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reviewer2506143 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager, Security Engineering & Architecture at a computer software company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Useful for incident management, specifically involving areas like ticketing and cash management
Pros and Cons
  • "ServiceNow Now Platform has one thing that no other tool offers, which is the dataset, specifically the management of the dataset."
  • "The product's UI is ugly, making it an area where improvements are required."

What is our primary use case?

I am only strong on the incident side and the core services from ServiceNow, like the SPM module incident, RCA, and change management. With ServiceNow, I am familiar with its incident platform, change management platform, ITSM, CMDB, SPM module, and back-end integration with other security applications. I have also used ServiceNow's ITOM, ITSM, and ITAM tools.

ServiceNow Now Platform is basically for incident management, involving ticketing and cash management.

The incident has severity and risk, which complements ServiceNow's SIR or the security module. The incident also has an escalation path or escalation module. The incident is also a way to capture configuration items for change management. If somebody makes a mistake in making a change, the configuration item of the asset will expose that, and then you can see the life cycle through the tool's ITSM module about a product getting patched twelve times a year. A Microsoft laptop or a Microsoft OS, like Windows, would get patches twelve times a year just for the OS, but with the application, you get a hundred times plus, and so you can see the life cycle of a machine getting treatments and attention, after which you can calculate the ROI. You can calculate it by taking into account a lot of manpower to keep up with the volume you have in your company. The tool offers powerful KPIs.

What is most valuable?

ServiceNow Now Platform has one thing that no other tool offers, which is the dataset, specifically the management of the dataset. You only need to do data entry once, which can be used across all modules. That is the tool's power over everything else in the world. No one else has an ecosystem that is that powerful, and that is why ServiceNow is in the top chart of the Fortune 500 list because of its overall abilities. The marketplace for integrating the datasets with other tools is pretty outstanding.

What needs improvement?

The product's UI is ugly, making it an area where improvements are required. Even though a lot of people may say that the UI part is all about practicality, I feel that it needs to be improved in the tool.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using ServiceNow Now Platform for two years.

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ServiceNow Now Platform
October 2024
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How are customer service and support?

I have had good interactions with the solution's technical support, but I don't interact with them regarding the tool.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

My company has been using Asana for the past three months.

How was the initial setup?

The product's initial setup phase is complex. It matches the complexity as per the company's needs. The tool doesn't really have a custom-built based on a persona or on industrial needs. The tool has just been put out there like a plastic bag you get from a grocery store. It is not custom to carry a specific thing. The tool has just everything.

The solution is deployed on the SaaS model.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the tool a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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reviewer2279184 - PeerSpot reviewer
Vice President at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 5
Easy to configure and has automation capabilities that are easy to manage
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a very stable solution."
  • "The number of API calls processed by the tool, specifically when the API calls increase, will cause a lot of load on the platform, and it tends to not work very efficiently."

What is our primary use case?

I use the solution in my company for ticket management.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of the solution are that it is highly configurable and compatible with other endpoints, so it is easy to review.

Regarding my favorite features of the solution, I would say that my company has taken the base ServiceNow and customized it a lot. I was not part of the development team, but as an endpoint's end user, I have used it. If you ask me about my favorite features, some features came in after our developer team developed them, so we use them as a SOAR tool. We are using ServiceNow as an orchestration platform where, if you take a security alert, all the artifacts that we collect will be enriched with the ServiceNow Now Platform.

What needs improvement?

The number of API calls processed by the tool, specifically when the API calls increase, will cause a lot of load on the platform, and it tends to not work very efficiently.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using ServiceNow Now Platform for two years. I am an end-user of the tool.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a very stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

When more API calls are being made from ServiceNow Now Platform, the tool becomes overburdened, and the results are not very fast.

How are customer service and support?

My company's development team takes care of the product, but I think the product's support is also good. I rate the technical support an eight or nine out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

In the past, we had an in-house developed application, but we moved to ServiceNow Now Platform.

How was the initial setup?

The product's initial setup phase was easy.

The time needed to deploy the tool depends on the infra and your familiarity with the product. It is a relatively easy process.

Around two to three people are required to deploy the tool.

What other advice do I have?

The tool is easy to configure.

The tool's automation capabilities are easy to manage.

I have never faced any issues with the maintenance. I don't think we need one dedicated resource, but we need something as a backup.

The integration is also good. I won't say it is excellent, but I won't even say it is bad either. It all depends upon the other products, but it is normally good. Whether the integration can be better is something that depends on different things. When we want to integrate with different products, we have faced challenges because when you say integration, it comes from both ServiceNow and the other product. With a few applications, we had challenges, and they varied from product to product, but the coordination part had some issues.

