a u d i oc r a s hc o u r s e tm
F o l l o wA l o n gM a n u a l
ITIL 4 Foundation
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Introduction .......................................................................... 1 Course Conventions and Content .................................................................................... 3 Chapter Two ............................................................................................... 8 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 23 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 24 Chapter Three: Key Concepts of Service Management ............................... 25 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 36 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 37 Chapter Four: The Seven Guiding Principles ............................................. 38 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 49 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 50 Chapter Five ............................................................................................. 52 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 57 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 58 Chapter Six: Service Value Systems and Service Value Chains................... 60 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 68 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 69 Chapter Seven: ITIL Practices, Key Terms .......................................................... 70 Quiz ................................................................................................................................ 81 Key Takeaways ............................................................................................................... 82 Chapter Eight ............................................................................................... 84 Continual Improvement .................................................................................................... 84
Incident Management........................................................................................................ 89 Basic Policies and Principles.......................................................................................... 90 Incident Prioritization .................................................................................................... 94 Incident Escalation ........................................................................................................ 95 Problem Management ....................................................................................................... 97 Change Management ...................................................................................................... 100 Quiz .............................................................................................................................. 102 Chapter Nine........................................................................................... 105 Quiz ............................................................................................................................... 115 Key Takeaways .............................................................................................................. 116 Congratulations, What Comes Next? ........................................................ 118 Final Exam ..................................................................................................................... 120 Conclusion ............................................................................................... 121 ITIL-PDF Manual .................................................................................... 122
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Welcome to this audio course on preparing for certification in ITIL Four Foundation! My name is <insert narrator name>, and I will guide you through the course material. Congratulations on making the decision to keep your IT service management skills up to date. Maybe you’re newly certified in ITIL version three. That means you are already a valuable asset to your organization. Most candidates are encouraged to move straight on to ITIL Four, to stay completely current with newer technologies. After listening to this course, you’ll have a comprehensive understanding of the exam content for ITIL Four Foundation. Just think of how valuable you will be then! After completing the foundation program, you'll find you have many options. You can move on to ITIL Managing Professional, also known as ITIL MP. Or you can move on to ITIL Strategic Leader, or ITIL SL. You need seventeen points to be eligible for the ITIL MP. If you are currently taking ITIL V three, you may be working towards obtaining your seventeen points to qualify for ITIL already, as part of your course. What are these points I mentioned? Thanks to the ITIL credit system, you gain these credits, or points. They help you to advance to further certifications. Each ITIL module you complete provides you with a certain number of credits. If you’re interested in the Strategy Leader certificate, you can complete a module called ITIL Leader Digital and Strategy. For now, this audio course will focus on the ITIL Four Foundation material. IT service management practices revolve around delivering value to customers. This is accomplished by identifying demand for a service, creating that service, and maintaining it through its full life cycle. To do this, you need strategy, design, operation, and transformation responsibilities. ITIL originally stood for Information Technology Infrastructure Library. It sets practices for IT service management. These practices help tailor IT services to meet the needs of today's businesses. In the nineteen eighties, IT service management organizations declared a need for best practices. The UK government’s Central Computer and Telecommunication Agency, also 1
known as the CCTA, provided them. In its infancy, ITIL was owned by the CCTA and other bodies, including the Office of Government Commerce or OGC and cabinet office. In the late nineteen nineties, new versions of ITIL were released. ITIL is constantly adapting and improving. For example, version one was released in nineteen eighty six and was in effect until nineteen ninety six. Version two was released in two thousand. Version three was released in two thousand and seven and was the standard until two thousand and eleven. The next release was not version four, but a revision of version three. ITIL version four was released on February twenty eighth, two thousand and nineteen. Nowadays, AXELOS owns ITIL. Constant updates are necessary, even critical, because of the rapid pace of technological advancements. Version four addresses these most recent changes and defines best practices accordingly. With these updated services, companies can add value to their operations, even during changing times. IT service industries in today's world rely on technology to make them efficient. IT services and technology products go hand in hand; products enable services and vice versa. Technological advancements have allowed for the creation of tools that can streamline processes. A great example of this is cloud computing. Modern organizations use cloud computing daily for sharing files, communication, and reporting. Another example is intranets, or local networks that host cloud computing tools. With this evolution of technology and services, it’s important for companies to maintain a balance between adaptiveness and longevity. ITIL practices have evolved alongside these developments. For example, ITIL practices are compatible with other modern best practices such as Agile, Lean, and Dev Ops. By the way, if you'll indulge me in a shameless plug: AudioLearn also offers a course on the Agile workflow technology. Consider listening to that course after you successfully complete this one. Thank you, and now back to the course. Organizations depend on technology. It can help them to gain leverage over their competitors and to cut costs. Machine learning can eliminate steps from a process that a specific department may perform. For example, analytics are traditionally done by a
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specialist, but technology allows us to automate reports with a click of a button. This removes the need for a specialist or any other individual in a role that creates reports. Considering efficiency and cost, it’s in the best interest of the organization to take advantage of the latest technology. ITIL Version Four considers the structure of the modern business environment. This environment is constantly changing, and the practices are written with that in mind. They allow for change, which keeps ITIL best practices relevant. Before I go any further into the course content, I want to explain what you can expect while listening to this audio course.
