TOGAF®

Certification Agreement

Issue 1.2, February 2011

Note

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING TERMS AND CONDITIONS BELOW. ACCEPTING THESE TERMS IS THE FIRST STAGE TO BECOMING CERTIFIED. IF YOU ACCEPT ALL OF THE TERMS CONTAINED IN THIS AGREEMENT, YOU SHOULD INDICATE THIS BY SELECTING THE "I ACCEPT" BUTTON AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS AGREEMENT. IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT ALL THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET OUT BELOW, YOU SHOULD SELECT "I DECLINE" .


This Certification Agreement ("Agreement") is made and entered into by and between the following Parties: The Open Group, Apex Plaza, Forbury Road, Reading, England, RG1 1AX , and You (the Supplier or the Candidate as defined below).

WHEREAS, the Supplier wishes to submit a product, service or batches of individuals for certification in the TOGAF®Certification program ("the Certification Program") against the TOGAF®Tool Support, TOGAF®Professional Services, TOGAF®Certified or TOGAF®Training Product Standard; Or whereas, the Candidate wishes to apply for individual certification for themself within the TOGAF®Certification program ("the Certification Program") against the TOGAF®Certified Product Standard ; Whereas the product, service or individual is uniquely defined in the Registration Form; and Whereas, The Open Group is the Certification Authority ("CA") operating the Certification Program in accordance with the terms of the TOGAF®Certification Policy.

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual rights and obligations of the Parties set forth below, the Parties agree as follows:

1. Definitions:

For purposes of this Agreement, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
 
Certification Policy The "TOGAF®Certification Policy" document, as amended from time to time by The Open Group, currently available at http://www.opengroup.org/togaf/cert/ .
Certification Register The official list of all Certified Products, Services and Individuals, which is maintained by the Certification Authority and made publicly available via the internet.
Certification System Deficiency An agreed error in the certification system, which is inhibiting the certification process. A Certification System Deficiency is one possible outcome of a Problem Report.
Certified Product/Service/Individual A Product, Service or Individual that has successfully completed the certification process and for which the Supplier of such Product, Service or Individual or Candidate has been notified in writing by the Certification Authority that certification has been achieved.
Conformance Requirements A definition of the mandatory and optional behavior a product must implement in order to be considered conformant.
Interpretation Decision made by the Specification Authority that elaborates or refines the meaning of a TOGAF®specification, or a standard or specification referenced by a TOGAF®specification. An Interpretation is one possible outcome of a Problem Report.
Person  Includes a body of persons whether or not incorporated. 
Product Standard The document in which Conformance Requirements are specified for a particular class of certification, and against which certification can occur in the program. There will be one Product Standard for each class of certification.
Registration Form A web form completed by either the Supplier to register a particular Product, Service or Individual for certification, or the Candidate to register themself for certification. The form contains information on the Supplier, if applicable, and the Product, Service or Individual to be certified.
TOGAF®Certification logo The Open Group Certification Mark logo used in association with one of the terms "TOGAF®<xx> CERTIFIED", "TOGAF <xx> TRAINING", "TOGAF®<xx> PROFESSIONAL SERVICES", or "TOGAF®<xx> TOOL SUPPORT", where <xx> is a number denoting the applicable version of the TOGAF®Specification(s). The graphical form is shown in the applicable Product Standard.

2. The Certification Authority's Obligations

Examination Test Scheduling

In the case of TOGAF®Certified by examination the CA will notify the Candidate of an allocated time to attend the designated test center at least 10 days in advance of the date.

Certification

The CA will audit all certification-related information provided by the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable, including supporting evidence. The CA will check to make sure the submitted information demonstrates that the product, service or individual meets the applicable Conformance Requirements.

For the TOGAF®Certified Product Standard:

The CA will complete the audit and notify the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable, via electronic mail of the audit result within 6 business days of receipt of a complete submission. In the case of TOGAF®Certified by examination this means within 6 business days of the Candidate sitting the examination and the result being received by the CA.

If an incomplete submission is received, the Supplier or Candidate will be notified within 6 business days via electronic mail with a list of all the missing or incomplete items. Once the completed submission is received, the audit will resume, with an additional 6 business day turnaround.

If the audit indicates that the Conformance Requirements have been met, the CA will notify the Candidate via electronic mail of the successful certification, and, if confidentiality has not been requested as in sub-clause 4 item iv below, enter the Candidate into the Certification Register.

If the audit indicates that the Conformance Requirements have not been met, the CA will notify the Candidate of the deficiencies. A further certification fee will apply to any resubmission.

