ITIL-4-Foundation ITIL 4 Foundation Exam Questions and Answers

Organizations and people is one of the four dimensions of service management that influence the effectiveness and efficiency of service delivery1. This dimension focuses on the roles, responsibilities, and systems of authority that are needed to deliver and support services2. This dimension also covers the culture, skills, competencies, and collaboration of the people involved in service management3. References: ITIL Foundation - ITIL 4 Edition, page 8; ITIL® 4 – A Pocket Guide, page 19; ITIL® 4 Practice Guide: Organizational Change Management, page 7.

The purpose of the release management practice is to make new and changed services and features available for use.

Release: A version of a service or other configuration item, or a collection of configuration items, that is made available for use.

https://wiki.process-symphony.com.au/framework/lifecycle/process/release-management-itil-4/

Individual metrics without a specified service context are unhelpful. They should relate to defined outcomes and not simply operational metrics. This can be achieved with balanced bundles of metrics, such as customer satisfaction and key business outcomes.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-service-level-management/#:~:text=Service%20Level%20Agreements%20(SLAs) &text=Individual%20metrics%20without%20a%20specified,satisfaction%20and%20key%20business%20outcomes.

The purpose of the service configuration management practice is to ensure that accurate and reliable information about the configuration of services, and the CIs that support them, is available when and where it is needed. This includes information on how CIs are configured and the relationships between them.

https://wiki.process-symphony.com.au/framework/lifecycle/process/service-configuration-management-itil-4/

Think and work holistically

No service, practice, process, department, or supplier stands alone. The outputs that the organization delivers to itself, its customers, and other stakeholders will suffer unless it works in an integrated way to handle its activities as a whole, rather than as separate parts.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-guiding-principles/#:~:text=5.,rather%20than%20as%20separate%20parts.

Effective incident management often requires a high level of collaboration within and between teams as this can facilitate information-sharing and learning, as well as helping to solve the incident more efficiently and effectively. There may also be a need for good collaboration tools so that people working on an incident can work together effectively. One technique that takes advantage of collaboration is termed swarming. This brings many different stakeholders together to work on the issue. Management of incidents may require frequent interaction with third party suppliers, and routine management of this aspect of supplier contracts is often part of the incident management practice.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-incident-management/

A service relationship is defined as the cooperation between a service provider and service consumer. Service relationships are established between two or more organizations to co-create value. An organization can play the role of provider or consumer interchangeably, depending on the situation.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-key-concepts-service-management/#:~:text=and%20stakeholder%20management.-,Service%20Relationships,interchangeably%2C%20depending%20on%20the%20situation.

Each activity contributes to the value chain by transforming specific inputs into outputs. The inputs could be demand from outside the value chain, or outputs of other activities, while the transformation is facilitated by ITIL practices, undertaken using internal or third-party resources, processes, skills, and competencies.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-service-value-chain/

The purpose of the monitoring and event management practice is to systematically observe services and service components and record and report selected changes of state identified as events1. This practice helps to identify and prioritize any issues or opportunities for improvement in the delivery or support of services2. The other statements describe the purposes of different practices: incident management (A), service request management (B), and change enablement (D)3. References: ITIL Foundation - ITIL 4 Edition, page 14; ITIL® 4 – A Pocket Guide, page 31; ITIL® 4 Practice Guide: Monitoring and Event Management, page 7.

In ITIL, there are six activities in the service value chain which represent the steps an organization takes in the creation of value:

Plan

Engage

Design and Transition

Obtain/Build

Deliver and Support

Improve

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-service-value-chain/

A service request is defined as a request from a user or a user’s authorized representative that initiates a service action which has been agreed as a normal part of service delivery.

The purpose of the service request management practice is to support the agreed quality of a service by handling all pre-defined, user-initiated service requests in an effective and user-friendly manner. Service request management is dependent upon well-designed processes and procedures, which are operationalized through tracking and automation tools to maximize the efficiency of the practice. To be handled optimally, service request management should follow these guidelines:

Service requests and their fulfilment should be standardized and automated to the greatest degree possible.

Policies should define which service requests will be fulfilled with limited or even no additional approvals so that fulfilment can be streamlined.

The expectations of users regarding fulfilment times and costs should be clearly set, based on what the organization can realistically deliver.

Opportunities for improvement should be identified and implemented to produce faster fulfilment times and take advantage of automation.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-service-request-management/

The service desk practice provides a single point of contact for users and customers to report issues, make requests, or seek guidance1. This practice guarantees that users have a range of access channels to choose from to report problems, such as phone, email, web portal, chatbot, or self-service2. This helps to improve user satisfaction, reduce frustration, and increase efficiency3. References: ITIL Foundation - ITIL 4 Edition, page 14; ITIL® 4 – A Pocket Guide, page 32; ITIL® 4 Practice Guide: Service Desk, page 7.

