There are 32 ITIL 4 Certifications and 28 Certification Exams. How could this be possible?

The short answer is that students achieve the Practice Manager, Managing Professional, Strategic Leader and ITIL Master designations after they take the certification exams in that category. There is no extra exam to achieve the designation that covers the courses in the respective category.

For example, ITIL 4 Managing Professional consists of 4 courses and 4 exams. When completed students hold the designation for each exam taken PLUS the exam for the category which is ITIL 4 Managing Professional.

• ITIL 4 Specialist: Create, Deliver & Support
• ITIL 4 Specialist: Drive Stakeholder Value
• ITIL 4 Specialist: High Velocity IT
• ITIL 4 Specialist: Direct, Plan & Improve
• Complete all 4 courses & exams and you achieve the ITIL 4 Managing Professional designation.

Same holds true for ITIL 4 Strategic Leader. When students complete the 2 courses in this category, they hold the designation for each certification and automatically hold the ITIL 4 Strategic Leader Title.

• ITIL Strategist: Direct, Plan & Improve
• ITIL 4 Strategist: Digital & IT Strategy
• Complete both of these courses and you achieve the ITIL 4 Strategic Leader designation.

Same for Practice Manager – Only a bit more complicated. With Practice Manager there are 3 categories each with 5 individual courses/certifications and an option to take each course or to take 1 course that is 3-days long and covers the same information.

As of January 1, 2023 PeopleCert instituted a Certification Renewal program which applies to all PeopleCert certifications, all students and all trainers.  All certifications will need to be renewed after three (3) years.

• If you certified before 30 June 2020: you will have until 1 July 2023 to renew your certification, regardless of when you were awarded the certification.
• If certified after June 2020: you will have to renew your certification(s) within 3 years of the original award date.

Recertification Paths

From 15 January 2023 to 28 February 2023 there are two renewal paths are available:

• Retake the same exam: You can pay and re-take the original exam before the renewal date.
• Take further courses and certifications: You can renew certification by attending another course and taking an exam within the same product suite before the renewal date.

From March 1, 2023, a third renewal path will be available to candidates:

• Collect and log CPD points: You can collect and log 20 CPD points by accruing Professional Development Points (CDP’s) on the MyAxelos membership program.  More details on this path will follow in sometime this month.

Successful Candidate Register

When you receive certification, your name will be included in the Successful Candidates Register (SCR) and the Candidate Verification Service.  If you elect not to recertify, a note will be added to their record to indicate that their certification needs to be renewed to align with current certification requirements.

ITIL migrated from version 3 to version 4 in 2019 with the release of the Foundation course and the Managing Professional Transition course. The subsequent courses will be released throughout 2020 so if you are in service management, involved in ITIL v3 or looking to get into the area, now is a good time to understand what it’s all about.

Quick Refresher:

ITIL V3 is alive and well for at least a year and 60 to 70% of ITIL 4 comes from ITILV3. In ITIL 4 there are two tracks, Managing Professional and Digital Leader. The first path to be developed by AXELOS is Managing Professional. It consists of 4 courses and AXELOS created a bridge course for V3 certification holders with 17 or more credits called the Managing Professional Transition course. It allows V3 credit holders to take 1 course instead of 4 to receive the Managing Professional certification.

If you are ready to dip your feet into the ITIL 4 world, there are several ways to start depending on your position. Here is a quick look at the best way to get started. If you don’t see a category that fits your background, Contact Us.

• I am a Manager/Executive

The ITIL 4 Executive Review Course is the one for you. It is a 3 hour video course by Dr. Suzanne Van Hove and Doug Tedder. Quick and easy and the price is right – Only $95 Buy Now – (List Price $495/You Save $400)

• I am an ITIL V3 Foundation Certificate Holder

We recommend the full ITIL 4 Foundation Course. Complete with the fully Accredited Video course by Dr. Suzanne Van Hove and all official courseware including the student guide, candidate syllabus, recommended reading, exam guide and tips, glossary, training plan and two (2) AXELOS Sample Exams, 1 exam voucher and this month only + 1 Free Exam Re-Take – Only $495 Buy Now – (List Price $783/You Save $288)

• I hold the ITIL V3 Foundation + 1 or more ITIL Intermediate Certifications

Axelos is giving everyone who holds 17 or more ITIL V3 credits the opportunity to take just 1 course and become an ITIL 4 Managing Professional. Why is this good? Because…