COURSE CONVENTIONS AND CONTENT I will now begin the section on course conventions and content! When I say course conventions, I mean the concepts and methods I will use to deliver this material to you. This course is presented in ten different chapters, and many of those chapters are divided into smaller sub sections. Each time I begin a new section or chapter, I will give you its name. Throughout the course, I will present small quizzes to you. You will find all quiz material in the Follow Along PDF Manual, which I will discuss in detail soon. As you take each quiz, you can consult the answer key to gauge how well you are retaining the course material. I will also read the correct answers to you. You'll find each quiz near the end of the chapter. A chapter quiz consists of ten questions. To help you better retain information, I will summarize the most critical points presented throughout the chapter. I’ll refer to these key points as takeaways. There will typically be ten of these important points; however, at the end of short chapters, I may limit it to five. A bit earlier I mentioned a Follow Along PDF Manual. Each AudioLearn course comes with a companion study guide; the Follow Along PDF Manual. This manual contains summaries of essential material, links to other supplemental information, and the chapter quizzes. It also contains a comprehensive final exam. If you choose to print the
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manual, use it for writing additional comments and notes as we progress through the material. This is a great way to improve your preparation for the exam. If you'd like, take advantage of the digital format of the study guide. It's up to you how you use it. For many, repetition is a powerful tool that aids learning. You will quickly discover that I will repeat many terms, concepts, and key points. When you hear ideas or pieces of information that I repeat, take note of them. They are probably very important concepts. I recommend you listen to each lecture in this course at least twice. It is near impossible for you to completely grasp all the information in just one listen. Listening to this course multiple times increases the likelihood of your absorbing as much of the information as you can. Whenever possible, try to take notes on what you hear in the lectures. The chapters are best absorbed if you can follow along in the PDF Manual when I direct you to a specific page. You will still get valuable information just by listening, but try to make at least one pass with the PDF Manual. Please only take notes or follow along in the manual if it is safe to do so. It's great to listen while driving but taking notes? Now, I want to present to you an outline of the material I will deliver throughout this course. This is just an overview. It will help you to understand what to expect from this course. My hope is that this outline motivates you and excites you about the prospect of becoming “ITIL Four” certified! Chapter two focuses on information about the exam. You must pass the test to become certified, so why not get familiar with it? I’ll talk about eligibility for the exam, and how you register and schedule a time to sit for it. I’ll also cover how to prepare for the exam, the test center regulations, and results and retake policies. In chapter three, I will explain definitions and terminologies that relate to service management. I will define IT management and its purpose and applications in modern business. I will then cover the most important concepts of ITIL Four. They include creating value and value “cocreation.” I’ll explain how key service relationships work together, and how to manage them. The key relationships include organizations, stakeholders, service providers, and customers. This chapter also covers the definitions of products, goods, and services and how service relationship management balances 4
these connections. Key terms such as service offerings, access to resource, and service actions will be explored. Finally, I’ll talk about value outcomes, costs, and the risk they can hold. ITIL chapter four Foundation contains seven guiding principles; chapter four covers them all in detail. I will now give you a list of these seven principles: •
One. Focus on value.
