ITIL Intermediate Module – Operational Support and Analysis

The ITIL Operational Support and Analysis (ITIL OSA) module is one of the certifications in the ITIL^® Service Capability workstream. The purpose of this training module and the associated exam and certificate is, respectively, to impart, test, and validate the knowledge on industry practices in service management as documented in the ITIL Service Lifecycle core publications. The exam focuses on the practical application of OSA practices in order to enable event, incident, request, problem, access, technical, IT operations, and application management. The content of the module is based mainly on the best practice guidance contained in the ITIL Service Operation publication.

It also covers issues relating to the people, relationships, procedures and infrastructure technology required to ensure that the organization or programme can provide the high quality and cost-effective IT services that are required to meet organizational needs.

Target Audience

The target group of the ITIL Intermediate Qualification: Operational Support and Analysis Certificate includes, but is not restricted to:

Firstly, IT professionals
Secondly, Business managers
Thirdly, Business process owners
Fourthly, Individuals who require a deep understanding of the ITIL Certificate in the Operational Support and Analysis processes and how it may be used to enhance the quality of IT service support within an organization
Furthermore, IT professionals who are working within an organization that has adopted and adapted ITIL and who need to be informed about, and thereafter contribute to, an ongoing service improvement program
Then, Operational staff involved in the event management process, incident management process, request fulfillment process, problem management process, access management process, service desk, technical management, IT operations management and application management, and who wish to enhance their role-based capabilities
Moreover, Individuals who have attained the ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management and wish to advance to higher level ITIL certifications
Also, Individuals seeking the ITIL Expert Certificate in IT Service Management for which this qualification can be one of the prerequisite modules
Lastly, Individuals seeking progress toward the ITIL Master Certificate in IT Service Management for which the ITIL Expert is a prerequisite.

Pre-Requisite to the Exam

Candidates wishing to be trained and examined for this qualification must already hold the ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management which must be presented as documentary evidence to gain admission.

Candidates who hold the following ITIL qualifications are also eligible, and similar evidence will be required:

Firstly, earlier ITIL (V2) Foundation plus Foundation Bridge
Secondly, ITIL Expert Certificate in IT Service Management (achieved via Service Manager or Practitioner bridging routes).

ITIL OSA Exam Details

Exam Name	ITIL Operational Support and Analysis
Level of the Exam	Intermediate Level
Exam Format	8 multiple-choice, scenario-based, gradient-scored questions Each question will have: – 4 possible answer options – one which is worth 5 marks – one which is worth 3 marks – one which is worth 1 mark – one which is a distracter and achieves no marks
Number of Questions	8 questions per page
Exam Duration	90 minutes
Exam Type	Closed Book
Maximum Marks	40
Passing Marks	70% (28/40)
Exam Language	Brazilian Portuguese Danish English French German Japanese Spanish (Latin American)

Frequently Asked Questions: ITIL OSA

Find answers to all the questions you’ve been looking for about the ITIL OSA exam HERE!

Course Outline

Learning Unit OSA01: Introduction to operational support and analysis

Bloom’s Level 2 Objectives – Full understanding of Operational Support and Analysis (OSA) terms and core concepts.

The value to the business of OSA activities
The lifecycle within the OSA context
Optimizing service operation performance.

Learning Unit OSA02: Event management

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of event management principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the operation of effective service solutions.

The event management process inclusive of its design strategy, components, activities, and operation including its organizational structure, as well as any interfaces with other processes
Furthermore, Efficient event management and provision of examples showing how it is used to ensure service quality within OSA
The benefits and business value that can be gained from event management.

Learning Unit OSA03: Incident management

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of incident management principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions.

The incident management process inclusive of its components, activities, and operation including its organizational structure, as well as any interfaces with other processes
Furthermore, The measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support incident management within OSA practices
The benefits and business value that can be gained from incident management.

Learning Unit OSA04: Request fulfillment

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of request fulfillment principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions

The request fulfillment process inclusive of its components, activities, and operation including its organizational structure, as well as any interfaces with other processes
Also, The measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support incident management within OSA practices
Moreover, The benefits and business value that can be gained from request fulfillment as related to OSA.

Learning Unit OSA05: Problem management

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of problem management principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions.

The end-to-end process flow for problem management inclusive of problem analysis techniques, error detection, components, activities, and operation including its organizational structure, as well
as any interfaces with other processes
A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support problem management within OSA practices
The benefits and business value that can be gained from problem management.

Learning Unit OSA06: Access management

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of access management principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions.

The end-to-end process flow for access management process inclusive of components, activities, and operation including its organizational structure, as well as any interfaces with other processes
A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support access management within OSA practices
The benefits and business value that can be gained from access management as related to OSA.

Learning Unit OSA07: The service desk

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of service desk principles, techniques, and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions.

The complete end-to-end process flow for the service desk function inclusive of design strategy, components, activities, and operation, as well as any interfaces with other processes or lifecycle phases
The service desk validation components and activities (e.g. service desk role, organizational structures, challenges, issues safeguards, etc.) and how these test components are used to ensure service quality within OSA
A measurement model and the metrics that would be used to support the service desk function within OSA practices.

Learning Unit OSA08: Functions and Roles

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation and analysis of OSA principles, techniques and relationships and the application of them to the support and operation of effective service solutions

The end-to-end process flow for OSA functions (i.e. technical management, IT operations management, and applications management) inclusive of design strategy, objectives, components, activities, roles, and operation including its organizational structure, as well as any interfaces with other processes
Also, The roles within each OSA process and generic roles
The benefits and business value that can be gained from functions as related to OSA.

Learning Unit OSA09: Technology and implementation considerations

Bloom’s Level 4 Objectives – The knowledge, interpretation, and analysis of technology and implementation and the application of them for the effective management of OSA.

Technology requirements for service management tools and where/how they would be used within OSA for process implementation
What best practices should be used in order to alleviate challenges and risks when implementing service management technologies.

Preparatory Guide – ITIL OSA Exam

Review Exam Objectives

Knowing the exam objectives is very important to get an insight into the exam. A thorough analysis will let you align yourself more deeply with the chief objectives of the exam, hence, enabling you to gain the required command to earn your desired certification. Below are the major domains of the course outline for the exam:

Firstly, Introduction to operational support and analysis
Secondly, Event management
Thirdly, Incident management
Fourthly, Request fulfillment
Also, Problem management
Then, Access management
Furthermore, The service desk
Moreover, Functions and Roles
Lastly, Technology and implementation considerations

Accredited Training Course

The Operational Support and Analysis certification can only be taken as part of an accredited training course. The OSA course can teach organizations and individuals how to manage the everyday operation of IT services and gain a better understanding of how to implement the ITIL processes that will enable them to deliver and support services to customers. This will ultimately help in qualifying for the certification exam.

Study Resources

Updated in line with the ITIL 2011 editions and the Operational Support and Analysis (OSA) syllabus, Operational Support and Analysis ITIL® Intermediate Capability Handbook, the quick-reference guide will help you as you study for the OSA module of the ITIL Intermediate Capability qualification. Beyond the exam, this handbook is a practical resource that can be used in the workplace. Companion volumes covering the other Intermediate Capability modules are also available.

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