SUPPORT HUMAN RESOURCES

KCS® v6 Practices

KCS v6 Practices is an advanced certification to demonstrate thorough, deep, and broad understanding of Knowledge-Centered Support.
KCS® v6 Practices

Website: KCS v6 Practices Certification, Consortium for Service Innovation
Type: Workshop, Certification
Location: Varies according to training provider
Price: Varies according to provider


Advanced certification to demonstrate thorough, deep, and broad understanding of KCS.

KCS v6 Practices is an advanced certification to demonstrate thorough, deep, and broad understanding of KCS.

  • Prerequisites: Attending a KCS v6 Practices Workshop is recommended but not required. Many KCS v6 Practices Workshops provide an option that includes the certification exam.
  • Format and Pricing: $450 proctored exam of about 65 scenario-based, multiple choice questions with a 2 hour time limit. Practice test fee (optional): $85. Exam retake fee: $170. All fees are non-refundable. The KCS Certification is currently only available in English. Testing centers are worldwide. No supporting materials are allowed during the exam. Exam policies and procedures are provided on the testing center website after scheduling the exam.

Intended Audience

  • Program and project managers for KCS adoption
  • KCS adoption team members
  • Supervisors and first- and second-line managers
  • Trainers, Coaches, or Consultants
  • Knowledge workers who aspire to be coaches or managers
  • Product managers and architects for technology and tools that enable the KCS practices
  • Anyone seeking a deeper understanding of KCS Principles, Concepts, and Techniques

Topics and Learning Objectives

The exam is based on material outlined in the KCS v6 Practices Study Guide and designed with the following question in mind: If you hired someone to manage or advise you on a KCS adoption, what would you expect them to know?

The v6 Practices Certification designates individuals who demonstrate a thorough understanding of:

  • KCS Principles and Core Concepts
  • KCS methodology including the Solve Loop, Evolve Loop, KCS roles, KCS measures, Content standard and workflow, and best practices for KCS adoption. 
  • KCS Practices and techniques, and the rationale behind them
  • KCS benefits and how to communicate the value of KCS
  • KCS measures and how they evolve over time
  • How to adopt and sustain KCS as well as functional requirements for tools and tool integration
  • Dealing with frequently asked questions and common objections
  • Ability to identify critical success factors and measurements for KCS adoption
  • How to engage champions and drive KCS adoption across the enterprise

The certification standards and exam are developed and maintained by a committee of Members from the Consortium for Service Innovation. No specific product or technology is covered in the exam. Specifics about individual company content standard, roles, workflow, and life cycle states that are unique to an organization are not included in the exam.

Practice Test

The optional $85 practice test provides an opportunity to get a feel for the nature and style of questions and the test navigation of the KCS v6 Practices certification exam. The practice test is taken online at your convenience (it is not proctored, as the formal exam is) and contains about 30 sample questions. It should take about 30-45 minutes to complete.

You will not get a pass/fail result from taking the practice test. The sample questions included on the practice test are generally easier than the formal exam so doing well in all sections is not an indication as to how well you will do on the formal exam. The practice test can be taken only once within a seven-day time period. If you would like to retake the practice test, registration will be available in Webassessor seven days from your last practice test date after paying the practice test fee ($85) again.

About the author
Steph Lundberg

Steph Lundberg

Steph is a writer and Support leader/consultant. When she's not screaming into the void for catharsis, you can find her crafting, hanging with her kids, or spending entirely too much time on Tumblr.

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