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ITIL, a set of comprehensive concepts and practices strengthening the IT services relationships between business management and improving customer satisfaction, stands for Information Technology Infrastructure Library. It is a globally recognized IT service delivery framework that entails the best practices for IT service management (ITSM). ITIL certification is key for IT professionals. Its feature of focusing on matters essential to businesses, such as, how to increase efficiency and cut costs, makes it one of the highest-paid IT certifications.
ITIL Foundation and TOGAF certifications, although distinct in their focus, share a complementary relationship within the realm of IT and enterprise architecture. ITIL Foundation primarily centers on IT service management, emphasizing the efficient delivery of IT services to align with business objectives. TOGAF, on the other hand, is geared towards enterprise architecture, concentrating on holistic system design and management to meet business goals effectively.
History of ITIL
The CCTA (Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency) under the UK Government developed the ITIL framework in the 1980s. The motive was to establish a set of standard guidelines for the functioning of the diversified IT architecture. The earliest version of ITIL was Government Information Technology Infrastructure Management (GITIM). Its focus was service delivery and technological support. In the years following, the framework was revised several times. To date, 30 volumes of ITIL have been published. The updated versions of ITIL were published in the years 2001, 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2011.
Why is ITIL Certification Important?
There are various reasons why IT professionals believe that having an ITIL certification is crucial to their career growth. Some of the causes are as follows:
- An ITIL certificate adds to a learner’s list of existing skill sets and provides him with increased exposure to how ITIL is executed across the organization. This is a noteworthy skill set to achieve, which makes the learner stand one out in the crowd.
- ITIL is a global standard and can be executed in almost all industries that work on highly controlled IT services. Candidates with ITIL skills have a wide scope of being recruited in multiple industries, and locations. Not only do they have a high chance of being employed in the company of their choice, but many employers also agree to recruit them with a high pay package and customizable benefits.
- When applying for a job role, ITIL-certified candidates have numerous options to choose from. Some such roles are IT managers, IT directors, IT engineers, support analysts, IT support engineers, service delivery managers, IT business analysts, and IT project managers.
Benefits of Getting ITIL Certified
We have already learned about why it is important to have an ITIL certification. Let us look at the benefits that the certification can provide in a more detailed manner in this section:
- Better salary package: An ITIL-certified IT professional with a certain amount of work experience has a higher chance of being promoted. An ITIL certification gives an impression to a potential employer that the employee is serious about his career growth, and believes in taking a systematic approach to ITSM. Additionally, employers are willing to pay a higher salary to employees they see as a key contributor to the organizational growth, and those who benefit them economically by cutting down on operational costs. ITIL gives you this knowledge. Therefore, if your current job role does not give you the job satisfaction you want and you are looking at shifting your current job profile, this may be the direction you want to walk in.
- Knowledge and Confidence: ITIL training provides the required knowledge about ITSM and its connections with customer support. With the acquisition of new skills, the new knowledge boosts your confidence. The Credibility earns you respect among your teammates, resulting in better work productivity. Not to forget, learning a new skill and that too one that not many possess, brings one, an elevated sense of self, and increases the job prospects.
- Agile IT environment building and better risk management ability: ITIL integrates ITSM into the business culture, as well as, it takes customer feedback into account. Keeping a tab of the general perception helps to forecast risks related to IT service delivery. ITIL follows a systematic approach to improve one’s productivity. The processes are streamlined using the best practices. The certification allows room for collaboration, communication, and integration of certain processes and practices to ensure flexibility and improve the delivery of results.
- Increased efficiency: ITIL increases efficiency by improving the timeliness of service delivery and customer satisfaction. The framework also provides the best practices to increase flexibility and visibility in the IT environment.
- Flexibility to Pursue Education: The certification course of ITIL is designed to keep career growth in mind. Therefore, it does not ask you to take a break from your job to pursue it. Instead, you can take this course online at home while maintaining a steady job. In fact, working on it simultaneously along with your job, keeps you up to date with how the new skills can be incorporated in your organization.
- Organizational Efficiency: From the organizational viewpoint, using a common language, makes communication across different teams, more effective. The expenses incurred to train the employees are lower, and it is easier to track the performance for planning and benchmarking, thus paving the way to more satisfied clients.
Besides, ITIL provides a great return on investment. ITIL professionals establish robust processes through service improvements. strategies, design, and so on. This enables the seamless functioning of IT operations and reduces service costs. Thus, an employer sees ITIL as a certification that adds value and increases an employee’s work efficiency.
Conclusion
No matter how good a product or service is, you should always analyze how your needs fit with it before you purchase it. The same applies to ITIL certification. It is good to be informed that the service works best in the IT field. You can expect to get the wholesome benefits out of the ITIL certification course if you are an IT consultant, a mid or senior-level IT professional, an IT professional who wishes to update his skills, or if you are working in a different industry and are trying to switch to the IT domain.
The ITIL framework has stood the test of time in the IT industry. Organizations that have used the framework have found it reliable. This credibility is prompting more and more organizations to incorporate ITIL into their business framework.
