Lean IT Essentials Course & Examination

This two-day certification course provides the fundamental knowledge and practical guidance required to utilise key aspects of problem-solving methods and to execute continual improvement. The principles of Lean IT are applicable to all IT operations regardless of industry or sector. Any organisation that effectively applies Lean IT will notice increased user and customer satisfaction, reductions of IT costs, increased productivity, and an ability to manage demand more efficiently. 

Course inclusions:

• Online access to ITSM Hub's accredited course materials and additional resources
• Sample exam - interactive exam and PDF version
• Comprehensive study guide
• Lean IT Essentials online examination voucher, valid for 12-months
• A complimentary exam re-sit if you miss out the first time
• Lean IT Essentials official publication, available as an eBook - accessible from within your candidate portal
• A $25 lunch voucher for each day of the course, $75 in total. Provided by Prezzee card and redeemable through multiple outlets.

Course Overview

Lean IT provides practical guidance that focuses on the improvement of whatever processes already exist within the organisation. Regardless of the framework or standard your IT organisation has chosen, the central focus of Lean IT is learning how to assess any business process to eliminate waste, where waste is defined as something that adds no value to a product, service, or output. It is also a crucial and basic approach that can help an organisation better position itself to begin its digital transformation journey.

Implementing Lean IT’s mindset, concepts, and techniques can lead to:

• Enhanced customer satisfaction and increased loyalty:
  • Adds more value while reducing sources of waste
  • Improves throughput by reducing waste
  • Increases agility and the ability to adapt
• Greater strategic value results in:
  • Better quality services
  • Increased productivity through improved resource management
  • The increased involvement and motivation of employees
• Improved financial value: Lean is NOT a cost-reduction initiative, but the following provide a secondary and positive impact on an organisation’s financials:
  • The reduction of process waste
  • The optimisation of value-adding work
  • The above improvements can lead to a reduction in the duration between the order intake and delivery, which will improve cash flow.

The Lean IT Essentials entry-level course is the first in the Lean IT certification scheme that’s been defined by Professional Designations Corp. (PDC), and it is a mandatory requirement for taking the other two advanced courses: Lean IT Kaizen and Lean IT Leadership. 

This course prepares you for the exam leading to the Lean IT Essentials certificate. Based on the core principles of Lean, the two-day Essentials course will help IT departments become more business-value oriented, which will result in removing waste, inflexibility, and variability.

Learning Outcomes

Lean IT Essentials focuses on providing actionable improvements to six major components: the customer, processes, performance, the Lean organisation, behaviour and attitude, and problem-solving/kaizen. 

Upon completion, participants of this course will be able to: 

•  Describe the origin, development, and purpose of the Lean and Six Sigma philosophies – which includes their key elements and the five Lean principles 
• Understand the concept of the voice of the customer and the factors that influence customer value, etc. 
• Recognise the concept of waste – and how to reduce and/or eliminate it 
• Understand how to define, initiate, document, and implement process improvements and how they relate to value improvement, etc. 
• Understand the definition of performance measurement and how it relates to value stream maps and process cycle efficiency, as well as the requirements for key performance indicators (KPIs), etc.
• Understand the organisational requirements for a Lean IT organisation that includes the importance of customer orientation, empowering employees, implementing visual management, etc. 
• Identify the characteristics of Lean thinking, the differences between traditional management and Lean leadership, and the behaviour and attitudes required to successfully implement Lean, etc. 
• Identify and implement the key aspects of problem-solving and kaizen as forms of continuous improvement, which include being able to apply various Lean analytical tools: 
• A3 thinking – This is a visual method for structured problem-solving. 
• Deming (or Shewhart) cycle – This explains how to apply the cycle of continuous improvement: plan-do-check-act. 
• The Toyota production system – One of its basic concepts is: Go, look, and see (fact not emotion). 
• Value stream mapping – This shows how to apply Lean IT principles to a value stream. 
• The concept of kaizen, also known as continual improvement, is applied across the organisation to systems, processes, and activities. 

The integratedITSM™ Designation Scheme

Who should attend

Lean IT Essentials is for IT professionals who need to understand how to assess their current business processes to identify and eliminate waste, which results in a faster and higher-quality delivery of business value. 

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for this certification.

Exam & Certification

The exam is offered through Professional Designations (PDC) and to obtain certification, attendees must write and pass the exam as follows. The exam is included in the course fee and will be provided on the first day of the course.

• Duration: 60 minutes
• Questions: 40 multiple-choice questions, closed book
• Pass mark: 65% (26 questions correct out of 40 questions)
• Supervised: Yes
• Format: Online

Course Material & Inclusions

Material for this course will only be provided as downloadable soft copy files that can be viewed on a variety of devices. Attendees may print a hard copy of the files in whatever format best meets their needs and can use the files under ITSM Hub’s Terms of Use.

• Course workbooks/slideshow for students to download, or view on laptop or tablet devices
• Lean IT Essentials practice exam
• Course reference and exam guidance materials
  

Our virtual instructor-led classes include a $25 lunch voucher for each day, this means you can get your lunch organised whether you do it from home or the office. The voucher is provided via email on the first morning of the course ($50 for 2-day course).

Lean IT Essentials online exam voucher, provided by Professional Designations (PDC) - global examination provider

Plus a complimentary Lean IT Essentials exam re-sit if you miss out on passing your certification the first time.

The Lean IT Essentials official publication eBook is included with your exam voucher, which you will be able to download through the Professional Designations portal.  

After completion of this course, you may apply for self-directed learning PDUs through PMI. A letter of attendance is available upon request. 

SFIA Skills & Industry Accreditation

After completion of this course, you may apply for self-directed learning PDU's through PMI. A certificate of attendance is available upon request. 

This course enables participants to develop their knowledge and proficiency in the following Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA®) professional skills:

• METL: Methods and Tools
• QUAS: Quality Assurance
• MEAS: Measurement
• PBMG: Problem Management

This list gives the core SFIA skills covered by the course. Elements relevant to other SFIA skills may also be included to a lesser depth. Proficiency in a SFIA skill is measured by performance assessment and is achieved through actual substantial use of that skill in a real-world situation over some time. In course assignments and exercises undertaken through a course can demonstrate elements of the relevant skills which can then be further developed back in the workplace.  Acquiring new skills and building on existing skills, ideally occurs within the context of an agreed development plan for each person that ensures that their personal circumstances, strengths and development needs are met.