ITIL® 4 Strategist: Direct Plan and Improve (DPI) Certification Program – English

The ITIL® best practice provides proven guidance to support organizations on their digital transformation journey. ITIL® 4 is the next iteration that incorporates all the best from previous versions and expands on this body of knowledge, by providing a practical and flexible approach to support organizations with a focus on delivering customer outcomes and value through IT-enabled services.

ITIL® 4 provides an end-to-end operating model for the delivery and operation of tech-enabled products and services. It enables IT teams to continue to play a crucial role in wider business strategy and also integrates concepts from other industry best practices such as Lean, Agile and DevOps.

The advanced-level ITIL® 4 Managing Professional courses been developed for IT practitioners working within technology and digital teams across organizations. To obtain the ITIL® 4 Managing Professional designation, the candidate needs to complete all courses in the ITIL® 4 Managing Professional stream:

• 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

The ITIL® 4 Strategist: Direct Plan and Improve (DPI) course provides an understanding on:

• The practical skills necessary to create a ‘learning and improving’ IT organization, with a strong and effective strategic direction
• The scope and activities relevant to Direct and Plan
• The role of governance, risk and compliance and how to integrate the principles and methods into the service value system
• Using the key principles and methods of Organizational Change Management to direct, plan and improve

This course has a focus on the following aspects of the ITIL® 4 Service Value Chain:

• Plan
• Improve
• Governance elements (Direct) from the Service Value System (SVS)

This is a full training package that includes the knowledge transfer as well as the associated certification exam.

• To qualify for this advanced training module, the candidates MUST hold their ITIL® 4 Foundation certification
• Attendance in an accredited training course for this module and successful completion of the certificate exam
• Exam details:
• Exam voucher issued to be scheduled via remote proctor by the student at a date/time/location that is convenient to the student (web-cam and internet access required)
• 90 minutes
• Candidates taking the exam in a language that is not their native or working language may be awarded 25% extra time, i.e. 113 minutes in total.
• ‘Closed book’ examination, 40 multiple choice questions, 70% or higher pass mark (28 or above correct out of 40)

The ITIL® 4 Direct, Plan and Improve (DPI) course learning objectives include:

• Providing the practical skills necessary to create a ‘learning and improving’ IT organization, with a strong and effective strategic direction
• Providing a practical and strategic method for planning and delivering continual improvement with the necessary agility

The content covered in the ITIL® 4 Define Plan and Improve (DPI) course includes:

• Understand the key concepts of Direct, Plan & Improve and their relationship to directing, planning & improving, including:
  • Direction, planning and improvement
  • Operating model
  • Risks
  • Scope of control
  • Value
  • Outcomes
  • Costs and risks and their relationships to direction, planning & improvement
  • Differences between:
    • Vision and mission
    • Strategy, tactics and operations
    • Governance, compliance and management
    • Policies, controls and guidelines

• Understand how to set the scope of what is to be directed and/or planned, and know how to use key principles and methods of direction and planning, including how to:

• Cascade goals and requirements
• Define effective policies, controls and guidelines
• Place decision-making authority at the correct level

• Understand the role of GRC and know how to integrate the principles and methods into the service value system, including:
  • The role of risk and risk management in DPI

• • How governance impacts DPI
  • How to ensure that controls are sufficient and not overly excessive

• Understand how to use the key principles and methods of continual improvement for all improvement initiatives, including how to:
  • Use the ITIL® continual improvement model to improve the service value system
  • Identify assessment objectives, outputs, requirements and criteria
  • Select the best assessment method for a particular situation
  • Define and prioritize desired outcomes of an improvement
  • Build, justify and advocate for a business case
  • Conduct improvement reviews and analyze lessons learned
  • Embed continual improvement at all levels of the service value system

• Understand / know how to use the key principles and methods of communication and organizational change management to direction, planning and improvement

• Understand / know how to use the key principles and methods of measurement and reporting in direction, planning and improvement, by knowing how define indicators and metrics to support objectives

• Understand / know how to direct, plan and improve value streams and practices by:

• • Understanding the differences between value streams and practices and how those differences impact direction, planning and improvement
  • Knowing how to select and use the appropriate methods and techniques to direct, plan and improve value streams and practices

• Online access to the course content for a 12 month period
• 3 hours of coaching time with an accredited trainer, to be arranged between the student and the accredited trainer/coach
• Sample exam
• Certification exam voucher

• The ITIL® 4 Strategist: Direct, Plan and Improve publication, (though not mandatory), is highly recommended reading in support of this advanced training
• ISBN: 9780113316458