ServiceNow What Is It and Why You Should Use it

Tags: ITSM, ModernEUC, servicenow, workflow

This is a follow-up to the blog post I wrote back in 2023: ServiceNow and Its Growing Significance

What Is ServiceNow?

ServiceNow (commonly referred as SNOW) is a powerful cloud-based platform that offers a wide range of services and solutions to streamline and automate various business processes. It is primarily known for its robust IT Service Management (ITSM) capabilities, but it extends beyond IT to address other areas such as IT Operations Management (ITOM), Customer Service Management (CSM), Human Resources (HR), Security Operations (SecOps), and more.

Per company website:

ServiceNow bridges the gap between IT, business objectives, employees, customers, and data—automating complex workflows, enhancing experiences, and driving operational excellence throughout entire processes.
What is ServiceNow? – ServiceNow

Value to Organizations

ServiceNow provides several key benefits to organizations:

Efficiency and Automation: By automating manual tasks, workflows, and processes, ServiceNow helps organizations improve efficiency, reduce errors, and enhance productivity.
Visibility and Transparency: ServiceNow offers real-time visibility into processes, incidents, and service requests. This transparency enables better decision-making and accountability.
Improved Service Delivery: ServiceNow’s ITSM capabilities allow organizations to manage incidents, problems, changes, and configurations effectively. It ensures timely resolution of issues, leading to better service delivery.
Agility and Adaptability: ServiceNow adapts to changing business needs and evolving technology trends. Its flexibility allows organizations to stay agile and responsive.
Cost Savings: By streamlining processes and reducing manual effort, ServiceNow helps organizations save costs in the long run.

Key Components of ServiceNow

ServiceNow’s architecture consists of MANY components that work together to deliver value. A few of the most common componens are:

Service Value System (SVS):
- The SVS is a comprehensive framework for creating, delivering, and continually improving services that yield value for customers and organizations.
- It encompasses people, processes, partners, and technology.
- Key components of the SVS include:
  - Opportunity/Demand: Catalyst for the SVS, stemming from customer needs or service improvement ideas.
  - Service Value Chain: A set of actions (plan, improve, engage, design and transition, obtain/build, deliver and support) that convert opportunities/demands into value. (more on this here)
ServiceNow Modules and Applications:
- IT Service Management (ITSM): Incident management, problem management, change management, and more.
- IT Operations Management (ITOM): Infrastructure monitoring, automation, and proactive incident prevention.
- Customer Service Management (CSM): Self-service portals, case management, and omnichannel support.
- App Engine enables organizations to build custom applications on the Now Platform using low-code and no-code development capabilities, turning software concepts into reality without the need for programming expertise.
- Automation Engine puts intelligent technologies to work to automate workflows and processes, reducing manual effort and improving efficiency.
- Security Operations (SecOps): Threat intelligence, incident response, and vulnerability management.
- Human Service Delivery (HR): Assists organizations in streamlining their HR processes (ie: Employee onboarding/offboarding, case management, and more)
- [There are many others, check with ServiceNow documentation for details.]

Common Use Cases

Here are some typical use cases where organizations leverage ServiceNow:

IT Service Management (ITSM):
- Tracking incidents, problems, changes, and configurations.
- Ensuring efficient IT service delivery and support.
IT Operations Management (ITOM):
- Monitoring infrastructure health.
- Automating routine tasks.
- Proactively preventing incidents.
Customer Service Management (CSM):
- Providing self-service options for customers.
- Managing cases and inquiries.
- Ensuring consistent service across channels.
Security Operations (SecOps):
- Responding to security incidents.
- Managing vulnerabilities.
- Enhancing overall security posture.
Human Resources (HR):
- Streamlining employee onboarding.
- Managing HR cases and requests.
- Improving HR service delivery.

Can ServiceNow be used for Asset Tracking?

This is a very common questions! ServiceNow can be configured to efficiently tracking asset, whether it’s IT assets, office equipment, or other physical resources. Its flexibility and automation capabilities make it a valuable asset management solution for organizations.

ServiceNow’s IT Asset Management (ITAM) module provides robust features for tracking IT hardware and software assets. It allows organizations to: (Watch SNOW demos here)

Utilize advanced shipment notifications for asset integration and transit tracking.
Conduct scheduled or blind audits for asset stockrooms, offices, or data centers.
Create asset bundles from existing inventory to seamlessly track, reserve, or deploy as one entity

ServiceNow’s Hardware Asset Management capabilities include:

Tracking employee IT hardware and software allocations during onboarding.
Using mobile devices to request assets, view assigned assets, and report incidents.
Assigning contracts and automating approval and renewal processes
Managing asset lifecycles from purchase until end-of-life

ServiceNow is a versatile platform that empowers organizations to enhance service quality, align with business outcomes, and drive value across various functions. Whether it’s IT, HR, or customer service, ServiceNow plays a crucial role in modernizing operations and delivering exceptional experiences.

The ServiceNow company explanation can be found here: What is ServiceNow? – ServiceNow

Some Resource from Dell Technologies Services: