This four-day course focuses on the practical adoption and application of a problem management process, as well as the application of various problem management techniques to identify and correct real-world problems. Many of the techniques discussed in this course are described in the ITIL® Service Operation publication. This course takes the approach that problem management is an aspect of many roles in an organization. Through a series of practical, real-world exercises this course teaches how to use problem management techniques to address real-world problems. This course demonstrates how leading organizations establish methods of consistently identifying and handling problems using common best practice guidance. This is a hands-on course that provides numerous exercises that give a real-world understanding of a consistent, predictable, and repeatable approach to identifying and handling problems.
ITIL® is a registered trademark of AXELOS Limited, used under permission of AXELOS Limited. All rights reserved.
By the end of this course, participants will have the leadership toolkit to shape and steer GenAI portfolios across their organization.
Strategic Application
Course introduction and overview
- Accountability, boundaries and consistency
- Cost-effectiveness and quality
- Stages of the lifecycle
- Services
- The service portfolio
- Processes and functions
- A brief discussion of the processes defined by ITIL
- Roles and responsibilities
- Exercise 1: Understanding basic service management concepts
- Understanding problem management as an aspect of many roles in an organization
- What is a problem?
- Defining problem management
- What problem management is not
- Purpose and objectives of problem management
- Scope of problem management
- Problem management policies, principles and basic concepts
- Problem management activities
- Sources of information
- Problem management metrics and measurements
- Challenges and risks
- The continual service improvement approach
- Why a consistent and predictable approach to identifying and making decisions about problems is important to your business
Exercise 2: Understanding the theory of problem management
- Establishing common sense policies and practical guiding principles for problem management
- Defining problems, workarounds and known errors
- How problems and incidents are related
- Establishing a situational approach to problem management
- Overview of problem management techniques
- Chronological analysis
- Pain value analysis
- Brainstorming
- Affinity mapping
- 5-whys
- Fault isolation
- Hypothesis testing
- Technical observation post
- Ishikawa diagrams
- Pareto analysis
- Error detected during development
- Major problems
- Sample policies and guiding principles for problem management
Exercise 3: Practical policies and guiding principles for problem management
- What is a vision?
- Understanding and agreeing to the desired state for problem management in your organization
- Defining the vision
- Sample visions for problem management
- Exercise 4: Establishing a vision for problem management
- Understanding the current state of problem management in your organization
- Problem management Audit of Intent
- Problem management Audit of Action
- Sample problem management assessment questions
- Assessing levels of problem management maturity
- Sample assessment results
- Exercise 5: Understanding the current state of problem management in your organization
- Why most problem management processes fail
- Identifying, understanding and making decisions about problems in a consistent way
- Real-world example I: A short bridge (or vehicles that are too tall)
- Real-world example II: My first car (proactive and reactive problem management)
- Real-world example III: A bent CPU Pin (or controlling assumptions)
- Real-world example IV: Availability management and time zone coding
- Real-world example V: Operating system update
- Sample problem management situational matrix
- Exercise 6: Establishing a real-world, situational, problem management process
- What is a problem?
- What is a workaround?
- What is a known error?
- What information is contained in a problem record
- What information is contained in a known error record
- How are problem records used?
- How are known error records used?
- Storing records in a known error database
- Basic functionality of a known error database
- How changes and problems are related
- Sample problem workaround and known error records
- Exercise 7: Defining problems, workarounds and known errors
- What is an incident?
- Typical relationships
- Many incidents to one problem
- Many problems to one incidents
- Many problems to many incidents
- Categorization
- Prioritization
- Escalation
- Establishing an effective boundary between problem management and incident management
- Incident matching procedure
- Sample incident matching procedure
- Exercise 8: Developing an incident matching procedure for your organization
- Common problem situations
- When to use chronological analysis
- When to use pain value analysis
- When to use brainstorming
- When to use affinity mapping
- When to use 5-ways
- When to use fault isolation
- When to use hypothesis testing
- When to use technical observation post
- When to use Ishikawa diagrams
- When to use Pareto analysis
- Exercise 9: Understanding common problem situations
- What is chronological analysis?
- How does chronological analysis help?
- What are the steps in chronological analysis?
- Using chronological analysis in your organization
- Exercise 10: Using chronological analysis
- What is pain value analysis?
- How does pain value analysis help?
- What are the steps in pain value analysis?
- Using pain value analysis in your organization
- Exercise 11: Using pain value analysis
- What is brainstorming?
- How does brainstorming help?
- What are the steps in brainstorming?
- Using brainstorming in your organization
- Exercise 12: Using brainstorming
- What is affinity mapping?
- How does affinity mapping help?
- What are the steps in affinity mapping?
- Using affinity mapping in your organization
- What is 5-ways?
- How does 5-ways help?
- What are the steps in 5-ways?
- Using 5-ways in your organization
- Exercise 14: Using 5-ways
- What is fault isolation?
- How does fault isolation help?
- What are the steps in fault isolation?
- Using fault isolation in your organization
- Exercise 15: Using fault isolation
- What is hypothesis testing?
- How does hypothesis testing help?
- What are the steps in hypothesis testing?
- Using hypothesis testing in your organization
- Exercise 16: Using hypothesis testing
- What is technical observation post?
- How does technical observation post help?
- What are the steps in technical observation post?
- Using technical observation post in your organization
- Exercise 17: Using technical observation post
- What are Ishikawa diagrams?
- How do Ishikawa diagrams help?
- What are the steps in Ishikawa diagrams?
- Using Ishikawa diagrams in your organization
- Exercise 18: Using Ishikawa diagrams
- What is Pareto analysis?
- How does Pareto analysis help?
- What are the steps in Pareto analysis?
- Using Pareto analysis in your organization
- Exercise 19: Using Pareto analysis
- Review of concepts learned
- Questions and answers
hands-on learning model
Access to sanitized process maps, KPI definitions, candidate initiative lists, and basic cost baselines (time, cycle time, error or rework rates)
Speak with a Cognixia specialist about enrollment options, custom cohorts for your leadership team, or tailored delivery formats for your organization.
One of our specialists will contact you within one business day.
Asked Questions
Find details on duration, delivery formats, customization options, and post-program reinforcement.
- CIOs, CTOs
- Service management professionals
- IT managers and directors
- IT auditors
- Change management professionals
- Continual improvement professionals
- Service operation professionals
- Incident management professionals
- Problem management professionals
A minimum internet speed of 2 MBPS is recommended.
All the sessions are recorded. So even if you miss a class, you can access a recorded video of the session in your LMS.
You will get lifetime access to LMS and all the learning material in it.
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