For the TOGAF®Tool Support, TOGAF®Training, and TOGAF®Professional Services Product Standards:

The CA will complete the audit and notify the Supplier via electronic mail of the audit result within 10 business days of receipt of a complete submission. If an incomplete submission is received, the supplier will be notified within 10 business days via electronic mail with a list of all the missing or incomplete items. Once the completed submission is received, the audit will resume, with an additional 10 business day turnaround.

If the audit indicates that the Conformance Requirements have been met, the CA will notify the Supplier via electronic mail of the successful certification, and, if confidentiality has not been requested as in sub-clause 4 item iv below, enter the Certified Product, Service or Individual into the Certification Register.

If the audit indicates that the Conformance Requirements have not been met, the CA will notify the Supplier of the deficiencies which must be corrected within 60 calendar days for certification to be successful. The certification fee covers only one set of corrective actions and resubmission. A further fee may apply for additional work beyond this.

Renewal

After a product, service or individual has been successfully certified and is due for certification renewal (where applicable), the CA will send a renewal reminder notice by electronic mail to the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable, at or about 60 days but no less than 45 days prior to the renewal due date.

Anonymity of Appeals

In the event that the Supplier or Candidate desires to appeal a decision made by The Open Group by invoking the appeals process defined in the Certification Policy, and wants the appeal to be anonymous, the CA will facilitate an anonymous review on behalf of the Supplier or Candidate.

3. The Supplier's Obligations

This section is applicable to Suppliers only.

In addition to the certification-related information provided as part of the registration process, the Supplier undertakes to answer all reasonable additional questions the CA may raise.

Registration and Payment

The Supplier must complete a web-based registration form, thoroughly defining the product, service or individual to be certified.  To complete the submission, the Supplier must formally accept the terms of this Agreement, by clicking on the "I accept" button below, the terms of this Agreement and authorize payment of the applicable certification fees when due.

Payment is required to complete a full submission for registration. Payment may be either by credit card at the time of registration, or by check or wire transfer received by the CA in advance of registration. The CA will not process the registration until payment has been received.

Certification

The Supplier agrees to provide all required supporting evidence to the CA, along with references to all relevant Interpretations, or Certification System Deficiencies to explain any deviences from the requirements. The Supplier also agrees to comply with the CA's reasonable requests for clarification or rework regarding the completeness, correctness or consistency of the provided information.

Warranty of Conformance

By clicking the "I accept" button below, the Supplier hereby warrants and represents that the product, service or individual identified in the Registration Form, as entered in the web-based certification system, meets the Conformance Requirements at the time of certification and will continue to meet the Conformance Requirements throughout the time in which the product, service or individual is certified, in accordance with the Certification Policy. If the Supplier fails to ensure continued compliance with the Conformance Requirements, the CA may revoke the certification for the product, service or individual. For the avoidance of doubt, any demonstrable shortfall with respect to the conformance requirements is grounds for withdrawal of certification, whether or not that shortfall is apparent from the supporting evidence supplied and certification process itself.

Renewal

During the period of this Agreement, renewal by the Supplier may be required periodically at intervals defined in the Certification Policy. If applicable, failure to renew within 30 days after the due date will result in removal of the Certified Product, Service or Individual from the Certification Register. Renewal incurrs a renewal fee.

4. The Candidate's Obligations

This section is applicable to Candidates only

In addition to the certification-related information provided as part of the registration process, the Candidate undertakes to answer all reasonable additional questions the CA may raise.

Registration

The Candidate must complete a web-based registration form, providing details about themselves. The Candidate must formally accept the terms of this Agreement, by clicking on the "I ACCEPT" button below.

The following additional requirements apply depending on the applicable route for certification:

TOGAF®Certified by Examination

On completion of the submission the Candidate agrees to hold certain credentials that will enable taking the Examination at the exam test center as confidential information and agrees not to disclose those credentials to any third party including the test center. These credentials will be input as part of the examination test.

The Candidate agrees to attend the designated test center at the allocated date and time, and to produce photo ID on request to the test center. Acceptable photo ID includes a passport or driving license.

The Candidate agrees that if they cannot attend the test center at the allocated date and time, that they will notify the CA at least 7 days in advance. Provided that at least 7 days notice is given, one rescheduling is allowed for in the certification fee. Failure to notify the CA at least 7 days in advance will require a new fee for rescheduling the examination.

The Candidate agrees to keep the examination questions and answers confidential and not to disclose them to any third party.

TOGAF®Certified by Prior Course Attendance

The Candidate must provide details about the qualifying course they have attended to support the registration.

Payment

Payment is required to complete a submission for registration. Payment must be by credit card at the time of registration. In the case of TOGAF®Certified by examination the Certification Authority will not schedule the Candidate for the examination process until payment details have been confirmed.

