As technology continues to evolve, it has taken on a larger role to help businesses achieve success within their industries. After all, organizations in sectors ranging from retail to customer service to banking now use new technology and employ IT service managers to develop and maintain their websites, ecommerce, online customer service, and more.

As the IT service management landscape evolves, transitioning from ITIL® v3 to ITIL V4 Foundation certification marks a significant advancement in aligning IT practices with modern business needs.

Information technology infrastructure library, offers a useful framework for organizations to implement best practices for IT service management. 

By aligning organizational goals with the framework, IT service managers can optimize the value earned from all digital assets or IT service offerings. Organizations looking to keep up with emerging technology and changing trends rely on the practices and processes to support and guide their IT service management. But, let’s answer the question we are here for: “What is ITIL® v3 Foundation?

What Is ITIL® v3 Foundation?

While the v2 primarily discusses the basic IT services, the third version of the library largely focuses on the ways in which IT services can support an organization’s overall goals. 

Despite the recent release of the v4, which aims to increase efficiency and effectiveness through new techniques, the foundational elements from the v3 go virtually untouched. By using the five stages of the v3, businesses are empowered to align their IT service management in a way that lends support to their business objectives. 

Let’s get more granular while answering what is the v3 Foundation.

Exploring the 5 Stages of the ITIL® v3 Foundation Framework

  • ITIL® Service Strategy

As the first service strategy stage, the goal is to develop a strategy and implement the right IT services. By taking a closer look at the existing market’s trends, needs and offerings, businesses can create an actionable plan to develop a service that meets or exceeds the market’s needs.

  • ITIL® Service Design

The second stage of the ITIL® framework is service design. In this stage, IT service managers identify the processes, policies, and documentation required to create or make improvements to existing service offerings.

  • ITIL® Service Transition

Adding new services or making changes can post great risk to the product environment. For example, an unexpected service disruption can cause consumers to lose confidence in your organization. To mitigate these types of hazards, the service transition stage focuses on planning and managing any required changes to the services within its lifecycle, ensuring the business continues to deliver value to its consumers despite any service interruptions.

  • ITIL® Service Operation

At its core, the service operation stage of the ITIL® framework targets the execution of all tasks required to maintain successful operation of all IT services. This includes the principles, processes, and operational activities put in place to facilitate IT product and service management.

  • ITIL® Continual Service Improvement

The final stage, ITIL® continual service improvement, offers businesses a means of quality control for their IT service management. During this stage, service managers reflect on prior performance, successes, and failures to determine the effectiveness of IT products or services. Through analysis, IT service managers can spot opportunities to increase effectiveness and efficiencies through their product or service offerings to better support the business goals.

What Is ITIL® v3 Foundation Certification: A Guide to Certification

Achieving your ITIL® v3 certification requires practitioners to work their way up the different certification levels. These levels include:

Foundation Level

Starting at the foundation level, practitioners are required to possess a basic understanding of ITIL® and the five practice areas. 

Practitioner Level

At the practitioner level, ITIL® professionals are required to prove their practical knowledge of the framework’s processes and principles.

Intermediate Level

At the intermediate level, practitioners are challenged with a series of modules which reflect the different aspects of IT service management, such as service lifecycle or service capability.

Expert Level

During the expert level, ITIL® professionals advance their knowledge and understanding of processes and practices. Each level of certification earns the ITIL® practitioner credits, with a total of 22 credits required to reach the expert level. 

Master Level

The master level certification is the highest level a practitioner can achieve. It shows their ability to apply the ITIL® framework within daily tasks. For a practitioner to achieve their master level, several prerequisites are required, including at least five years of ITIL® experience in a management level position, a submitted service improvement proposal, and the successful completion of an interview with an ITIL® assessment panel.

How to Crack ITIL® v3 Certification

Proper preparation can be a difference maker in climbing the five levels of ITIL® v3 certification. Here are a few tips to help you ace your certification exams.

Take a Course

Develop an understanding of ITIL® v3 content by taking a course on the subject matter. Formal training courses, either online or in person, can provide practitioners with the foundation, knowledge, and practical experience to achieve their ITIL® v3 certification.

Understand the ITIL® Keywords

Passing the ITIL® v3 certification relies on an accurate association of the related keywords. An understanding of keywords related to the ITIL® v3 framework such as service strategy, service design, and service transition can ensure you answer the exam questions to the best of your ability.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Studying is merely one side of the coin when preparing for your ITIL® v3 certification exams. It’s equally important to put your knowledge into practice. Use the sample certification questions to practice your skills and prepare for your exams.

Schedule Your Exam While the Knowledge is Still Fresh

Strike while the iron is hot! Don’t wait too long to schedule your exam. Taking the certification exams shortly after completing a course can help ensure you retain the practical and theoretical knowledge required to earn your certification.

Are you looking forward to becoming an ITIL® expert? Check out the ITIL® Foundation Certification Course and get certified.

Take Your IT Service an Architecture Career to the Next Level

Now that you know the answer to the question: “What is ITIL® v3 Foundation,” you might be interested in taking your career to the next level through a certification. That said, ITIL® is now in its fourth version, but many of the principles of ITIL® v3 still apply. To prepare for the certification exam, which is rigorous, consider enrolling in our ITIL® 4 Foundation Certification course. In this online bootcamp, you will learn everything you need to know about this wildly popular and respected IT service management framework.

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