In ITIL 4, an incident is defined as an unplanned interruption to a service, or a reduction in the quality of a service. Unplanned maintenance that results in a service being unavailable for two hours clearly represents an unplanned interruption, so it is managed as an incident.

The incident management practice is responsible for:

Managing the lifecycle of incidents

Restoring normal service operation as quickly as possible

Minimizing the negative impact on business operations

That makes incident management the practice most likely to be involved in handling and coordinating communication about this unplanned downtime.

Why the others are less appropriate here:

Problem management aims to manage causes of incidents and reduce their likelihood or impact over time; it does not primarily manage the immediate unplanned outage.

Change enablement manages changes (including emergency changes), but the question is focused on managing the service unavailability to users, which falls under incident management.

Service request management deals with pre-defined, user-initiated requests (such as password resets, information requests), not with unplanned outages.

Therefore, the practice most likely to manage this unplanned unavailability is incident management, so A is correct.

A change that must be implemented as soon as possible without strictly following the standard process e.g. to resolve an incident or implement a security patch.

The process for assessment and authorization is expedited to ensure quick implementation, so scheduling and documentation is not a priority.

The change authority may be separate from what is standard or normal practice, typically smaller in number but with greater capacity to expedite approval.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-change-enablement/

The purpose of the service request management practice is to support the agreed quality of a service by handling all pre-defined, user-initiated service requests in an effective and user-friendly manner. Service request management is dependent upon well-designed processes and procedures, which are operationalized through tracking and automation tools to maximize the efficiency of the practice. To be handled optimally, service request management should follow these guidelines:

Service requests and their fulfilment should be standardized and automated to the greatest degree possible.

Policies should define which service requests will be fulfilled with limited or even no additional approvals so that fulfilment can be streamlined.

The expectations of users regarding fulfilment times and costs should be clearly set, based on what the organization can realistically deliver.

Opportunities for improvement should be identified and implemented to produce faster fulfilment times and take advantage of automation.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-service-request-management/

In ITIL 4, the service level management practice is responsible for setting clear, agreed targets for service performance and ensuring that services are delivered in line with these targets.

A key tool used in this practice is the service level agreement (SLA). An SLA is an agreement between a service provider and a customer that:

Defines the expected level of service

Documents specific, measurable service targets (such as availability, response time, resolution time)

Provides a basis to monitor and measure performance against those targets

Because SLAs describe measurable service targets and are used to assess whether the service provider is meeting those targets, they are explicitly used as a tool to help define and measure performance. This aligns directly with the wording in the question.

A. A continual improvement register (CIR)The CIR is used in the continual improvement practice to record, track, and manage improvement opportunities and activities. It supports managing improvements, not defining and measuring service performance targets.

B. An incident recordThis belongs to the incident management practice. Incident records are used to log, manage, and track incidents (unplanned interruptions or reductions in service). They are not designed as tools to define or measure ongoing service performance.

C. A change schedulePart of the change enablement practice, the change schedule is used to plan and communicate the timing of changes. It coordinates when changes will occur but does not define or measure service performance levels.

Therefore, the correct answer is D. A service level agreement, as it is the formal tool used to define and measure service performance in ITIL 4.

ITIL 4 Foundation: Service level management practice – purpose and key terms (including service level agreements)

ITIL 4 Foundation: Concept of SLAs as documents that define and measure service performance targets

ITIL 4 Foundation: Overviews of Continual Improvement, Incident Management, and Change Enablement practices and their key records (CIR, incident records, change schedules)

A help desk is considered to be focused on break-fix (what ITIL calls incident management), whereas a service desk is there to assist with not only break-fix but also with service requests (requests for new services) and requests for information (such as “how do I do X?”).

https://www.atlassian.com/itsm/service-request-management/help-desk-vs-service-desk-vs-itsm#:~:text=A%20help%20desk%20is%20considered,I%20do%20X%3F%E2%80%9D).

You need to use all of your resources as effectively and efficiently as you can. This means that you should automate wherever you can, and use people only for tasks that can’t be automated. It also means that you need to think carefully about what you can automate and about the circumstances where only a person will do; and about simplifying those processes you do decide to automate to eliminate wasteful or inefficient steps.