Warranty of Conformance

By clicking the "I accept" button below, the Candidate, hereby warrants and represents that he/she meets the Conformance Requirements at the time of certification and will continue to meet the Conformance Requirements throughout the time they are certified, in accordance with the Certification Policy. If the Candidate fails to ensure continued compliance with the Conformance Requirements, the CA may revoke the certification. For the avoidance of doubt, any demonstrable shortfall with respect to the conformance requirements is grounds for withdrawal of certification, whether or not that shortfall is apparent from the supporting evidence supplied and certification process itself.

Renewal

During the period of this Agreement, renewal by the Candidate may be required periodically at intervals defined in the Certification Policy. If applicable, failure to renew within 30 days after the due date will result in removal of Candidate from the Certification Register. Renewal incurrs a renewal fee.

5. Confidentiality

  1. The CA shall, except where a provision of this Agreement provides otherwise, maintain in confidence all information the Supplier or Candidate discloses to the CA in relation to this certification. No license, express or implied, under any trademark or copyright is granted by the Supplier or Candidate to the CA by virtue of such disclosure and the CA shall not use any such information except for the purposes of this Agreement.  The CA's obligations under this sub-clause shall be limited to taking such steps as it ordinarily takes to preserve the most important of its own confidential information. The obligations of non-disclosure and non-use set out in this Agreement shall not apply to any item of information which:
    1. Is in the public domain at any time (but without prejudice to any Person's rights of action against another Person who wrongfully causes or permits such information to be in the public domain),
    2. Was rightfully in the receiving Person's possession without obligation of confidence prior to its disclosure pursuant to this Agreement, or is subsequently independently developed by the receiving Person's employees having no access to the information disclosed hereunder,
    3. Is subsequently rightfully obtained without obligation of confidence by the receiving Person from a source other than the Supplier or Candidate as evidenced by written records,
    4. Is required to be disclosed by order of any court of competent jurisdiction,
    PROVIDED that no right or interest under any license, patent, or otherwise shall be acquired by the recipient of any information by virtue of the application of this clause.
  2. The CA may disclose the Supplier or Candidate's confidential information to those of its employees who reasonably require to have access to such information. However, the CA may not disclose the Supplier or Candidate's confidential information to any employee of a member company in The Open Group, unless another exception to the obligations under this sub-clause applies. For the avoidance of doubt, the CA may disclose the Supplier's confidential information to the Supplier's employees, or employees of any party acting on the Supplier's behalf.
  3. To enable the Supplier or Candidate to keep the fact of certification confidential for a period of up to six months from the date of written notice by the CA that the product, service or individual has achieved certification, the Supplier's identity, the fact of certification, and the name of the Certified Product, Service or Individual (the Certification Information) will be kept subject to the disclosure and use restrictions set out in this clause. During this period, the Supplier or Candidate may not publicly claim that the Certified Product, Service or Individual is or has been certified, or make any representation of the Certified Product's compliance with the TOGAF®Specification(s) without first informing the CA that the confidential period has expired.  Certification Information will cease to be held confidential upon the earlier of notice by the Supplier or Candidate that the confidential period has expired or at the end of the six-month period.

6. Liability and Indemnity

6.1 Liability

THE SUPPLIER OR CANDIDATE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT BECAUSE OF THE SPECIAL NATURE OF THE CERTIFICATION AUTHORITY IT IS REASONABLE FOR THE CERTIFICATION AUTHORITY TO EXCLUDE LIABILITY AS SET OUT BELOW AND FOR THE SUPPLIER OR CANDIDATE TO TAKE MEASURES, INCLUDING INSURANCE WHERE APPROPRIATE, TO MITIGATE OR PREVENT ANY POTENTIAL LOSSES THAT MAY ARISE (PROVIDED THAT SUCH MEASURES ARE NOT IN BREACH OF THIS AGREEMENT).

THE CERTIFICATION AUTHORITY ON ITS OWN BEHALF AND ON BEHALF OF ITS OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES AND AGENTS HEREBY EXCLUDES ALL LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR THE USE OR NON-USE BY ANY PERSON OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE CERTIFICATION AUTHORITY TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE CERTIFICATION AUTHORITY BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL LOSSES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, CONTRACTS, PRODUCTION OR USE).

