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CIS - Strategic Portfolio Management (CIS-SPM) Mainline Exam Blueprint

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Updated September 2023

 


Introduction

The ServiceNow Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management Exam Specification document defines the purpose, audience, testing options, exam content coverage, test framework, and prerequisites to earn the Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management certification.

 

Exam Purpose

The Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) exam certifies that a successful candidate has the skills and essential knowledge to contribute to the configuration, implementation, and maintenance of ServiceNow SPM applications. 

 

Exam Audience

The ServiceNow Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management exam is available to ServiceNow customers, partners, employees, and others interested in becoming a ServiceNow SPM Certified Implementation Specialist.

 

Exam Preparation

Exam questions are based on official ServiceNow training materials, the ServiceNow Product documentation site, and the ServiceNow developer site. Study materials posted elsewhere online are not official and should not be used to prepare for the examination.

Prerequisite ServiceNow Training

ServiceNow recommends the completion of the following prerequisite training course(s) in preparation for the Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management exam. The following ServiceNow training course(s) contain the underlying foundational knowledge needed for the exam.

  • Welcome to ServiceNow
  • ServiceNow Administration Fundamentals
  • Get Started with Now Create (On Demand)  
  • ServiceNow Platform Implementation

Required ServiceNow Training

ServiceNow requires completion of the following training course(s) and certification(s). The content in these courses covers the exam learning domains and will help you prepare for the exam.

  • Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) Fundamentals 
  • Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) Implementation
  • Performance Analytics (PA) Essentials
  • Performance Analytics (PA) Simulator - Micro-Certification

 

Upon completion of the ServiceNow Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) Implementation course, the candidate will be eligible to obtain or purchase a nontransferable voucher code to register for the ServiceNow Certified Implementation Specialist – Strategic Portfolio Management exam.

Additional Recommended Resources

In addition to the above, the candidate may find the following additional resources valuable in preparation for the exam.

 

Additional Recommended Experience

  • General familiarity with general industry terminology, acronyms, and initialisms  
  • Six months of field experience participating in ServiceNow deployment projects or maintaining ServiceNow instances 

 

Exam Scope

Learning domains are the key topics and specific objectives included in the exam. Exam content or exam items are divided into learning domains.

The following table shows the learning domains, weightings, sub-topics, and the percentage of questions represented in each domain. The listed sub-skills should NOT be considered an all-inclusive list of the exam content. 

 

Number of Domains

Learning Domain

Percent of Exam

1

SPM Implementation Overview

  • Overview of SPM
  • SPM Personas
  • Now Create Methodology

2%

2

SPM Applications Overview 

  • Plugins 
  • Store Applications
  • Tables & Data Models 
  • Properties & Preferences 
  • User & Role Administration 
  • Group Administration

20%

3

Idea & Demand Configuration 

  • Configuring Idea 
  • Idea to Task Process Flow 
  • Integrating Innovation Management with Universal Request 
  • Idea to Demand 
  • Defining Stakeholders 
  • Assessments 
  • Demand Visualization Capabilities

21%

4

Resource Management Configuration 

  • Resource Allocation Workbench 
  • State, Schedules, Calendars & Reports 

17%

5

Project Management Configuration 

  • Project Templates 
  • Project Workspace 
  • Planning Console 
  • Investment Portal  
  • Status Reports  
  • RIDAC 

21%

6

Timecard Management Configuration 

  • Generate a Timecard 
  • Categories & Policies  
  • Rate Types 

5%

7

SPM Financials Configuration

  • Cost Types & Fiscal Calendar 
  • Financial Baseline & Planning Grid 
  • Rate Model 
  • Multi-Currency 

8%

8

Portfolio Planning Workspace Configuration  

  • Portfolio Planning Overview
  • Configuring the Portfolio Planning Workspace
  • Integrate Portfolio Planning with PPM
  • Capacity Planning

3%

9

Performance Analytics, Reporting & Dashboards 

  • Performance Analytics 
  • Reporting 
  • Dashboards

2%

10

Release Management and Digital Portfolio Management for SPM  

  • Release Management for SPM Overview 
  • Digital Portfolio Management for SPM Overview

2%

Total

100%

 

Exam Registration

ServiceNow partners with Kryterion using its Webassessor platform for exam registration. Our mainline exams are offered at Kryterion Test Centers or can be taken anywhere online while a Kryterion proctor monitors the exam appointment.

To register for an exam, you will need to create a Webassessor account and then link it to your Now Learning account.

For individuals with a disability or English as Second Language (ESL), ServiceNow does offer reasonable accommodation while taking the certification exam.

