Itsm Certifications for 2021: a Beginner’s Guide

If you are involved in any position in the technology sector, you are familiar with ITSM. Short for IT Service Management, ITSM is the entirety of all IT-related activities within an organization. ITSM is highly customer focused, and includes the planning, designing, delivering, operating, and controlling of IT processes or operations.

Of course, ITSM has changed in recent years. ITSM expert Kirstie Magowan details how IT and business are converging. This means that IT’s role shifts from providing technology solutions to delivering business value.

Given its popularity and relevance, obtaining training in ITSM is no longer just beneficial—it’s almost a necessity. Luckily, there are a wide variety of ITSM certifications available, whether you are new to the scene entirely or are looking to enhance your current skill set. We’ll take a look at certifications from:

• ITIL^®
• CompTIA
• HDI
• KCS Academy
• COBIT

ITIL^® Certifications

One of the most common cross-platform certifications for ITSM is the ITIL Certification. Recognized as vendor neutral, ITIL certifications provide a modular approach to the ITIL framework itself, made up of a series of qualifications that are focused on different aspects of ITIL best practice to various degrees of depth and detail.

This tiered structure offers flexibility for candidates relating to their specific focus of discipline as well as key areas of interest. There are four certification levels within the ITIL 4 scheme:

• Foundation
• ITIL 4 Managing Professional
• ITIL 4 Strategic Leader
• Master

Let’s look at each one.

ITIL Foundation

The ITIL 4 Foundation certification is designed an introduction to ITIL 4, enabling candidates to look at ITSM through an end-to-end operating model for the creation, delivery and continual improvement of tech-enabled products and services.

This certification can help those who require a basic understanding of the ITIL framework, those who want to use ITIL to enhance ITSM, or those whose organization has recently adopted ITIL and would like a general understanding of it.

Certification components:

• The guiding principles of ITIL 4
• The four dimensions of Service Management
• Key concepts from Lean, Agile, and DevOps, and why these are important to deliver business value
• How ITIL practices described in ITIL 4 will maintain the value and importance provided by the current processes

ITIL 4 Managing Professional

The ITIL 4 Managing Professional certification (ITIL MP) is a stream of four modules:

• 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

This certification provides practical and technical knowledge about how to run successful IT-enabled services, teams, and workflows. It covers the core service management activities and focuses on all types of engagement interaction between a service provider and their customers, users, suppliers, and partners.

Certification components:

• How to deliver innovative yet reliable tech-enabled services to customers in a competitive market
• Learn to support IT-enabled products and services while also covering supporting practices, methods, and tools
• Tools to increase stakeholder satisfaction
• Gain an introduction to practices such as Agile and Lean, and technical practices and technologies such as Cloud, Automation, and Automatic Testing
• Practical skills necessary to create a ‘learning and improving’ IT organization

ITIL 4 Strategic Leader

The ITIL4 Strategic Leader certification (ITIL SL) is a stream of two modules:

• ITIL 4 Strategist Direct Plan and Improve
• ITIL 4 Leader Digital and IT Strategy

This certification demonstrates that the candidate has a clear understanding of how IT influences and directs business strategy. It provides methods for current and aspiring IT leaders to build and implement digital ideas that can face new technological challenges and competition while driving success.

Certification components:

• Practical and strategic elements of managing teams of all levels along with methods of planning and delivering continual improvement
• Alignment of digital business strategy with IT strategy
• How disruption from new technologies is impacting organizations in every industry
• How to respond to new innovations

ITIL Master Certificate: IT Service Management

The ITIL Master certification validates the candidate’s ability to apply the principles, methods, and techniques from ITIL in the workplace.

To achieve the ITIL Master certification, the candidate must be able to explain and justify how they have personally selected and applied a range of knowledge, principles, methods, and techniques from the ITIL Framework and supporting management techniques to achieve desired business outcomes in one or more practical assignments.

CompTIA Certifications

CompTIA is one of the top tech associations in the world, serving as both an action leader and a thought leader for IT and tech companies. CompTIA certifications are recognized world-wide, setting industry standards and encouraging continuing education for life.

CompTIA A+

The CompTIA A+ certification is an industry standard for new professionals interested in starting a career in IT. This certification verifies that the candidate is able to support today’s core technologies such as security, cloud, data management, and more.

Certification components:

• Identifying, using, and connecting hardware components and devices
• Explain types of networks and connections including TCP/IP, WIFI and SOHO
• Troubleshoot PC and mobile device issues including application security support
• Install and support Windows OS including command line and client support.
• Understand Mac OS, Linux, and mobile OS
• Troubleshoot device and network issues
• Identify and protect against security vulnerabilities for devices and their network connections
• Install and configure laptops and other mobile devices
• Follow best practices for safety, environmental impacts, communication, and professionalism

CompTIA Network+

The CompTIA Network+ certification is for individuals looking to develop a career in IT infrastructure involving troubleshooting, configuring, and managing networks. The certification ensures that the candidate is able to use devices to create resilient networks and can implement security, standards, and protocols on them.

Certification components:

• Use best practices to manage the network, determine policies, and ensure overall business continuity
• Determine and explain the appropriate cabling, device, and storage technologies
• Explain the purpose of a variety of networking concepts and implement them appropriately
• Summarize physical security and common attacks while securing the wired and wireless network
• Explain the network troubleshooting methodology and appropriate tools to support connectivity and performance