• • 60 to 70% of ITIL 4 content comes from ITIL V3
  • ITIL V3 Intermediate exams are $73 less than ITIL 4 exams – so you can save up to $292 on exam fees when you complete the V3 path
  • You only have to take 1 ITIL 4 course to become an ITIL 4 Managing Professional
  • ITIL V3 courses are $400 less expensive than ITIL 4 courses – so you can save up to $1,600 on course fees
  • Click HERE to tell us how many Accredited ITIL V3 course/exam packages you need and we will get a customized savings package

• I have 17 ITIL V3 Credits or More

Then you can go straight to the ITIL 4 Managing Professional Transition course. 1 course, 1 exam and you are an ITIL 4 Managing Professional. This package includes the PeopleCert Accredited course, 1 Exam Voucher AND 1 Free Exam Retake for only $865 – (List Price is $1,353/You Save $488)

NOTE: These offers are valid January 2020 only and may not be combined with other offers. Have questions? Email us or call us at 877.546.4446.

I was speaking with some ITIL Experts last week and they asked me if there is any value in someone getting V3 certified since ITIL 4 releases in 2019. Here is my answer. Take a look and let me know your thoughts.

First off, great question. There is a lot of confusion over the ITIL 4 release as many of the details are still under wraps. From a 10,000 foot look we all know that we live in a world of updates and change does not happen overnight. Companies have infrastructures and processes and systems in place and they don’t throw them away when a new version is released. And most new versions include key elements of the current version, so the baby is not being thrown out with the bath water.

ITIL V3 Is Alive & Well

Right now, ITIL is V3.  V3 is alive and well and will be maintained until at least June 2020.  The ITIL 4 Foundation is being released Q1 2019 – or sometime in the next 4 months. The remainder of the ITIL 4 courses are scheduled to be released sometime June 2019 to December 2019.

Migration Game Plan

If I were new to ITIL and had funds for exams, I would get V3 Foundation and ITIL 4 Foundation Certified.  ITIL V3 Foundation is required for many positions and I don’t see that requirement going away for the next 12 months minimum. ITIL 4 Foundation is new and takes ITIL to the next level and if I wanted to be fully prepared to help my company transition from ITIL V3 to ITIL 4 or have certifications that helped me stand out, get promoted or get a new job, then I would get ITIL 4 Foundation Certified too. If I was already ITIL V3 Foundation Certified, I would get ITIL 4 Foundation Certified for the same reasons.

For the more advanced V3 certificate holders I would come up to speed on ITIL 4 by reading the book when it is released or taking a class. In my opinion there is no need for advanced certificate holders to get the ITIL 4 Foundation certificate. Advanced ITIL 3 Certificate holders (17 V3 credits or more) will be able to take the ITIL 4 Managing Professional transition course when it is released second half of 2019 and achieve the new ITIL 4 Managing Professional Certification.  This enables individuals with 17 or more ITIL V3 credits to take 1 course instead of 4 to become ITIL 4 Managing Professional Certified. If you are on your way to 17 credits in ITIL V3, keep going as it will allow you accelerated access to the ITIL 4 Managing Professional Certification.

I hope this article has been informative. If you have any questions, we are here to help.

Not sure what to do with ITIL?  Stay with V3?  Wait for ITIL 4?

With the release of ITIL 4 Q1 2019, we are getting a lot of questions about ITIL V3 Certifications and the best way to move forward.  In this blog we have addressed the questions we are receiving and provided some suggested paths for moving forward.  As always, if you have questions, contact us as we are happy to help.

Status of ITIL V3

It’s important to remember that ITIL V3 is alive and well.  The core elements of ITIL V3 are part of ITIL 4 and all V3 certifications will be available and run concurrently with ITIL 4 through June 2020.

ITIL 4 Release Dates

ITIL 4 Foundation will be the first course released in Q1 of 2019 and the remainder of the ITIL 4 certifications have been promised to be released by AXELOS second half of 2019.  Depending on where you are in the process, many of you will want to continue on your ITIL V3 path as there is plenty of time to master V3 content before you enhance it with the new ITIL 4 focus on digital transformation.

What’s the Best Path for ME?

If you are not sure what to do we have worked with AXELOS and PeopleCert to create 3 solid ways for you to gain relevant ITIL V3 certifications and transition smoothly into ITIL 4.  Have the best of both worlds and don’t get left behind!

• ITIL V3/ITIL 4 Foundation Path– this path is designed for students interested in the Foundation Certification.  In this path you get access to the fully Accredited ITIL V3 and ITIL 4 Foundation courses and 2 exam vouchers.  ITIL V3 is full of very solid information and very valuable to organizations and very important for individuals in IT looking to grow their salary or get a new job.  With this package you get lifetime access to the ITIL V3 Foundation course, the ITIL 4 Foundation course and 2 ITIL Foundation Exam Vouchers.

