By ITIL 5 Master – Jacqueline (Jaqi) Haworth

Today I became an ITIL V5 Master, adding to my V4 Master, V3 Expert and V2 Manager certifications. I’m genuinely proud of that.  Little did I realize when I took my ITIL V2 Foundation 20 years ago that ITIL would become a thread running through so much of my career — shaping how I train others, advise organizations, lead teams, solve problems and challenge my own thinking.

The certificates, though, are probably the least interesting part.  Passing an exam and applying what you learn are very different things.

– You can know every definition and still design a terrible process.
– You can meet every SLA and still provide a poor customer experience.
– You can implement an expensive ITSM platform and simply automate your problems.

The Value of a Framework

A framework is only useful if you use it to make things better.
ITIL has evolved enormously over those 20 years.  V2 gave us process discipline and structure.  V3 taught us to think about the service lifecycle.  ITIL 4 shifted the conversation from following processes to creating value.  And Version 5 evolves again for a world of digital products, experience, transformation, automation and AI.

Three Things from Version 5 that Stand Out For Me

1. Understand the value stream first. Improve it second. Automate it third.
   If the process is poor, automation can simply make a bad process run faster.
2. Customers don’t care about our organizational chart or how green our SLA report is.
   They care whether the service works, whether someone takes ownership when it doesn’t, and what the overall experience feels like.
3. AI doesn’t fix bad foundations.
   Before asking “How can we use AI?” we should ask what problem we are solving, whether we can trust the data and knowledge, who remains accountable, and how we will know it actually improved the outcome.  AI still needs good data, governance, knowledge, value streams and people who understand what they are trying to achieve.

Passing the exam is only the start.
After many years of teaching ITSM frameworks, one lesson has stuck with me.  The real value comes when you go back to work and use what you learned to simplify something, remove waste, improve an experience, challenge a poor metric or question something being done simply because “we’ve always done it that way.”

Remember, a qualification is a milestone.  It’s not the destination.  It’s the beginning of your journey.

AI is good and AI is bad.  We live in a litigious world.  If you don’t have the right controls in place, you can be broke and out of business tomorrow.   AI use can quickly spiral out of control, leaving you with massive bills, and a huge number of AI application to support and manage.  If you thought you had technical debt today, it’s about to grow by a factor of thousands.

AI is everywhere and you and your company need to be prepared:

• Prepared to protect your brand.
• Prepared to ensure legal compliance.
• Prepare  to validate the data your AI tools will be using.
• Prepare  to manage access to confidential and sensitive data.
• Prepared to provide information the business needs.
• Prepared to safeguard your reputation.
• Prepared to maximize your financial return of AI assets and investments.

To do this companies need to adopt ITIL AI Governance.

ITIL AI Governance is a certification module from PeopleCert that shows the ITIL perspective on AI governance and helps organizations manage the risks, ethics, and compliance challenges of artificial intelligence in service management. Unlike static traditional IT controls, it provides a dynamic approach to handle autonomous, fast-moving AI systems across four key perspectives–View Full Course.

When you Safeguard Brand Reputation with ITIL AI Governance you will:

• Mitigate risks related to Shadow AI.
• Mitigate bias by building testable frameworks to catch discriminatory outputs before they reach customers.
• Control AI hallucinations by setting up strict accuracy boundaries so chatbots do not fabricate false promises or bad advice.
• Maintain Trust by proving to clients and stakeholders that the company uses AI responsibly and ethically.

ITIL AI Governance also Improves Operational Efficiency by:

• Reducing Model Drift
• Standardizing Procurement
• Speeding up Adoption

ITIL AI Governance is an OPPORTUNITY to Save Your Company and Your Career – Can You Afforce to Miss Out? 

• If you are responsible for spearheading automation strategy (CTOs, CIOs & Digital Transformation Mangers) – You Can’t Miss Out!
• If you are responsible for integrating AI tooling into operational workflows (Service Desk Managers, Practice Owners and Solution Designers) – You Can’t Miss Out!
• If you are responsible for enforcing ethical boundaries and data privacy (Data Protection Officers, Internal Auditors and Risk Managers) – You Can’t Miss Out!
• Are you beginning your ITSM or Digital Product & Service Management Career? – You Can’t Miss Out!

Are There Prerequisites?

• No
• None
• Not even ITIL Foundation is required – go straight to ITIL AI Governance
• Note – Mandatory training through an Accredited Training organization or Official eLearning is required.  Learners can go straight to the AI Governance Certification with no Foundation requirement.

Is IT Governance Part of the ITIL 5 Pathways (Foundation, Managing Professional, Practice Manager, Strategic Leader or Master?

• No
• ITIL AI Governance is a standalone module, and it is not attached to any of the main certifications nor does it count toward any other ITIL Designations
• Available to everyone!  Start Today!

