ITIL Management Practices →mediumMultiple Select

ITIL4F ITIL Management Practices Practice Question

Which TWO of the following are activities of the Problem Management practice according to ITIL 4?

⚠ Common exam trap

It's easy for candidates to confuse the reactive restoration activities of Incident Management (like applying workarounds) with the proactive diagnostic activities of Problem Management, leading them to select Option B instead of D or E.

Answer choices

Why each option matters

Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.

Correct answer & explanation

✓

Performing root cause analysis

Option D (Performing root cause analysis) is correct because Problem Management's core purpose is to reduce the likelihood and impact of incidents by identifying their actual and potential causes, which is exactly what root cause analysis accomplishes. Option E (Identifying and logging problems) is correct because Problem Management owns the problem record lifecycle, and detecting and recording problems (often from incident trends or major incidents) is a foundational activity of the practice. Option A (Fulfilling service requests) belongs to Service Request Management, which handles user-initiated requests rather than investigating causes. Option B (Restoring service by applying a workaround) is an Incident Management activity, since incident management focuses on restoring service quickly, while Problem Management may later investigate the underlying cause. Option C (Authorizing changes) is performed by Change Enablement, which assesses and authorizes changes, not by Problem Management.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✗
Fulfilling service requests
Why it's wrong here
Fulfilling service requests belongs to the Service Request Management practice, which handles standard, pre-approved user requests. Problem Management instead investigates root causes of incidents and manages known errors and workarounds. Service Request Management would be the correct practice when a user asks for something routine, such as a password reset or software installation.
✗
Restoring service by applying a workaround
Why it's wrong here
Restoring service via a workaround is an Incident Management activity, focused on returning service quickly rather than diagnosing underlying causes. Problem Management identifies root causes and records known errors. Incident Management is the correct practice when the immediate priority is restoring normal service within agreed targets, with root-cause analysis deferred.
✗
Authorizing changes
Why it's wrong here
Authorising changes sits within Change Enablement, which assesses and approves changes through change authorities. Problem Management raises change requests to remove root causes but does not authorise them. Change Enablement is the correct practice when a proposed change needs risk assessment and approval before implementation.
✓
Performing root cause analysis
Why this is correct
Root cause analysis is a core Problem Management activity: it identifies why an incident occurred and what underlying error or cause must be removed to prevent recurrence, feeding problem control and error control within the ITIL 4 practice.
✓
Identifying and logging problems
Why this is correct
Identifying and logging problems is a core Problem Management activity, capturing problems from incident trends and other sources so they can be investigated. It satisfies the stem's request for activities of that practice, alongside problem investigation, root cause analysis and managing workarounds and known errors.

Go deeper

ITIL4F ITIL Management Practices Practice Question

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

Related to this question