Introducing ITIL Lifecycle Bootcamps

IT organizations are under constant pressure to increase IT service quality while controlling costs and risks. These organizations need people who are skilled at using best practices to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of IT service management processes in support of business goals.

 

You may have heard the expression “ITIL® lifecycle courses are for people who work on processes, and capability courses are for people who work in processes.” ITIL lifecycle courses focus on a single stage of the ITIL service lifecycle and explore stage activities, process relationships, roles and implementation considerations. These courses accommodate the needs of people who are leading implementation and improvement activities and require a management-level view. ITIL capability courses focus on a cluster of processes and cover a detailed view of process inputs, activities, concepts, metrics and outputs. These courses are aimed at people who are involved in executing and improving an existing set of related processes and wish to enhance their role-based capabilities.

The ITIL Expert certificate is awarded to individuals who demonstrate a superior knowledge of ITIL V3 in its entirety. Achieving this level of certification benefits both the individual and organization by increasing the effectiveness with which ITIL is adopted. The ITIL V3 Qualification Scheme offers a modular approach to certification with many possible paths to ITIL Expert.

ITSM Academy’s exciting new ITIL Lifecycle Boot Camp program provides individuals looking for a balanced, accelerated, and cost-effective curriculum a way to achieve 15 of the 22 credits require for the ITIL Expert certification. The boot camp approach involves combining two lifecycle courses (e.g., Service Strategy and Service Design, or Service Transition and Service Operation) into an intense 5-day classroom-based experience. Although challenging, this approach makes it possible for students to understand the tight integration between lifecycle stages and processes and the benefits of realizing an integrated process approach.

To further control costs and time away from work, candidates can opt to take the Continual Service Improvement course in our virtual classroom. This innovative approach enables students to attend class via the internet while still reaping the benefits of live interaction with their instructor and classmates.

ITSM Academy’s innovative boot camp approach addresses many of the characteristics you may want to consider when selecting a training provider. Benefits include: 

• Course materials and delivery methods that match students’ learning styles 
• The resources and guidance students need to succeed before, during and after class
• Highly credentialed trainers with years of “been there, done that” experience who can keep students engaged and inspired while they are learning best practices 
• Practical assignments, classroom discussions and networking opportunities that enable students to immediately apply and put into action what they are learning
• Time-tested exam taking tips, sample questions and a mock exam that help students prepare for the exam
• High-quality, fully accredited course materials packed with value-add 

Individual certifications look great on your resume and provide tangible evidence of career growth but ultimately it is about using the knowledge you acquire to benefit your business. A well-rounded program enables you to maximize those benefits through the use of best practices.

ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce, in the United Kingdom and other countries.

The Foundation Bridge Class Moves to Two Days

Based on the advice of the Foundation Syllabus Review team that met in late 2008, the required syllabus hours for V2/V3 Foundation Bridge course will be increased to 9.5 hours, effective May, 2009. The result will be a two day Foundation Bridge course instead of the current single day. I am extremely supportive of this decision because it will better meet the needs of our learners, both from a certification and knowledge perspective. We want individuals and organizations who have already invested in ITIL V2 education to explore and leverage the new processes and lifecycle context from ITIL V3. However, we want them to gain that knowledge in a meaningful way, not just as a means to pass an exam. Now they can.

While our pass rates for Foundation Bridge have been very high, we have been concerned about the standard of the one day course. At ITSM Academy, we have never been "all about the certification". The one day structure crams a lot of information into a short span of time, with little to no time to assimilate the materials or study for the exam. The two day course allows for a better pace, a night to study, and an opportunity for practical advice, dialogue and exercises. Learner feedback repeatedly recommends spreading the material over more time.

Similarly, the one day Bridge course has not effectively prepared learners for Intermediate courses. Our instructors have noticed that learners entering the Intermediate courses (Lifecycle or Capability) with Foundation Bridge certification have not been as prepared as those who completed the full V3 Foundation course. The two day format will allow more time for assimilation and improve a learner's success in advanced courses - while also respecting their V2 Foundation knowledge and existing certification.

So, if our learners can have a better experience, get certified and come away with actionable V3 knowledge, why wait until May? At ITSM Academy, we have decided to move to a two day Foundation Bridge format, effectively immediately. And the best news is that, for a limited time, we are happy to offer the higher quality two day course at the one day price.

