ITIL® Release, Control & Validation Capability Module

ITIL® is recognised internationally as the best practice approach to IT Service Management aligning the provision of IT Services with the needs of the business. It is used globally by thousands of organisations throughout the private and public sectors to improve the way in which they implement and manage IT Services. The ITIL Intermediate Service Lifecycle Certificate in Release, Control and Validation is a free-standing qualification, but is also part of the ITIL Intermediate Capability stream, and one of the modules that leads to the ITIL Expert in IT Service Management.

Audience: Who is the course for?

• Business managers & process owners
• Those who require a deeper understanding of the RCV processes &how they may be used to enhance the quality of IT service support within an organisation
• Those involved in change/knowledge management, release & deployment, service validation & testing, service asset & configuration, request fulfilment & change evaluation

Course duration:

Five day (the exam is normally taken during the afternoon of the fifth day)

Benefits to the individual:

• Recognised professional qualification
• Understand the application of ITIL guidelines and frameworks that contribute to industry best practice
• Helps individuals to understand the Release, Control and Validation processes and how they may be used to enhance the quality of IT service support within an organisation
• Pre-requisite module for ITIL Expert certification in IT Service Management

Benefits to the business:

• The adoption and application of proven best practice processes results in improved IT services and increased productivity throughout the business
• Improved customer satisfaction and less down time through quicker fixes
• Better process management leads to increased efficiency and reduced costs
• The framework is flexible, systematic and can be used within different organisations irrespective of size or industry

Pre-requisites:

Delegates must hold the ITIL Foundation Certificate. In addition, it is recommended that before the course, delegates read the ITIL Service Lifecycle core publications, particularly Service Transition & Service Operation. Delegates will also need to undertake 12 hours of self-study reviewing course materials & key areas of Service Transition & Service Operation to prepare for the exam.

Course outline:

The objectives of this course are:

• To introduce the purpose, objectives, scope and approach to RCV and explain the processes, functions and activities involved
• Cover the methods and techniques available to improve service delivery
• To enable delegates to apply the practices of Release, Control and Validation

This qualification enables delegates to apply the practices of Release, Control and Validation during the service management lifecycle and specifically in the following key ITIL process, role and function areas:

• Change management
• Service asset and configuration management
• Service validation and testing
• Release and deployment management
• Request fulfilment
• Change evaluation
• Knowledge management

Prior to attending this course, delegates are expected to understand the context of RCV management in their business environment and have responsibility for at least one of the management processes listed above.

The course is conducted through interactive group study using practical examples and activities. An in-depth case study allows delegates to see how the theory is applied in a real life situation. Over the five day course, the following topics are covered.

Introduction to release, control and validation (RCV)

• The purpose, objectives and scope of service transition lifecycle phase
• The RCV processes in relation to service transition
• Activities related to overall transition planning and on-going support

Change management

• The end-to-end process flow for change management , including its policies, design strategy, concepts, activities, and interfaces with other processes
• A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support change management within RCV practices
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from change management and the challenges and risks to be managed
• Service asset and configuration management (SACM)
• The end-to-end process flow for service asset and configuration management, including its policies, design strategy, concepts, activities and interfaces with other processes
• A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support service asset and configuration management within RCV practices
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from service asset and configuration management and the challenges and risks to be managed

Service validation and testing (SVT)

• • The end-to-end process flow for the SVT process, including its policies, concepts, activities and interfaces with other processes
• • Test modelling techniques and testing concepts (for example, stakeholder requirements, test conditions, environments, data) and how these test components are used to ensure service quality
• • A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support service validation and testing within RCV practices
• • The benefits and business value that can be gained from SVT and the challenges and risks to be managed

Release and deployment management (RDM)

• The end-to-end process flow for release and deployment management , including its policies, concepts, phases, activities and interfaces with other processes
• Release and deployment models and related activities (for example, design, planning, build, pilots, test, transfer, deployment, retirement) and how these activities ensure service quality
• A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support release and deployment management within RCV practices
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from release and deployment management

Request fulfilment

• The end-to-end process flow for request fulfilment, including its policies, concepts, activities, and interfaces with other processes
• Request fulfilment models and related activities (for example, effectiveness of designs, changes, performance) and how these activities help to ensure quality service within RCV
• A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support request fulfilment within RCV practices
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from request fulfilment and the challenges and risks to be managed

Change evaluation

• The end-to-end process flow for change evaluation, including its policies, concepts, activities interfaces with other processes
• Perspectives and considerations for evaluating the effectiveness of a service change
• A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support change evaluation within RCV practices
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from change evaluation and the challenges and risks to be managed

Knowledge management (KM)

• The end-to-end process flow for knowledge management, including its policies, concepts, activities and interfaces with other processes (for example CSI processes)
• Related concepts (for example, data-information-knowledge-wisdom (DIKW)) and how these activities help to ensure knowledge transfer and improved decision-making
• The benefits and business value that can be gained from knowledge management and the challenges and risks to be managed

Release, control and validation roles and responsibilities

• Generic roles that support service transition and the RCV processes
• The roles and responsibilities related to transition planning and support, change management, service asset and configuration management, service validation and testing, release and deployment management, request fulfilment, change evaluation, and knowledge management
• Where and how these are used, as well as how they fit within the context of service transition

Technology and Implementation Considerations

• The technology requirements for service management tools, where and how these would be used within RCV (for example, knowledge management and service asset and configuration management)
• The need and benefits of tools that support service transition as related to RCV
• Implementing RCV processes in the context of planning and managing change, service operation, project management, risk management, and staff considerations

Exam details:

The 90 minute closed book exam consists of eight multiple-choice, scenario-based, gradient scored questions. Each question will have four possible answer options – one is worth five marks, one is worth three marks, one is worth one mark and one is an incorrect answer worth no marks. The pass mark is 28/40 or 70%.

 ITIL Release, Control & Validation Course Description

ITIL official glossary