• ITIL Managing Professional Path– ITIL 4 has created a transition path for ITIL V3 professionals with 17 or more credits.  These individuals, due to their ITIL V3 training accomplishments, get to bypass the 4 course requirement to become ITIL 4 Managing Professional Certified.  If you are on your way to achieving 17 credits or more in ITIL V3, then this is the path for you.  In this path you get access to all 12 fully Accredited ITIL V3 courses and the ITIL 4 Managing Professional Transition Module which allows you to sit for the Managing Professional Exam.

• ITIL Everything – want it all?  Want to continuing mastering all the great content in ITIL 3 before you add on the digital focus of ITIL 4?  If you answered yes, then the ITIL Everything is the program for you.  The ITIL Everything gives you all 12 ITIL V3 courses including Practitioner and Expert and all 6 ITIL 4 courses.  This gives you all the knowledge and wisdom included in V3 all the way to Expert and the ability to achieve all 6 ITIL 4 Certifications and achieve the ITIL 4 designations of ITIL Managing Professional and ITIL Strategic Leader.

AXELOS decided to update ITIL.  In so doing they changed the certification flow and the names of all the courses and the certifications which makes everything a bit confusing.  In this blog we will do our very best to clarify what this all means and give you some things to think about.  Know that we are offering a free ITIL V3/4 assessment to help students understand what this change means to them directly so feel free to Contact Us at any time.

Summary View

• Number of courses:
  • ITIL V3 offered 12 courses
  • ITIL 4 offers 6
    • ITIL Foundation
    • ITIL Managing Professional – 4 courses
    • ITIL Strategic Leader – 2 courses (1 overlaps the MP track)
• How does ITIL V3 map to ITIL 4?
  • ITIL 4 is retaining many of the core elements of ITIL V3, however there are no direct like-for-like modules between the two certification schemes.
• ITIL V3 and ITIL 4 Key Dates
  • ITIL V3 courses and certifications are available through June 2020.
  • ITIL 4
    • Foundation will be released Q1 2019
    • ITIL 4 Managing Professional (MP) – 4 courses
    • ITIL 4 Strategic Leader (SL) – 2 courses (1 overlaps the MP track)
    • ITIL Master – no details available
• What do we know today?
  • ITIL 4
    • The ITIL 4 Foundation course will be available Q1 2019 and there is no bridge. This means that if you hold your ITIL V3 Foundation or you are new to ITIL you will need to pass the ITIL 4 Foundation Exam to be ITIL 4 Foundation Certified.  You do not need to take an ITIL 4 course to sit for the ITIL 4 Foundation exam, however taking an accredited course is highly recommended.
    • AXELOS recommends 12 hours of training time to prepare for the exam
    • The ITIL 4 Foundation Publication will be released before Q1 2019.
    • None of the advanced ITIL 4 courses will be released until the second half of 2019.
    • Advanced publications will be released sometime between June and December 2019.
    • There is no release date set for the ITIL Master designation at this point
    • A transition module for individuals with 17 or more ITIL V3 credits will be released second half of 2019. This module will allow individuals with 17 or more ITIL credits to take 1 course and 1 exam to become an ITIL 4 Managing Professional (MP).

What do I do if I am new to ITIL?

• If you work for an organization that requires you to become ITIL Certified, ITIL V3 content is solid and will help you now and with ITIL 4 once it is available.  Remember, ITIL V3 certification is active until June 2020 or for 20 more months.  ITIL V3 is not going away.
• If you are new to ITIL and need to be trained now, take the ITIL V3 Foundation course and certification exam.
• If you are new to ITIL and want to become Foundation certified, but have no pressing need to do so right away, wait until Q1 of 2019 and get your ITIL 4 Foundation Certification.

What should I do if I have ITIL V3 Intermediate Credits, But am not at 17 Credits Yet?

• ITIL V3 Intermediate courses are full of good solid information.  If you are working towards Expert go ahead and continue.  With 17 or more ITIL V3 credits you only need to take the ITIL 4 Managing Professional Transition Module to become an ITIL 4 Managing Professional.   That means you take 1 course and exam instead of 4 courses and exams – very good deal.
• So if you are on your way to getting ITIL V3 advanced certifications, feel comfortable continuing.  Right now all we have is ITIL 4 Foundation being released Q1 and a promise of the remainder being released June 2019 to December 2019.