You should always optimize the work BEFORE you automate it, as automating something that is inefficient or ineffective may just result in you doing the wrong thing faster!

https://www.sysaid.com/blog/itil/the-7-guiding-principles-of-itil-4-practical-advice-to-help-you-make-decisions

Continual improvement encompasses all elements of the ITIL SVS. It involves aligning an organization’s practices and services with changing business needs, through the ongoing assessment and improvement of each element involved in the management of products and services. Continual improvement applies to the SVS in its entirety, as well as to all of the organization’s products, services, service components, and relationships, and is the responsibility of every individual involved in service management.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-continual-improvement/

The ‘progress iteratively with feedback’ guiding principle encourages organizations to break down complex initiatives into smaller, simpler, and more manageable units of work1. This principle also recommends seeking and acting on feedback from stakeholders, avoiding big-bang approaches, and adapting plans based on new information2. However, this principle does not advise prohibiting changes to plans, analysing the whole situation in detail, or reducing the number of steps that produce tangible results, as these would be contrary to the iterative and adaptive nature of this principle3. References: ITIL Foundation - ITIL 4 Edition, page 7; ITIL® 4 – A Pocket Guide, page 27; ITIL® 4 Practice Guide: Progress Iteratively with Feedback, page 9.

ITIL® defines a problem as a cause, or potential cause, of one or more incidents. A known error is a problem that has been analyzed but not resolved.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-problem-management/

Comprehensive and Detailed Explanation From Exact Extract:

In ITIL 4, the monitoring and event management practice is concerned with the systematic observation of services and service components. Its purpose is described as:

Continuously monitoring services and infrastructure.

Identifying and capturing changes of state in these components.

Classifying certain changes of state as events, which are then recorded, reported, and, where necessary, acted upon.

This practice enables early detection of issues, supports automated responses where appropriate, and helps maintain the normal operation and performance of services.

Option C accurately reflects this purpose, so it is correct.

The other options describe the purposes of different ITIL practices:

A – This is the purpose of incident management (restoring normal service operation quickly to minimize impact).

B – This is the purpose of service request management (handling user-initiated service requests effectively).

D – This is the purpose of change enablement (ensuring successful changes through proper risk assessment and authorization).

Relevant ITIL 4 Foundation references:

Monitoring and event management practice: purpose and key activities.

Purpose statements for incident management, service request management, and change enablement practices (for comparison).

Don’t start from scratch and build something new without considering what you already have. It’s almost always better to improve what you currently have than to throw it all away and start again, although you must also be able to recognise when a complete replacement is, in fact, needed.

Not only is this approach less wasteful than starting from scratch – because it preserves value that you already have – but it also helps you to keep your people on board. They’re much more likely to support the changes you need if their previous contributions have been appropriately valued.

Don’t rely on metrics and reports to tell you what the current situation is. When you carry out an assessment you should observe what is happening for yourself, and just use the metrics to support your observations.

https://www.sysaid.com/blog/itil/the-7-guiding-principles-of-itil-4-practical-advice-to-help-you-make-decisions

In ITIL 4, value is defined as the perceived benefits, usefulness, and importance of something. Applied to services, this means that the value of a service is not just about cost savings or technical features, but how stakeholders perceive the benefits, the usefulness, and the importance they receive from using the service. This aligns directly with option A, which reflects the ITIL wording about benefits, usefulness, and importance as perceived by stakeholders.

The other options reflect different ITIL key terms:

Option B focuses only on financial benefit. While financial impact is part of value, ITIL 4 makes clear that value is broader and based on perception, not just money.

Option C describes an output: ITIL defines an output as a tangible or intangible deliverable produced by an activity.

Option D describes an outcome: ITIL defines an outcome as a result for a stakeholder enabled by one or more outputs.

Because value is specifically about perceived benefits, usefulness, and importance, the correct answer is A.

IT asset is any financially valuable component that can contribute to the delivery of an IT product or service. The scope of IT asset management typically includes all software, hardware, networking, cloud services, and client devices

https://wiki.process-symphony.com.au/framework/lifecycle/process/it-asset-management-itil-4/#:~:text=IT%20asset%20is%20any%20financially,cloud%20services%2C%20and%20client%20devices.

Comprehensive and Detailed Explanation From Exact Extract:

In ITIL 4, stakeholders are individuals or organizations that have an interest in the service, or may be affected by its activities, objectives, or outcomes. Among these, customers are identified as the primary, key stakeholder group for a service provider because:

Customers define the requirements for services.

They determine what is considered value and which outcomes they want to achieve.

Services are specifically designed, delivered, and improved to meet customer needs and expectations.

