The SOA course is designed to help organizations and individuals understand how the five stages of the ITIL lifecycle (service strategy, service design, service transition, service operation and continual service improvement) can offer value to organizations and projects. It also provides guidance on how service offerings can be developed to support both business and user needs.
The Concept
Service Offerings and
Agreements (SOA) Certificate is a free - standing qualification,
but is also part of the ITIL Intermediate Capability stream, and
one of the modules that leads to the ITIL Expert Certificate in IT
Service Management. The purpose of this training module and the
associated exam and certificate is, respectively, to impart, test,
and validate the knowledge on industry practices in service
management as documented in the ITIL Service Lifecycle core
publications.
The ITIL
Certificate in Service Offerings and Agreements is intended to
enable the holders of the certificate to apply SOA practices
service management lifecycle and specifically in the following key
ITIL process, role and function areas:
-
Service portfolio management
-
Service catalogue management
-
Service level management
-
Demand management
-
Supplier management
-
Financial management for IT services
-
Business relationship management
This course
also introduces and explores the
implementation of SOA practices, as
well as technology considerations.
Target
Candidate
The target
group of the ITIL Intermediate Qualification. Service
Offerings and Agreements Certificate includes, but is not
restricted to:
-
IT Professionals
-
Business managers
-
Business process owners
-
Individuals who require a deep understanding of the Service
Offerings and Agreements processes and of how it may be used to
enhance the quality of IT service support within an
organization
-
IT professionals who are working within an organization that has
adopted and adapted ITIL and who need to be informed about, and
thereafter contribute to, an ongoing service improvement
programme
- Operational staff involved in service portfolio management; service level management; service catalogue management; demand management; supplier management; financial management for IT services and business relationship management who wish to enhance their role - based capabilities
-
Individuals who have attained the ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT
Service Management and wish to advance to higher level ITIL
certifications
-
Individuals seeking the ITIL Expert Certificate in IT Service
Management for which this qualification can be one of the
prerequisite modules
-
Individuals seeking progress toward the ITIL Master Certificate in
IT Service Management for which
the ITIL Expert is a prerequisite.
Exam Format
The exam
format is as follows:
-
Multiple choice examination questions
-
Eight questions per paper
-
28 marks required to pass (out of 40 available) -
70%
-
90 minutes’ duration
- Closed book
-
The exam contains scenarios upon which the eight examination
questions are based.
-
All questions are contained within the Question Booklet and
each question will clearly state the
scenario to
which it relates.
-
In order to answer each of the eight questions, you will need to
read the related scenario
carefully.
-
On the basis of the information provided in the scenario, you will
be required to select which of the four
answer options provided (A, B, C or D) you believe to be the
optimum answer.
-
You must choose ONE
answer only, and the Gradient Scoring system works as
follows:
• If you select the CORRECT answer, you will be awarded 5
marks for the question
• If you select the SECOND BEST answer, you will be awarded 3 marks
for the question
• If you select the THIRD BEST answer, you will be awarded 1 mark
for the question
• If you select the DISTRACTER (the incorrect answer), you will
receive no marks for the question.
In order to pass this examination, you must achieve a total of 28 marks or more out of a maximum of 40 marks (70%).
Qualification Learning Objectives
Candidates can expect to gain competencies in the following areas upon successful completion of the education and examination components related to this certification:
-
Overview of SOA processes and basic
principles
-
The value to the business of SOA
activities
-
How the SOA processes rely on a good business
case
-
How the SOA processes rely on a good understanding of return on
investment (ROI)
-
Processes across the service lifecycle pertaining to the service
offerings and agreements curriculum:
-
Service portfolio management, which provides documentation for
services and prospective services
in business terms
-
Service catalogue management, which is concerned with the
production and documentation of
the service catalogue from a business and a technical
viewpoint
-
Service level management, which sets up a service level agreement
(SLA) structure and ensures
that all SLAs have an underpinning support structure in
place
-
Demand management, which identifies patterns of business activity
to enable the appropriate strategy
to be implemented
-
Supplier management, which ensures all partners and suppliers are
managed in the appropriate
way and includes contract management
-
Financial management for IT services, which includes ensuring
understanding of the service value
and the management of all financial
considerations
-
Business relationship management, which ensures the customer’s
requirements are correctly identified
-
SOA roles and responsibilities
-
Technology and implementation
considerations
-
Challenges, critical success factors and
risks
In addition,
the training for this qualification will also include examination
preparation, including an opportunity for a mock
examination.