Continual Service Improvement

The first certification course focused on Continual Service Improvement (CSI) will rollout on March 2-4 at ITSM Academy. This three day course is part of the ITIL V3 Lifecycle stream and is culled from the ITIL publication of the same name.

With so many Intermediate courses to release, our Curriculumn Development team examined what process education was already available in some form and what critical aspects were not yet being well covered. While there are many courses available that cover the common processes of Incident, Problem, Service Desk, Change Release and Configuration, there has been a lack of formal education on CSI.

Our experience with ITSM implementations indicates that organizations usually have or gain the skills necessary to implement and execute key processes. What seems to be lacking is the knowledge of how to define, measure and use process data to sustain and improve service quality. Continual Service Improvement is a running theme throughout ITIL, MOF and ISO/IEC 20000. In the famous line from Nike - there is no finish line!

So we have decided to begin our Lifecycle series with the stage that encompasses the entire Service Lifecycle - CSI. It is our hope and intent that in doing so, our learners will enter other Capability and Lifecycle courses already equipped with the core CSI skills needed to manage, execute and improve any process or lifecycle stage.

For more information about the CSI Lifecycle Certification course, please visit http://www.itsmacademy.com/Detail.bok?no=118

Lifecycle vs. Capability Courses

Now that the ITIL V3 Intermediate certifications are available, I am getting more and more questions about the differences between the Lifecycle and Capability courses. While the content may appear similar, the focus and target audience for each stream is, in fact, very different. And while Foundation provides a good overview of ITIL V3, it is in the Intermediate courses that the processes and stages come to life.

For those who are familiar with the ITIL V2 certification scheme, you can translate Lifecycle and Capability into Service Manager and Practitioner. For those unfamiliar with V2, Lifecycle courses are for those individuals working "on" ITSM implementation and Capability courses are for those individuals working "in" the daily process activities.

Let's start with the Capability courses. The four Capability courses focus on executing and improving existing related processes. The syllabus is more prescriptive and covers a detailed view of the inputs, activities, concepts, metrics and outputs of each process. The target audience includes process managers, line managers and those who will execute the daily activities of one or more process. Capability courses are essentially upgraded equivalents to V2 Practitioner courses

• Operational Support and Analysis (OSA) = Support and Restore (IPSR)
  (Incident, Problem, Request, Event, Access, Functions)
• Release, Control and Validation (RCV) = Release and Control (IPRC)
  (Change, Release, Configuration, Evaluation, Validation, Knowledge)
• Service Offerings and Agreements (SOA) = Agree and Define (IPAD)
  (Service Portfolio, Service Level, Service Catalog, Financial, Supplier, Demand)
• Planning, Protection and Optimization (PPO) = Plan and Improve (IPPI)
  (Security, Availability, Capacity, Continuity, Risk)

The five Lifecycle (Service Manager) modules are more strategic in nature and focus on implementing an entire stage of the Service Lifecycle. Lifecycle courses emphasize stage and process relationships, roles, responsibilities and implementation considerations. There is very little time spent on process activities. The target audience includes process owners, Lifecycle stage managers, ITSM implementation teams, consultants, stakeholders and anyone else involved in an ITSM project.

The big advantage of the Lifecycle stream is that it is modular. In V2, the only option for advanced implementation certification is within the Service Manager course. With the modular Lifecycle stream, your organization can get "just-in-time" implementation education and certification while building credits towards the ITIL Expert. So, if you are planning to implement Service Operation and Service Transition this year, your project stakeholders can take the Service Operation and Service Transition courses this year. I would however, recommend, that at least one individual from each organization take all of the Lifecycle courses to gain a big picture view of the entire Service Lifecycle.

The Lifecycle and Capability streams both culminate in Managing Across the Lifecycle (MALC). The MALC certification exam is the final step to achieving ITIL Expert. MALC looks at the dynamics of the Service Lifecycle with a strong emphasis on organizational change.

Can you mix and match courses from both streams to earn enough credits for the ITIL Expert? Yes - but if you are interested in achieving ITIL Expert, you will need to ensure sufficient broad-based knowledge to succeed in Managing Across the Lifecycle. The Credit Profiler mentioned in my last blog is a good tool for ensuring that your knowledge is balanced and your credits are building.

So, the choice between Lifecycle and Capability courses really depends on where you are in your ITSM journey and what you are trying to achieve in the short term.