CITM Questions and Answers

The main objective of ajob rotation programin anIT organizationis tosupport the long-term continuity of the organization(A). Job rotation ensures that multiple staff members are trained across various roles and tasks, reducing dependency on specific individuals and mitigating risks associated with staff turnover or absences. This approach enhances organizational resilience by creating a flexible, cross-trained workforce capable of maintaining operations, aligning withIT organizationprinciples for workforce planning and business continuity.

Train staff on a range of activities (B):While training is a benefit, it is a means to achieve continuity, not the primary objective.

Increase staff job satisfaction (C):Job satisfaction may be a secondary benefit, but it’s not the main goal in an IT context.

Allow staff a diversity in responsibilities (D):Diversity in tasks is a byproduct, not the primary focus, which is organizational continuity.

According tohuman resource managementframeworks, job rotation is a strategic tool for ensuring operational stability, particularly in IT environments where specialized skills are critical.

Concerns about future price increases can be addressed byincluding contractual terms(B) in the agreement to limit or regulate price escalations (e.g., fixed pricing, escalation clauses, or review mechanisms). This approach balances the business units’ insistence on proceeding with the selected vendor (based on a thorough evaluation) while mitigating financial risks. According tovendor management best practices, contracts should include clear terms to protect against unforeseen cost increases, ensuring alignment with business objectives.

Ignore the business units and change vendor (A):Contradicts the evaluation process and business units’ decision, risking misalignment.

Sign the contract (C):Ignores the price increase concern, potentially exposing the organization to financial risk.

Re-tender the project (D):Unnecessary, as the vendor was selected through evaluation; contractual terms can address the concern without restarting the process.

Inrisk management, theAnnual Loss Expectancy (ALE)is calculated as:

ALE = Single Loss Expectancy (SLE) × Annualized Rate of Occurrence (ARO), whereSLE = Asset Value × Exposure Factor (EF).

Given:

Asset Value = $200,000

Exposure Factor (EF) = 25% = 0.25

ALE = $100,000

Calculate SLE:

SLE = Asset Value × EF = $200,000 × 0.25 = $50,000

Calculate ARO:

ALE = SLE × ARO

$100,000 = $50,000 × ARO

ARO = $100,000 ÷ $50,000 = 2

Thus, theAnnualized Rate of Occurrence (ARO)is2(C), meaning the incident is expected to occur twice per year.

0.4 (A):Incorrect; implies a lower frequency (0.4 times per year).

1 (B):Incorrect; would yield an ALE of $50,000, not $100,000.

The main objective ofvendor management meetingsis toverify if the vendor continues to meet the requirements of the contract, supporting the business processes(C). These meetings, as part ofvendor management frameworks, ensure that the vendor’s performance aligns with contractual obligations, service level agreements (SLAs), and business needs. They involve reviewing service delivery, compliance, and any issues affecting business processes.

Explore improvement programs (A):A secondary goal, as improvements may arise from performance reviews.

Identify possible price increases (B):Price discussions may occur, but they are not the primary focus.

Discuss improvement programs (D):Similar to A, this is a potential outcome but not the main objective.

To reduce the risk of fraud in large financial transactions, the security principle ofintegrity(C) requires the highest attention.Integrity, as perISO/IEC 27001’s CIA triad (Confidentiality, Integrity, Availability), ensures that data is accurate, complete, and unaltered. Fraud often involves manipulating transaction data, so controls like data validation, checksums, or audit trails are critical to maintain integrity and prevent unauthorized changes.

Confidentiality (A):Protects data from unauthorized access, less directly related to fraud prevention.

Availability (B):Ensures system access, not the primary concern for fraud.

Reliability (D):Not a standard CIA triad principle; may relate to system performance but not fraud.

InITIL, theservice operationphase focuses on delivering and managing services, including activities like communicating scheduled outages (A), reporting service performance (B), and handling escalations (C).Defining service strategy(D) is part of theservice strategyphase, not service operation, as it involves planning and aligning services with business goals.

When implementing a new system, the customer’s concern about a large impact on the user base suggests the need for a low-risk, controlled adoption strategy. Inapplication management, theparalleladoption approach (B) involves running both the old and new systems simultaneously for a period, allowing users to transition gradually while ensuring the new system functions correctly. This minimizes disruption, as the old system remains operational as a fallback if issues arise with the new system.

Big bang (A):This approach involves switching entirely to the new system at once, which is high-risk and likely to cause significant disruption, especially for a concerned user base. It’s unsuitable here due to the potential for widespread impact.

Coordinated (C):This is not a standard term in application deployment strategies. It may imply a managed transition but lacks the specificity of parallel or phased approaches.

Phased (D):This involves rolling out the new system incrementally (e.g., by department or module), which reduces risk but doesn’t provide the same level of safety as parallel, where both systems run concurrently to ensure continuity.

Theparallelapproach is ideal for mitigating risks during a critical system transition, as it allows validation of the new system’s performance while maintaining business continuity. According toITILorSDLCframeworks, parallel adoption is often recommended for mission-critical systems to ensure stability and user acceptance.

InITIL(Information Technology Infrastructure Library), anemergency changeis implemented to address urgent issues that significantly impact business operations, such as a processing error during financial year closing. Emergency changes are fast-tracked to restore service or prevent further disruption, bypassing some standard change management processes while still requiring approval.

Normal changes (A) follow the full change management process, standard changes (B) are pre-approved and routine, and exceptional (C) is not a standard ITIL term. Emergency change (D) fits the scenario of urgent action to avoid business delays.

In corporate hiring protocols,additional screeningtypically refers to background checks beyond basic qualifications, such as verifying a candidate’scriminal record. This is critical for IT roles, where employees may have access to sensitive systems and data, ensuring trustworthiness and compliance with security policies.

Salary demands (A) are negotiated during the hiring process, not screened. Number of years of experience (B) and educational level (D) are verified through resumes and standard checks, not typically classified as “additional screening,” which focuses on security-related checks like criminal records.

For amission-critical applicationin a financial institution requiring data to beinstantly available at two locations,synchronous replication(B) is recommended. Synchronous replication ensures that data is written to both the primary and secondary locations simultaneously, guaranteeing no data loss and immediate availability at both sites. This is critical for financial applications where data integrity and zero recovery point objective (RPO) are essential, as perbusiness continuityanddisaster recoveryframeworks likeISO 22301.

Instant replication (A):Not a standard term in replication strategies; likely a distractor.

Asynchronous replication (C):Data is replicated with a delay, risking data loss in case of failure, unsuitable for instant availability.

Semi-synchronous replication (D):A compromise where the primary site continues after the secondary acknowledges receipt, but it may not guarantee instant availability.

Synchronous replication ensures real-time data consistency, critical for financial systems.