Assessor Resource

ICASUS701A
Plan and manage virtualisation for IT sustainability

Assessment tool

Version 1.0
Issue Date: March 2024


This unit applies to those who have responsibility for conducting or managing information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure projects, such as network managers, information technology (IT) infrastructure managers, network planners and designers, consultants or contractors.

This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to analyse, plan and manage options using virtualisation and managed services for organisational processes to meet sustainability targets.

You may want to include more information here about the target group and the purpose of the assessments (eg formative, summative, recognition)

Prerequisites

Not applicable.


Employability Skills

This unit contains employability skills.




Evidence Required

List the assessment methods to be used and the context and resources required for assessment. Copy and paste the relevant sections from the evidence guide below and then re-write these in plain English.

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 plan for virtualisation and manage strategies, including managed services

determine and meet client requirements for installation and testing of virtual server

install, integrate and test virtualisation components according to vendor and technical specifications

produce cost-benefit analysis and virtualisation management plan for justification

set up SLAs.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment must ensure access to:

appropriate learning and assessment support when required

modified equipment for people with special needs

site and equipment on which servers can be virtualised

server virtualisation currently used in industry

relevant documentation, feasibility studies, equipment manuals and other site-related documentation.

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 installation, integration and testing of virtual server

review of plans completed by the candidate for different sites outlining design and resources required

verbal or written questioning to assess knowledge of methodologies used.

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.


Submission Requirements

List each assessment task's title, type (eg project, observation/demonstration, essay, assingnment, checklist) and due date here

Assessment task 1: [title]      Due date:

(add new lines for each of the assessment tasks)


Assessment Tasks

Copy and paste from the following data to produce each assessment task. Write these in plain English and spell out how, when and where the task is to be carried out, under what conditions, and what resources are needed. Include guidelines about how well the candidate has to perform a task for it to be judged satisfactory.

Required skills

analytical skills to compare and evaluate effective and innovative technical solutions involving the introduction or improvement of sustainability

communication skills to:

adjust communication to suit different audiences

consult on and validate policy

liaise with stakeholders to outline resulting sustainability benefits

respond effectively to diversity

work as a member of a team

literacy skills to:

prepare analytical reports, management plans and SLAs regarding the level of achievement of sustainability benchmarks, environmental targets and performance highlights

document technical requirements and procedures

evaluate complex and formal documents, such as government policy and legislation

interpret:

related sustainability documentation

technical specifications and installation manuals

process and present written information to a diverse range of people

write reports, design solutions and recommendations in required formats

numeracy skills to:

analyse and confirm capacity and interoperability requirements

calculate budget requirements and limitations

determine workforce requirements

perform calculations to produce cost-benefit analysis

planning and organisational skills to plan, prioritise and monitor own work

problem-solving skills to:

account for unexpected variations to requirements

manage different points of view and dissenting stakeholders

resolve installation issues

research and writing skills to:

prepare written SLA requiring precise expression, language and structures suited to the intended audience

research and present information

research skills to:

interrogate vendor databases and websites to identify different solutions to meet client business specifications

gain and maintain relevant knowledge on current technology driving sustainability

technical skills to:

evaluate virtual machines and methodologies

produce cloud architecture and integration into existing network

use sustainability software tools.

Required knowledge

best practice approaches relevant to sustainability

business processes, including:

relevant organisational policies, procedures and protocols

relevant systems and procedures to aid in the achievement of workplace sustainability

client business domain, including client organisation structure and business functionality

cloud computing architecture

compatibility issues and resolution procedures

configuration of internet protocol (IP) networks

current industry-accepted products

customer and business liaison

energy consumption and energy audit methodology

environmental and sustainability legislation, regulations and codes of practice applicable to industry and organisation

environmental impacts of products, processes, systems and services

equal employment opportunity, equity and diversity principles and OHS implications of policy being developed

IT power-consumption calculations

linkage between processes

policy development processes and practices

principles, practices and available tools and techniques of sustainability management relevant to the ICT industry

quality assurance systems relevant to own organisation

range of relevant managed services, including software, network and support

systems diagnostic features

technologies:

cloud computing

power supply requirements and management

server design and network architecture

set-up and configuration procedures

single and multiple processors

vendor specifications and requirements for software installation

virtual server functionality

virtualisation using software simulation.