6.2 Indemnity

The Supplier or Candidate shall indemnify and hold harmless the CA together with its officers, servants, agents, subcontractors, and shareholders of the CA and their servants when engaged in activities on behalf of the CA but only to the extent that they are acting in that capacity (together the ''Indemnified'') against any and all demands, claims, and liability for direct losses, damages, settlements and costs (including lawyers' fees) of any nature whatsoever asserted against or suffered by the Indemnified, but limited to demands and claims from a third Person, and liability incurred from such demands, and claims arising out of the Candidate's supply of services related to TOGAF®Certification, or the Supplier's manufacture, use, or supply of the Products or Services related to TOGAF®Certification, provided that
  1. any such demand and claim is based on the Certification Program under this Agreement and not caused by any criminal action, gross negligence or tort by the Indemnified,
  2. the Indemnified notifies the Supplier within ten days of any such demand and claim, and refrains from any action on account of such demand and claims which may prejudice the Supplier, and
  3. the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable, is given full authority and sole control to defend and settle any such demands and claims.
The CA shall take all reasonable steps to limit such damage or loss.

No provision of this clause shall apply in any circumstances or in respect of any liability or class of liability to the extent that it may not apply in accordance with applicable law. In the event of such a provision being held to be inapplicable or invalid the Parties will make such amendments to this Agreement by the addition or deletion of wording, or otherwise, so as to remove the inapplicable or invalid part of the provision but otherwise retain the provision to the extent permissible under applicable law.

7. General

Entire Agreement

This Agreement including any documents referred to therein (as amended from time to time) together with all other forms relating to this Agreement submitted and accepted by both Parties constitutes the entire agreement and supersedes all prior oral or written agreements, understandings, or arrangements between the Parties relating to such subject matter. Neither Party shall be entitled to rely on any agreement, understanding, arrangement, or representation relating to the subject matter of this Agreement which is not expressly contained in this Agreement and no change may be made to this Agreement except in writing and signed by duly authorized representatives of both Parties.

Waiver of Rights under this Agreement

No failure or delay on the part of either of the Parties to exercise any right or remedy under this Agreement shall be construed or operate as a waiver thereof nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right or remedy preclude the further exercise of such right or remedy as the case may be.

Notices

Any notice or other document to be given under this Agreement shall be in writing in the English language and, except in circumstances where this Agreement specifically provides for notices by electronic mail, shall be deemed to have been duly given if sent by hand or by recorded delivery or registered post, or by facsimile (subsequently confirmed by post) to a party at the specified address for that party,  unless a different address has been notified to the other in writing for this purpose. The specified address for the CA is the address set out above, and the specified address for the Supplier is the address provided for the primary contact on the Registration Form,  as entered into the web-based certification system. Notices shall be deemed to have been received by the addressee within 72 hours of posting as above or within 24 hours if sent by hand or facsimile to the addressee's correct address.

Interpretation

The headings in this Agreement are inserted only for convenience and shall not affect its construction.

Where appropriate words denoting the singular only shall include the plural and vice versa.

Term and Termination.

This Agreement comes into effect at the date of acceptance and will expire only if explicitly terminated:
  1. At any time upon six months' written notice by either Party to the other; or
  2. If a period of 30 days has elapsed from one Party notifying the other Party of a breach of this Agreement or of the terms of the Certification Policy, and such a breach has not been rectified to the satisfaction of the other Party.
Notwithstanding the termination of this Agreement for any reason, the obligations of non-disclosure in respect of any confidential information disclosed prior to such termination shall survive for a period of 5 years following such termination.

Governing Law

This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of England and the Parties hereby submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

8. Fees

The Fees described at http://www.opengroup.org/togaf/cert/docs/Fee_Schedule.html are quoted net of all applicable taxes and duties which, where appropriate, will be payable by the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable, to the CA (or to the relevant tax authorities as applicable) in addition.

Payment

The CA will charge the applicable certification fee upon submission of a completed application. The supplier agrees to incurr the applicable fee for each application.

Fees are payable in U.S. dollars and will be debited against the credit card provided to the CA in the web-based certification system or by other arrangement with the CA (check or wire transfer). Fees are non-refundable.

9. Right to Use The Open Group Certification Mark in the form of the TOGAF®Certification Logo

  1. The Open Group Certification Mark logo is a trademark of The Open Group.

    Unlike rights derived from patents and copyrights, which provide protection for only a limited number of years, trademark rights can last forever. Trademark rights can also be lost forever. The exclusive right granted in a trademark is usually lost as a result of careless or improper use, usually by allowing the mark to be used as generic or descriptive words for products. All of the following were once valuable trademarks in the U.S.A.: aspirin, escalator, cellophane, zipper, shredded wheat, corn flakes and kerosene. All became common or generic words because their owners did not use them carefully and correctly and did not prevent the improper use of them by others. Some of the clauses in this section governing the use of The Open Group Certification Mark logo are inserted to enable The Open Group to preserve these trademarks for the benefit of the IT community.

  2. The Supplier or Candidate, its agents, its product distributors, and other parties may use the term "TOGAF <xx> CERTIFIED", "TOGAF®<xx> TRAINING", "TOGAF®<xx> PROFESSIONAL SERVICES", or "TOGAF®<xx> TOOL SUPPORT", as appropriate, in conjunction with The Open Group Certification Mark logo only on or in relation to a product, service or individual that appears in the Certification register.

    Use is permitted (and encouraged):

  3. When an entry is removed from the Certification Register, the permission to use The Open Group Certification Mark logo on or in relation to that product, service or individual is withdrawn. Users of The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademarks must cease their use in connection with such products, services or individuals as soon as is reasonably practicable following their removal from the Certification Register.
  4. Where a TOGAF®Certification logo in conjunction with The Open Group Certification Mark logo appears on the World-Wide Web it must be hyperlinked to the TOGAF®Certification web page http://www.opengroup.org/togaf/cert/, as for example by using the following HTML construct:

    <a href="http://www.opengroup.org/togaf/cert/" > <img src="TOGAF7toolsupportSM.gif" border=0></a>

  5. All use of The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademarks in advertisements, display boards, promotional material and product catalogues must be in relation to certified products only. If an advertisement, document or other material refers both to such products and to other products, the trademark must not be used in such a way as to suggest that all the products being advertised are certified.
  6. The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademarks must not be juxtaposed to other symbols or text in such a way as to show a connection with them.

    The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademark whenever and wherever it appears must be distinguished from the surrounding text. This applies to all forms of printed media, including advertising copy, product packaging, brochures, manuals, internal memoranda, editorial, articles, correspondence, overhead projector slides and presentation materials, computer video screens, and the World-Wide Web.

    Methods of distinguishing a textual trademark include printing it in CAPITALS, italicized text, bold faced text, Initial Capital Letters, or placing the trademark in "quotation marks".

    The Open Group Certification Mark logo must stand alone and be surrounded by a generous amount of space. It must not be enclosed within a contrived shape or used as part of another symbol or name. The Open Group logo image files include the surrounding space required when the logo is displayed on computer video screens or the World-Wide Web. The Open Group logo artwork specification defines the surrounding space required in other cases.

  7. The graphical design of The Open Group Certification Mark logo must be strictly adhered to.

    Where The Open Group Certification Mark logo is displayed on a computer screen or the World-Wide Web, one of The Open Group logo image files, or an alternative provided by The Open Group, must be used. It must not be re-sized or altered in any way. The Open Group may be able to supply alternative image files in other sizes if requested. Copying of The Open Group logo image files for this purpose is permitted.

    In all other cases where The Open Group Certification Mark logo is displayed, The Open Group logo artwork specification must be followed.

  8. The Open Group Certification Mark logo must never be superimposed on or used in association with other graphics or logos.
  9. The Open Group Certification Mark logo may not be used in conjunction with product names under any circumstances.
  10. The first or most significant occurrence of The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademark must be marked and must have the required attribution as a footnote. The attribution should use the ® symbol for a registered trademark and the TM symbol for an unregistered trademark. It is acceptable to use an asterisk in place of the trademark symbol where the medium used (for example, electronic mail) cannot reproduce the TM or ® symbols. However, this does not authorize use of the asterisk as the norm. The attribution may be translated to national languages.
  11. Blanket or generic attributions, such as: "All trademarks are the property of their respective owners," are not acceptable. Correct attributions are, for example: "The Open Group Certification Mark logo is a trademark and TOGAF® is a registered trademark of The Open Group in the United States and other countries."
  12. The Open Group reserves the right to change its trademarks at any time at its discretion. When The Open Group changes The Open Group Certification Mark logo trademark, existing use of the unchanged version is permitted to continue in the short term, but users should transition to the changed version as soon as possible.

10. Execution

By clicking on the "I accept" button below,  the Supplier or Candidate, as applicable:
  1. Hereby acknowledges reading and understanding of this agreement.
  2. Agrees to be bound by the terms of the Certification Policy and this Certification Agreement.
  3. Warrants and represents that all products, services or individuals which share the name defined in the Registration Form , as entered in the web-based certification system, meet the applicable conformance requirements.
  4. Warrants that NO MATERIAL CHANGES have been made to this Agreement since it was made available to the Supplier by the CA in an electronic format;
and by clicking on the "I accept" button below, the Supplier agrees that all these obligations, and those described in the Confidentiality and Indemnity clauses of this Agreement shall survive the termination of this Agreement.
 

* Note that the accept button is only available within the certification system