the benefits

Exam: 30 minute multiple choice paper with 20 questions ? 65% pass mark

Credits: 0.5 (which can be added to the 1.5 earned from version 1 or version 2 foundation certificates)

Manager Bridge

Who should attend: Existing holders of the Manager’s Certificate who wish to upgrade to the new ITIL Expert qualification. It is not necessary to have taken the Foundation Bridge. CIOs, IT Managers, IT Professionals

Duration: 4 or 5 days

Content: In depth coverage of the lifecycle approach to ITIL ? highlighting key changes and explaining the benefits

Exam: 90 minute multiple choice paper with 20 questions ? 80% pass mark

Credits: 5 (which when added to the 17 earned from version 1 or version 2 Service Manager certificates result in the 22 credits required to qualify as an ITIL Expert)

Practitioner Bridge

Those with at least 12 credits from v2 Practitioner courses but who do not hold the Manager’s Certificate may achieve ITIL Expert status by:

?First completing the Manager’s Bridge course and exam

?Then completing the Managing across the Lifecycle Course and Exam

This enables part qualified individuals to obtain ITIL Expert certification without the need to study at the new Intermediate level.

Benefits of ITIL

Investments in information services have frequently been characterised by over spend, under delivery, and a lack of transparency. ITIL provides a maturity path for IT which is not technology based ? providing practical management tools which are accessible to a wider audience.

Benefits of adopting ITIL can include:

— Increased productivity

— Higher levels of customer satisfaction

— Reduced costs

— Improved communications between the IT function and its customers

— Improved morale of service delivery staff

— Lower costs of training

— Better asset utilisation

Savings in total costs of ownership of 48% have been reported in case studies. P&G has attributed savings of 10% of their total IT costs to adoption of ITIL.

Total Cost of Ownership studies by Axios and others suggest 75% of your IT costs are associated with Service Management rather than acquisition and commissioning. ITIL training and certification can help you understand and optimise the effectiveness of this spend.

ITIL Training and ISO20000

ITIL embodies the methodologies which underpin the ISO/IEC20000 quality accreditation for organisations with respect to their information systems. This is displacing BS15000 in the UK and is rapidly being adopted as the definitive international standard for IT Service Management.

ISO/IEC20000 is an auditable standard which specifies five key service management processes:

? Service Delivery Processes

? Relationship Processes

? Resolution Processes

? Control Processes

? Release Process