This Critical AI Governance Certification Covers::

• AI Governance Foundations and Leadership – Understand the difference between having an AI policy and having real AI governance. Describe where an organization sits on the governance maturity spectrum and what good governance makes possible.
• The ITIL AI Governance Improvement – Apply the four-step model: Assess (evaluate current governance maturity and stress-test arrangements), Design (define governance requirements and controls), Implement (deploy governance adjustments), and Maintain (assure, monitor, and continually improve governance).
• The ITIL AI Capability Model (6c) – Identify and describe the six AI capabilities — Creation, Curation, Clarification, Cognition, Communication, and Coordination — and how they shape governance boundaries, risk profiling, and combined behavior.
• Governance Controls and Shadow AI – Design governance controls (preventive, detective, corrective) and decision boundaries. Design Shadow AI controls and apply ethics using a likelihood × impact risk matrix.
• AI Risk, Ethics, and Countermeasures – Identify and describe AI risk categories (bias, privacy, hallucination, opacity), ethical principles, and countermeasures. Apply the capability model and risk-control reasoning to real-world scenarios.
• Cross-Framework AI Governance – Describe how ITIL, PRINCE2, and DevOps provide complementary approaches for AI-enabled work. Apply AI governance within DevOps practices and PRINCE2 methods across stages and decision points.

Exam Details

• Exam body: PeopleCert
• Duration: 90 minutes (non-native English speakers receive additional time)
• Format: Multiple-choice, open book
• Number of Questions: 40 Multiple Choice Questions
• Passing Score: 70% or 28 out of 40 questions answered correctly
• Open-Book Exam – Candidates are allowed to reference official PeopleCert core Guidance eBook
• Delivery Options: Online proctored exam (available anytime, anywhere through PeopleCert)

Note: The ITIL® AI Governance exam is open book and scenario-based, consistent with other ITIL (Version 5) advanced modules. You may use the official eBook and Scenario Booklet during the exam.

ITIL 5 Foundation and ITIL 5 Foundation Bridge released in February. Feedback is good on both courses.

We get a lot of questions about which version to take (4 Foundation or 5 Foundation) since ITIL 4 Foundation is also available. Standard answer is to take V4 if your job or job search requires V4. We don’t expect job postings to list ITIL 5 until the end of the year since it just released.  If you are new to ITIL, then start with ITIL 5.

ITIL 4 includes 15 of the 24 practices and that is valuable to many students. ITIL 5 Foundation does not include the practices.

• If you are interested in what’s different between ITIL 4 and 5 Foundation, here is a complimentary 40-minute presentation we put together for you. Click Here to Watch.

For everyone who has ITIL 4 Foundation and is not going on to advanced certs, then you can take advantage of the ITIL 4 Foundation Bridge Exam. It’s short (half the length of Foundation) and much less expensive ($263 versus $690 for Foundation).

• It is a great and inexpensive way to renew your certification and update your resume to ITIL 5 Foundation. Click Here to Save an extra $50 (Bridge Exam $199).

After Foundation, PeopleCert released the new ITIL 5 Managing Professional Courses (Product, Service & Experience).

Next, they released ITIL Transformation. From what I hear it a very valuable course and it follows in the footsteps of ITIL V3 that was much more prescriptive. We have a short video overview (9 minutes) on what makes it so good. Click Here to Watch. Transformation is part of ITIL 5 Practice Manager, Managing Professional and Strategic Leader designations.

• ITIL Transformation is also the course that ITIL 4 Practice Managers and Strategic Leaders will need to take to receive their ITIL 5 Designation.  The GogoTraining eLearning Transformation Course will be released by June 15^th.  You can purchase the course & exam package now for $999.  It will be $1,499 when released.
• Save $500 when you purchase the Pre-Release Package.

Coming in May is the course that all Managing Professionals, ITIL V3 Experts and Masters, ITIL 4 Managing Professionals and Masters, have been waiting to take – ITIL 5 Managing Professional Transition. It will take all ITIL V3 and ITIL 4 Master’s and bestow the ITIL 5 Master Designation and it will take all ITIL 4 Managing Professionals and bestow the ITIL 5 Managing Professional Designation.

• PeopleCert has not release the exam price to us yet so will be back in touch when we have it to offer you a prerelease sale.
• If you would like to receive the offer, Click Here to let us know.

Have ITIL 5 Questions?  Click Here or call 877.546.4446.

See Which Courses Go With Each Certification

We contacted PeopleCert to find out if individuals who hold the ITIL Master Designation fall under the 3-Year PeopleCert recertification requirement and the answer is YES.

Because ITIL Master is a designation and not a separate exam, it is renewed in the standard way.  For example, if a student takes a new course/exam, then all ITIL 4 certificates the student has obtained, including ITIL Master, will be automatically renewed.

On Friday July 28, 2023 PeopleCert, the international ITIL Certification body Accredited GogoTraining’s eLearning ITIL 4 Specialist:  Monitor, Support & Fulfil course.  This course is taught by award winning ITIL Expert David Cannon helps students achieve their ITIL Practice Manager and ITIL Master designations.

The new Practice Manager Certifications are based on the recently updated ITIL 4 Practice Guides that are filed with useful guidance and many new features that have never been seen in previous versions of ITIL.  For the first time ever each ITIL 4 Practice Guide contains definitive capability criteria for each practice that is mapped to the ITIL maturity model that shows how to apply them in your organization.