 

Exam Structure

Exam Duration

The exam duration is 90 minutes.

Number of Items

The exam consists of 60 questions.

 

Multiple Choice (single answer)

For each multiple-choice question on the exam, there are at least four possible responses. Select the one response that most accurately answers the question.

Multiple Select (select all that apply)

For each multiple-select question on the exam, there are at least four possible responses. The question will state how many responses should be selected. Select ALL responses that accurately answer the question. Partial credit is not provided.

 

Exam Result

The exam result is immediately displayed as a conditional pass or fail result after completing and submitting the exam. Additional scoring information can be found in the Obtain the Exam Result lesson in the Credentialing Program Guide. 

 

Pass Result 

A pass result indicates that the certification has been earned. The only information shared is the pass result. The pass result is conditional, meaning the exam at any time can be audited, reviewed, and the certification may be revoked after investigation if it is found that the ServiceNow Test Security Policies have been violated.  

To maintain a ServiceNow Certification, you will need to pass delta exams and pay the annual Certification Maintenance Program (CMP) Fee

 

Fail Result 

A failed result indicates that the certification was not earned. The percent earned for each learning domain is shared. For the next exam attempt, focus on the learning domains with the lowest percentage scores.  

Sample Questions

Sample Item #1:  

Learning Domain 1 – SPM Implementation Overview

PPM Standard integrates which of the following applications? 

A. Demand Management, Service Management, Test Management, Resource Management 

B. Ideation, Agile Development, Change Management, Resource Management, Project Management 

C. Demand Management, Project Management, Resource Management, Portfolio Management 

D. Operations Management, Agile Development, Test Management, Resource Management 

Answer: C 

 

Learning Domain 2 – SPM Application Overview 

Sample Item #2:  

What action would ensure milestones close automatically? 

A. Validate that the ‘glide.cost_mgmt.process_task_top_task” property is set to true 

B. Set the 'com.snc.project.auto_close_milestones' property to true 

C. Edit the ‘com.snc.project.rollup.cost’ property to add the creation of a task expense line to the top task 

D. Override the Dictionary attributes for the Expense field to add the ‘Create a task expense line for top task’ attribute and set it to true 

Answer: B 

 

Learning Domain 3 – Idea and Demand Configuration 

Sample Item #3:  

What is the central location for idea collection, evaluation, and promotion? 

A. Idea Portal 

B. Demand Workbench 

C. Project Workbench 

D. Project Workspace 

Answer: A 

 

Learning Domain 4 – Resource Management Configuration

Sample Item #4:  

When can a resource requester request a change for a plan that was already submitted for review? 

A. They cannot request a change once the plan has been submitted for review 

B. If the plan is in an Allocated state 

C. If the plan is in a Requested or Confirmed state 

D. Only a resource manager can change a plan 

Answer: C 

 

Learning Domain 5 – Project Management Configuration 

Sample Item #5:  

What displays projects as cards based on filter criteria? 

A. Project Status Report 

B. My Projects Space 

C. Planning Console 

D. Project Workbench 

Answer: B 

 

Learning Domain 6 – Timecard Management Configuration 

Sample Item #6:  

What do approved time cards generate, on a project level? 

A. Change requests 

B. Resource plans 

C. Cost plans 

D. Expense lines 

Answer: D 

 

Learning Domain 7 – SPM Financials Configuration 

Sample Item #7:   

What is functional currency (the system currency) sometimes referred to as? 

A. Reference currency 

B. FX currency 

C. Exchange rates 

D. Load exchange rates 

Answer: A 

 

Learning Domain 8 – Portfolio Planning Workspace Configuration 

Sample Item #8: 

Which is a pre-defined lens in Portfolio Planning?

A. Company 

B. Business Unit 

C. Organization 

D. Planning Items

Answer: C

 

Learning Domain 9 – Performance Analytics, Reporting & Dashboards 

Sample Item #9:  

Which dashboard gives an overview of investments, provides a pipeline view of upcoming intake, and a calendar view of upcoming dates? 

A. PMO Dashboard  

B. Portfolio Dashboard  

C. Time Sheet Dashboard  

D. Idea Manager Dashboard 

Answer: A 

 

Learning Domain 10 – Release Management and Digital Portfolio Management for SPM 

Sample Item #10:  

Which application encompasses the planning, design, build, configuration, and testing of hardware and software releases to create a defined set of release components?

A. Digital Portfolio Management   

B. Project Portfolio Management  

C. Application Portfolio Management

D. Release Management

Answer: D 


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