So you have decided to start a career in ITIL. People must have guided you to achieve ITIL certifications administered by AXELOS (the certifying body) to gain an in-depth understanding of the ITIL framework. As ITIL is the framework for the management of IT and digitally enabled products and services, it is in high demand across companies worldwide. In fact, many professionals take ITIL training to prepare for ITIL certifications and take their careers to new heights.
If you are willing to know more about ITIL Certifications, then this article is for you. We have mentioned all the four levels of ITIL certification in Riyadh, what are they designed for, and the exams involved.
So, let’s get started.
ITIL 4 Certification Levels
There are four levels of the ITIL 4 Certification Scheme:
- ITIL 4 Foundation
- ITIL 4 Managing Professional
- ITIL 4 Strategic leader
- ITIL 4 Extension Modules
When we talk about the previous version of ITIL, i.e. ITIL v3, there were five certification levels – Foundation, Practitioner, Intermediate, Expert, and Master. However, all the ITIL v3 training and examinations will be discontinued by AXELOS by the end of 2021.
ITIL 4 Foundation
As the name suggests, this certification is designed for professionals who are new to the ITIL framework. It introduces an end-to-end operating model for creating, delivering, and continually improving technology-enabled products and services. This credential helps you contribute towards your organization’s efforts to embrace the new service management culture. When you achieve this certification, you will have a clear understanding of how modern IT and digital service organizations operate, how commonly-used service management concepts are used, and how value streams increase speed and efficiency.
ITIL 4 Managing Professional
The Managing Professional stream is designed for IT practitioners who work within digital and technology teams across businesses. It offers technical and practical knowledge of running successful IT-enabled services, workflows, and teams. ITIL 4 Managing Professional consists of four modules, namely:
- ITIL 4 Specialist: Create, Deliver and Support
- ITIL 4 Specialist: Drive Stakeholder Value
- ITIL 4 Specialist: High-velocity IT
- ITIL 4 Strategist: Direct, Plan and Improve
When you complete all the above modules, you achieve the designation of ITIL 4 Managing Professional.
ITIL 4 Strategic Leader
An ITIL 4 Strategic Leader is someone who has an in-depth understanding of how IT influences and directs business strategy. The Strategic Leader stream acknowledges the value of ITIL not only for IT operations but for all digitally-enabled services. There are two modules covered in this stream:
- ITIL 4 Strategist Direct, Plan and Improve
- ITIL 4 Leader Digital and IT Strategy.
To achieve the SL designation, you must complete both these modules. As you can observe, the ‘ITIL 4 Strategist Direct, Plan and Improve’ module is present in both Managing Professional and Strategic Level streams. So, if you have already achieved the Managing Professional designation, you only need to complete the ‘ITIL 4 Leader Digital and IT Strategy’ module to achieve the ITIL SL designation.
ITIL 4 Extension Modules
AXELOS has designed the ITIL 4 Extension Modules to extend the main ITIL 4 framework and offer companies and individuals the guidance to address and harness the challenges and opportunities brought by emerging technologies that impact their operations. The Extension Module involves no prerequisites and helps professionals explore ITIL concepts and learn relevant ITIL 4 guidance and enable career development opportunities.
Here are the two modules covered in this stream:
- ITIL 4 Specialist: Sustainability in Digital & IT
- ITIL 4 Specialist: Acquiring & Managing Cloud Services
Examination Format
All ITIL certifications have an exam associated with them that one needs to pass in order to achieve the specific designation. In this section, we have mentioned the exam format for each of the above certification schemes and the modules covered under all of them.
ITIL 4 Foundation – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 60 minutes and the passing score is 65%.
ITIL 4 Managing Professional
ITIL Specialist: Create, Deliver and Support – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 90 minutes and the passing score is 70%.
ITIL 4 Specialist: Drive Stakeholder Value – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 90 minutes and the passing score is 70%.
ITIL 4 Specialist: High-velocity IT – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 90 minutes and the passing score is 70%.
ITIL 4 Strategist Direct, Plan and Improve – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 90 minutes and the passing score is 70%.
ITIL 4 Service Leader
ITIL 4 Leader Digital and IT Strategy – There is a closed book exam consisting of 30 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 60 minutes and the passing score is 70%.
ITIL 4 Extension Modules
ITIL 4 Specialist: Sustainability in Digital & IT – There is a closed book exam consisting of 35 multiple-choice questions and has four practical assignments. The time allowed is 60 minutes.
ITIL 4 Specialist: Acquiring & Managing Cloud Services – There is a closed book exam consisting of 40 multiple-choice questions. The time allowed is 90 minutes.
Now that you have got a complete overview of ITIL certification levels, when are you planning to get certified?
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