Elements and Performance Criteria

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Organisational environment may include:
business or management structure
conglomerate of business entities
external environment in which a business is operating, including contractors and externally provided services
specific business entity
way in which organisational members perceive and characterise their environment in an attitudinal and value-based manner.
IT infrastructure may include:
architecture requirements:
hardware
software
business, system, application, network, or people in the organisation
comparing and contrasting expected performance criteria against vendor proposed offerings
databases, applications, servers, operating system, gateways, application service provider (ASP) and internet service provider (ISP)
work stations, personal computers, modems or other connectivity devices, networks, remote sites, and servers.
Strategic plan may relate to:
components from separate disciplines, such as IT or human resources
mission, vision and values
objectives and targets
organisational environment
part of organisational strategic plan or a stand-alone document
process of the organisation's definition of its strategy or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people.
Risk assessment may include:
coordinated and economical application of resources to minimise, monitor and control the probability or impact of unfortunate events or to maximise the realisation of opportunities
establishment of a secure environment for IT assets
identification, assessment and prioritisation of risks
risk plans, gathering information, identifying threats, evaluating threats, developing scenarios, ranking risk, identifying counter measures, reporting and following up.
Organisational policy may refer to:
documentation internal to the organisation that guides actions that are particular to the organisation issuing the policy, and guides processes that are most likely to achieve a desired outcome
process of making important organisational decisions, including the identification of different alternatives, such as programs or spending priorities, and choosing among them on the basis of the impact they will have
political, management, financial and administrative mechanisms arranged to reach explicit goals.
Risk mitigation may include:
identification of one or more potential solutions to reduce or remove each risk if it arises
implementation of policies or actions that identify risks in an existing or planned process.
Quality processes:
may refer to:
processes that analyse quality to make sure it conforms to specific requirements and complies with established plans
processes, authorisations and responsibilities for quality control, quality assurance, continuous improvement, communications and responsibilities
may contain:
critical success factors
measurement criteria
inspection, audit, report and review procedures.
Continuous improvement may include:
efforts that seek incremental improvement over time or breakthrough improvement at once
ongoing effort to improve products, services or processes
processes that are constantly evaluated and improved in the light of their efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility.

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
Evidence of the ability to:
develop a strategy to align IT services with organisational goals
conduct risk analysis, including security for IT assets and implement procedures that identify where risk occurs and what measures need to be taken to handle the risk
produce contingency plans for business continuity
establish warning systems and an ongoing process that includes regular or programmed reviews of the risk profile
confirm sufficient knowledge of security products and organisational security policy
develop strategy for the implementation of appropriate processes and procedures that ensure that quality expectations are met.
Context of and specific resources for assessment
Assessment must ensure access to:
relevant strategic level enterprise documentation, including planning, financial, and IT infrastructure documentation
relevant legislative policies.
Where applicable, physical resources should include equipment modified for people with special needs.
Method of assessment
A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit:
direct observation of the candidate carrying out project work
verbal or written questioning to assess required knowledge and skills
review of reports and implementation plans
portfolio of the project work undertaken.
Note: The preferred assessment method is through a workplace project or through a simulated medium to large enterprise workplace.
Guidance information for assessment
Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role is recommended, where appropriate.
Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate, and suitable to the communication skill level, language, literacy and numeracy capacity of the candidate and the work being performed.
Indigenous people and other people from a non-English speaking background may need additional support.
In cases where practical assessment is used it should be combined with targeted questioning to assess required knowledge.