The new ITIL 4 Specialist:  Monitor, Support & Fulfil Certification enables ITIL Practitioners to:

• Master the top five ITIL 4 Practices
• Achieve the ITIL Practice Manger designation
• Achieve the ITIL 4 Master designation
• Recertify all ITIL 4 Certifications for 3 years

If you or  your organization would like to learn more about these great certifications and how they can help you achieve organizational excellence, we are here to help.

Click Here to contact us via email or call 877.546.4446.

When you purchase this package you will receive 1 ITIL 4 Practitioner course & exam package of your choice. This package retails for $595 and is yours this June for only $395 (you save $200). Taking this course & exam recertifies all your ITIL 4 certifications for an additional 3-years.

There are 3 ways to Recertify:

• Take the same exam again – This package is $500 less than taking the same exam again
• Pay for the MyAxelos subscription and give up 60 hours of your time – This package is $2,000 less than signing up for the MyAxelos subscription which costs $366 and 60 hours of your time
• Purchase this package for $395 – the most economical way to stay ITIL 4 certified.

This package is the LOWEST way to recertify at only $395. When you purchase this package in June 2023 you will receive the course of your choice below and:

• Lifetime Access to the Accredited PeopleCert Course
• All Accredited Course Materials
• Full Instructor Support to answer questions while you learn
• The official AXELOS text book in pdf format
• The official PeopleCert course support materials
• Official Sample Exams
• 1 PeopleCert exam voucher – valid for 1 year

Choose from one of the ITIL 4 Practitioner Courses courses below:

• Service Desk
• Incident Management
• Problem Management
• Service Request Management
• Monitoring and Event Management

Please note that this offer cannot be combined with other offers and is valid June 2023. The 5 ITIL Practitioner courses are set to be released by July 30, 2023. When you purchase the pre-release special offer in June you lock in your discount. The exam voucher is valid for 1 year and can be purchased when you make this purchase or when the course is released. The exam voucher includes the AXELOS book in PDF format and the PeopleCert course support materials so if you want to get a jump on your studies, we can order the exam for you right away. If you have any questions Email GogoTraining Customer Service or call us at 877.546.4446.

Offer Rules:  This offer may not be combined with other offers.  The Monitor, Support & Fulfil course will be placed in your account no later than August 2023.  This offer is valid June 2023.  Pricing for this course is offered as a Pre-Release Sale.  Want more details on the courses?  Click on the links below:

• ITIL 4 Leader: Digital and IT Strategy
• ITIL 4 Specialist: Monitor, Support & Fulfil

Attention all ITIL 4 Managing Professionals

There is a clear and easy path for you to achieve the ITIL 4 Master Designation and recertify.  PeopleCert has initiated a Recertification program.  The program requires students to recertify every 3-years.  There is a lot of information we need to share with you so please read to the end where we will share a very special offer with you.

Key Points

1. Recertification is only required for ITIL 4 Certifications.
2. If you received your last ITIL 4 Certification before June 2020, then your certifications must be renewed by July1, 2023 to keep them active.
3. If you received your ITIL 4 Certification after June 2020, then you have 3-years from the date of your last certification to renew.
4. If you do not renew before your certification expires, then it becomes inactive, and your certifications will renew for 3 more years when you take of the actions below.

How to Recertify

There are 3 ways to recertify.  We will discuss them all here and give you the pro’s and con’s.

1. You can pay for and take the same exam again.
   • We think this is the worst way to recertify.  It is expensive and you really get nothing in return, but renewal.
2. You can pay $122/year for 3-years for a MyAxelos subscription and record 60 hours a year of study on the MyAxelos site .
   • This is the most expensive way to recertify when you consider what your time is valued at.
3. You can take a new course, gain a new certification and recertify everything – This is a really good option, and we are not saying this because that is our business.

How Taking A New Course Gets You Recertified

Taking a new course is a great option because PeopleCert has just released the New Practice Manager Certifications and they have  2 GREAT Features:

• It offers 1-day Practice Courses with Certification exams – Very, Very Economical.
• It offers a 3-day Practice Manager course and exam that is required to become an ITIL Master.

The New Practice Manager Certification Gets you the ITIL Master Designation

Ok, for those of you that read to this point – thank you.  Here is the scoop.  ITIL 4 Master requires you to hold the ITIL 4 Managing Professional, Strategic Leader and Practice Manager Designations and you automatically become an ITIL Master.

• For those of you who hold the Managing Professional designation, then you only need to take 2 courses to become an ITIL Master (Digital & IT Strategy and the new ITIL Practice Manager course, Monitor, Support & Fulfil).
• If you hold the Managing Professional and Strategic Leader Certifications, then you only need 1 course to achieve ITIL 4 Master – the new ITIL 4 Practice Manager course, Monitor, Support & Fulfil).

SPECIAL OFFERS

This offer may not be combined with other offers.  Please note that the Digital & IT Strategy course will go into your account when you make your purchase.  The Monitor, Support & Fulfil course will be available late July  2023 and we will contact you to find out when you would like to activate the course.  Purchasing the package now during the pre-release sale, locks in your savings.

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.