Therefore, effective cooperation and collaboration with customers is essential for successful service management and value co-creation. While suppliers, relationship managers, and developers are important parties in service delivery, ITIL 4 emphasizes customers as the key stakeholder group with whom service providers must actively cooperate.

Relevant ITIL 4 Foundation references:

Key concepts of service management (stakeholders, customers, users, sponsors).

Discussions of value co-creation and the importance of understanding customer needs and outcomes.

Service management is a set of specialized organizational capabilities for enabling value for customers in the form of services. These capabilities include tangible things like capital, people, and equipment, and can also include intangible things like knowledge, management and skills. These capabilities can also include intangible things, like knowledge, management, and skills.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-key-concepts-service-management/#:~:text=Service%20management%20is%20a%20set,like%20knowledge%2C%20management%20and%20skills.

In ITIL 4 terminology, a problem is defined as the cause, or potential cause, of one or more incidents. Incident management deals with restoring service as quickly as possible, while problem management focuses on finding and addressing the underlying causes so that incidents do not recur.

A problem is therefore directly associated with the cause behind one or more incidents, matching the wording in the sentence.

A known error is a problem that has been analyzed and has a documented root cause and workaround; it is not simply “the cause or potential cause” but a further state of a problem.

A change is the addition, modification, or removal of anything that could have a direct or indirect effect on services, not specifically the cause of incidents.

An event is any change of state that has significance for the management of a service or other configuration item; again, not defined as the cause of incidents.

Because ITIL 4 explicitly associates the phrase “cause, or potential cause, of one or more incidents” with problem, the correct answer is D.

In ITIL 4, the service value chain is the central component of the Service Value System. It describes the set of interconnected activities an organization performs to create value in the form of products and services. The service value chain is explicitly defined as the model that outlines the key activities required to co-create value with customers and other stakeholders.

That is exactly what the question is asking: “the activities needed by an organization to help it co-create value” – which directly matches the role of the service value chain, so A is correct.

Why the other options are not correct in this context:

B. Continual improvement is a practice and a component of the Service Value System that ensures services, practices, and all components are continually improved, but it is not the central model of value-creating activities.

C. Guiding principle refers to recommendations that guide decisions and actions across all circumstances, not the activities themselves.

D. Practices are sets of organizational resources designed for performing work or accomplishing an objective; they support value creation, but they are not the component that models the end-to-end set of activities for co-creating value.

Therefore, the component focused on the activities needed to co-create value is the service value chain, making A the correct answer.

The second step is to conduct an objective current-state assessment of existing services and service management practices. This should include consideration of the users’ perception of the value being received, along with a review of people’s competencies and skills, the processes and procedures involved, the capabilities of the available technological solutions and the prevailing organizational culture. The success of an improvement initiative depends on a clear and accurate understanding of the starting point and the required impact of the initiative.

For example, an organization can measure the current net promoter score (NPS) from a customer satisfaction survey, conduct a benchmark survey against its competitors or review findings of operational statistics or audit reports to understand its current state. If this step is skipped, the current state will not be understood and there will not be an objective baseline measurement against which improvement can be measured.

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-continual-improvement/

In ITIL 4, “service consumer” is a generic term that includes three specific roles:

Customer – the person or group that defines the requirements for a service and takes responsibility for the outcomes of service consumption.

User – the person or group that actually uses the service.

Sponsor – the person or group that authorizes the budget for service consumption.

So, specifically:

The customer is responsible for defining the requirements for the service and for the overall outcomes expected from the service.

The sponsor is the one who authorizes the budget (not the customer, unless they are playing both roles in a given context).

The user is the one who uses the service in day-to-day operations.

The service provider (or relevant practices like deployment, request fulfillment, etc.) is responsible for provisioning the service, not the customer.

Now, mapping that to the options:

A. Authorizing the budget for the serviceThis is the responsibility of the sponsor role, not specifically the customer role (though one person may sometimes act as both in practice).

B. Provisioning the serviceThis is the responsibility of the service provider, not the customer.

C. Defining the requirements for the service ✅This matches the ITIL 4 description of the customer role: the customer defines requirements and is accountable for service outcomes. Therefore, this is the correct answer.

D. Using the serviceThis describes the user role, not the customer role (even though a person could be both customer and user in some real-world situations).

ITIL 4 Foundation: Definition of service consumer roles – customer, user, sponsor

Sponsor: A person who authorizes budget for service consumption; e.g., the Finance Manager

https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-key-concepts-service-management/#:~:text=Sponsor%3A%20A%20person%20who%20authorizes,%3B%20e.g.%2C%20the%20Finance%20Manager.