At itSMF USA, we receive many questions concerning the topic of Certification. This is a very important topic that affects both current and prospective members of the organization and everyone engaged in the practice of IT Service Management.  Certification is also a dynamic process. As the field changes, so must the certification process if it is to remain relevant. This can give rise to myths and misunderstandings.  Accordingly, we have collected and present here a few basic answers to frequently asked questions.

Q. What is the value of the Certification?

A. Certification is the mechanism by which you validate your thorough understanding of ITIL concepts and terminology.   Holding the certification also indicates to both your organization and others, that you have gained a mastery of the covered topics at the level commensurate with the certification. These qualifications are recognized worldwide.

Q. Who should be certified?

A. The service desk manager should be certified at the Practitioner level with either the new format Support/Restore clustered certification or the regular Service Desk/Incident Management Practitioner certification.  Operations and key staff should be certified at Foundation level and preferably at the Practitioner level for Incident Management.  The rest of the Information Technology organization should, at a minimum, have 2-4 hours of online or classroom courses to understand the basics, the nomenclature, and their potential role.   The Service Manager certification is for people driving an entire ITSM program within their organization or for consultants helping to implement ITSM.

Q. How does someone obtain a Foundation Certificate?

A. By passing the Foundation Certificate exam administered by one of the Examination Institutes (EI).  Preparation for the Foundation exam can be done by attending a classroom session (provides interaction with other students and the instructor), taking a web based Foundation prep course (self-paced and cost-effective) or through self-study (entirely self-directed).  Your own study style will be the best guide of the right format for you.

Q. How does someone obtain a Practitioner or Service Manager Certificate?

A. Preparation for either the Practitioner or Service Manager exams, also administered by the Examination Institutes requires classroom training. In conjunction with the classroom sessions, reading and reviewing the appropriate ITIL library books can help you prepare for the exams. Most certified ITIL training organizations will provide mock exams that can be an effective exam prep resource as well.

Q. Who are the Examination Institutes?

A. There are currently four examining bodies, both offering equivalent qualifications: ISEB (the Information Systems Examining Board), part of the British Computer Society; EXIN (the Netherlands Examination Institute); The APM Group (APMG), and Loyalist Certification Services (LCS). Jointly with the OGC and the itSMF (the IT Service Management Forum), they work to ensure a common standard is adopted for qualifications worldwide. They also accredit training organisations to deliver programmes leading to the qualifications. 

Q. How can I find a training provider or a schedule to take an exam?

A. The Examination Institutes list training providers (both accredited and non-accredited) and provide links to exam schedules.  Here are the links to each Examination Institute: 

ISEB (British Computer Society): http://www.bcs.org/server.php?show=nav.7207

EXIN: http://www.exin-exams.com/exams.aspx

APMG: http://www.apmgroup.co.uk/ITIL/ITILATOS/ITILATOs.asp

LCS: http://www.LCSExams.com

Q. What should people look at in evaluating training companies?

A. When evaluating training providers here are a few guidelines you might consider:

• Are they an organization whose materials and instructors are accredited by one or more of the examination institutes?  For Practitioner and Service Manager this is a requirement. For Foundation classes, this is optional, but many providers have chosen to accredit.
• Check references from previous students regarding the quality of the instruction and the material.
• What are the pass-rates for the organization? Current pass rates nationally are averaging 97% on Foundations, and 47% on the Managers exams.

Q. What about ISO/IEC 20000 Certification?

A. ISO/IEC 20000 (referred to simply as "20000") is the international Service Management standard, which drew upon the ITIL frameworks, British Standard 15000, and many other sources of best-practice. Not unlike ISO 9000, it is against 20000 that organizations are certified as having an integrated set of management processes for the effective delivery of information technology services to the business and its customers.

Individuals continue to be certified under the ITIL Qualification and Certification scheme. (Exception: Certified ISO/IEC 20000 consultants and auditors require additional training and testing.)

For additional information, check out the ITIL FAQ page on the OGC Web site:  http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1000368.

 

This document was prepared by Dennis G. Ravenelle, itSMF USA Board of Director, with contributions by Randy A. Steinberg and Hamid Nouri, of the 2007 Certification Committee, and Valery Arraj of the itSMF New England LIG.