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 guidelines may include:

budget allocations

capital expenditure

integrity

operational expenditure

projected growth

reliability

risk management

security.

Virtualisation scenarios may include:

cloud networking:

hybrid

private

public

managed services:

backup

network management

software production, support and maintenance

storage

system management

user management

virtual machines:

IP network and voice over internet protocol (VoIP)

PC

server

simulators

storage

test machines.

Enterprise priorities may include:

dynamic loads and demands

frequency of changes to specifications

return on investment

system integrity and security

time for implementation.

Business factors may include:

improved IT responsiveness and effectiveness

backup and data protection

company profitability and growth rate

guaranteed application quality of service

improved application availability

improved business continuity

stronger security

time spent on routine IT administrative tasks

virtualisation of business critical applications.

Virtualisation inhibitors may include:

lack of:

available budget

resources or skills to deploy

uncertainty about:

best possible solution

business benefits of return on investment.

Virtualisation management plan may include:

acquiring skills and resources

obtaining reliable business consultant on virtualisation

preparing risk analysis

revisiting budget allocations

using tools on total cost of ownership (TCO) to prove cost benefits.

Cloud computing elements may include:

cloud infrastructure:

billing

security

software testing

cloud platform:

access control service

application server

data protection

web applications

web frontend

cloud service:

communication

customer relationship management (CRM)

database

email server

file server

finance and accounting

IT tools

productivity

scheduling

storage and backup

cloud storage:

database.

Layers of the cloud client stack may include:

application services or software as a service (SaaS):

Aviary - image editor

business applications

Google docs

Jaycut - video editor

MS Office Web applications

Pixlr - photo editor

infrastructure services or infrastructure as a service (IaaS):

Amazon Web Services

Flexiscale

GoGrid

platform services or platform as a service (PaaS):

Force.com

Google AppEngine

Microsoft Azure

RackSpace.

Analysis would:

verify if virtualisation, either through cloud computing or managed services, would offer better returns on investment

allow the organisation to meet sustainable targets.

Deployment model may include:

hybrid cloud

private or internal cloud

public or external cloud.

Business requirements may include:

availability and performance

compliance

legal

open source

privacy

security

sustainability.

Service level agreement may include:

backup

costs

interoperability

quality of service

reliability

risk management.

Copy and paste from the following performance criteria to create an observation checklist for each task. When you have finished writing your assessment tool every one of these must have been addressed, preferably several times in a variety of contexts. To ensure this occurs download the assessment matrix for the unit; enter each assessment task as a column header and place check marks against each performance criteria that task addresses.

Observation Checklist

Tasks to be observed according to workplace/college/TAFE policy and procedures, relevant legislation and Codes of Practice Yes No Comments/feedback
Analyse current enterprise operations to determine what processes or practices can be realised using virtualisation to ensure long-term sustainability within the organisational guidelines 
Research and analyse alternative virtualisation scenarios, including a risk analysis and relative comparisons of each, considering return on investment (RoI) 
Produce results of the analysis prioritising the sequence of processes to be virtualised, based on enterprise priorities and the setting of sustainability targets for the organisation 
Analyse business factors that cause enterprises to migrate to virtualisation 
Identify virtualisation inhibitors that are preventing the organisation from deploying strategies on local virtual machines 
Produce a virtualisation management plan to capitalise on using virtual machines according to enterprise priorities 
Analyse the IT requirements of the organisation to produce a cloud architecture using multiple cloud computing elements indicating the layers of the cloud client stack 
Produce a cost-benefit analysis 
Produce analytical justifications that will determine the deployment model that meets the business requirements of the organisation 
Set up a service level agreement (SLA) with the managed services provider (MSP) or the network provider to ensure the responsibilities of the stakeholders are specified and agreed to 

Forms

Assessment Cover Sheet

ICASUS701A - Plan and manage virtualisation for IT sustainability
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I declare that the assessment tasks submitted for this unit are my own work.

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Assessment Record Sheet

ICASUS701A - Plan and manage virtualisation for IT sustainability

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Assessment task 1: [title] Result: Competent Not yet competent

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Overall assessment result: Competent Not yet competent

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