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Two. Start where you are.
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Three. Progress iteratively with feedback.
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Four. Collaborate and promote visibility.
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Five. Think and work holistically.
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Six. Keep it simple and practical.
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And seven, optimize and automate.
These principles are the core teachings and practices of service. They are essential for management success and supporting good decisions. The principles are in line with practices like Agile, Lean, and Dev Ops. They’re designed to be empowering principles, to achieve the most successful IT service management. These principles are very important; they are used throughout the service lifecycle. So, make absolutely sure you understand the material in chapter four. If you need to listen to the chapter more than once, please do. Chapter five covers the four dimensions of service management. The dimensions are: one organization and people, two information and technology, three partners and suppliers, and four value streams and processes. These four dimensions aid service management to focus on the organization’s needs. They ensure that the organization stays up to date with the latest technology. There are six factors that influence the four dimensions; they are called the PESTLE factors. They are: Political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental. In chapter six, I’ll cover the service value system, abbreviated as SVS. I’ll cover service value chains, known as SVC. The service value chain is an important part of the service value system. You will learn what a service value system is and how it works in relation to the service value chain. The SVC consists of six chain activities. They are: plan, 5
improve, engage, design and transition, obtain and build, and finally, deliver and support. The chapter covers these activities and the input and output for each. You’ll also learn the purpose of the service value system. Finally, I’ll explain the difference between the service value system and the service value chains. Chapter seven covers key terms that define ITIL practices. As you can imagine, the world of IT service management involves niche skills and terminology. You will learn the key concepts in management practices; there are thirty four to grasp. It’s vital that you understand their purpose, description, and contribution. So, I will explain all of these key terms. You will learn the three areas of service management: General, service, and technical management practices. Chapter seven covers a large amount of information. Take your time to understand each definition and its purpose. In chapter eight, I’ll go into more detail on Continual Improvement, the steps involved, and how it relates to the guiding principles. I will also discuss incident and problem management. You will learn how continual improvement is controlled through incident and problem management practices. Some examples of the terms you’ll learn about are: Supplier Management, Change Control, and Configuration Item. Chapter nine continues in the same light, exploring the key terms from chapter seven in more detail. This includes service request management, service desk, and service level management. This is the final chapter before the practice final exam in chapter ten. Chapter ten also contains information about what happens after you take the exam. What comes next? What happens if you do not pass? Then I’ll go through the final exam answers with you. You can see that we have a lot of material to cover. I encourage you to work at a pace that is comfortable for you, while still listening to the content as often as you can. It can be helpful to take the quizzes multiple times, especially if you get any questions wrong. The more comfortable you are with the material, the more prepared you will be. The more time you invest into studying, the more prepared and confident you will be come exam time. The aim of this course is to help you put yourself in the best possible position to succeed. 6
So, as I mentioned as part of the course conventions, here are this chapter’s takeaways: •
One: You can choose a route to take after your certification: ITIL Managing Professional or ITIL Strategic Leader courses are some options.
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Two: If you are completing the ITIL Version Three certification, you’re eligible to take the Managing Professional Specialist course when you have acquired seventeen points.
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Three: Axelos owns ITIL.
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Four: Technology products enable IT services.
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Five: There are seven guiding principles of ITIL Four Foundation.
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Six: There are four dimensions of service management.
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Seven: Make use of the Follow Along PDF Manual. Print it out if you can.
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Eight: There are six PESTLE, or PESTLE factors that influence the four dimensions of service management.
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Nine: The final chapter of this course explains what comes after the exam.
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Ten: Plan to listen to the course at least a couple of times; you'll retain more information and be as prepared as you can.
I hope that this introduction has motivated you to get started! If you’re ready to proceed, be sure to have your Follow-along PDF Manual close at hand, along with any other note taking materials you need. Get comfortable, and let’s begin! Thanks for listening.
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