I don't think it has any AI capability.

It would be good to see some AI features in the tool if some AI features come in ServiceNow Now Platform. On top of that, we are using our company security alert and coordination. If AI is integrated with security alert and coordination, then the tool would be able to do correlation based on the past alerts and give some meaningful threat modeling. definitely, AI would give a lot of help here.

I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Buyer's Guide
ServiceNow Now Platform
October 2024
Learn what your peers think about ServiceNow Now Platform. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2024.
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Navin Jacob - PeerSpot reviewer
CTO at a tech services company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Reseller
Top 5
Offers ability to create custom workflows and the platform gives us a single view of where we need to optimize
Pros and Cons
  • "The integration feature has simplified our multi-tool ecosystem. The inbuilt integrations significantly improve our solution delivery timelines. Also, standardized adapters and integration adapters reduce failure rates due to compatibility. This boosts productivity and eases maintenance."
  • "Simplifying the user interface for both users and administrators is key. It is not very intuitive."

What is our primary use case?

ServiceNow has evolved beyond just a service desk. They offer configurable workflows that are applicable to multiple parts of the business, putting them closer to something like Salesforce Lightning, where many custom solutions can be built. 

We use it for workflow management within certain business functions, and some customers use it across their operations and engineering lifecycles. It's a pretty good tool.

How has it helped my organization?

ServiceNow Now Platform improved our incident response times. Earlier, the service desk team would catch and dispatch incidents from ServiceNow to various resolver groups.

We needed a lot of follow-up outside the platform to get issues resolved. With customizable workflows for different business functions, we track incidents entirely on the Now Platform (assuming workflows are well configured). 

This leads to a 25-35% improvement in process flow. Plus, having multiple departments on the platform gives us a single view of where we need to optimize.

What is most valuable?

The ability to create custom workflows is the best part. Other platforms like Microsoft Power Platform have similar features, but ServiceNow's focus on service management means we can reuse standardized components. That's a significant advantage.

We leverage other technologies on top of the Now Platform to handle the AI components. For example, we integrate Azure OpenAI and AWS AI to build an additional layer on top of ServiceNow.

The integration feature has simplified our multi-tool ecosystem. The inbuilt integrations significantly improve our solution delivery timelines. Also, standardized adapters and integration adapters reduce failure rates due to compatibility. This boosts productivity and eases maintenance.

What needs improvement?

Currently, it's very technologically complex and requires IT specialists to fully understand the platform's potential. The user experience and usage perspective should be simplified for wider adoption, especially in smaller organizations.

So, simplifying the user interface for both users and administrators is key. It is not very intuitive.

In my experience, learning the tool takes months. Even then, it often requires a few years of on-the-job experience before users become fully comfortable. Newer tools on the market address the complexity issue ServiceNow faces, as its legacy base can be a limitation.

Also, pricing can be a barrier for smaller organizations. With the rapid advancements in cloud-based technologies, particularly generative AI, ServiceNow may need to revisit its pricing to stay competitive.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used it on and off for about four or five years but more consistently for the past seven. I've been both a user and a leader who provides services using ServiceNow to other enterprises. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the stability a nine out of ten. It is pretty stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten. So far, scalability has supported our business growth.

The templates and workflows have really helped, allowing us to scale quickly. Even when we have to configure some things, it's manageable.

We are a larger enterprise, so we've got around 8,000 to 10,000 users. Then there's our admin team of roughly 100 and 150 people doing customer support. 

We also offer Now Platform as a service to other customers. we have around 10,000 to 15,000 people providing customer services to other customers on the Now Platform.

How are customer service and support?

ServiceNow Now Platform scaled pretty rapidly, but with the number of customers it handle and certain complex aspects, it can take many weeks to optimally resolve a problem due to communication challenges between teams.

The main thing with most legacy software is that it's built for a specific purpose. Now, Platform was originally incident management software, and it's been scaled into other areas, such as IT service management. 

The user interfaces and modules are still similar across functions. Simplifying the user interfaces and reducing complexity – maybe better UX/UI – could be helpful.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

I would rate my experience with the initial setup a seven out of ten, with ten being easy for this product. 

Large enterprises prefer it within a private controlled instance. Various smaller enterprises are okay with a cloud instance. As controls improve and more people move towards the cloud, that's becoming the more typical deployment method.

The deployment time depends on the complexity of the use cases, processes, departments, and the size of the enterprise. It can range from a few weeks to a few months.

What was our ROI?

We have seen good ROI. We're a larger-scale company offering Now Platform as a service, so it's given us ROI over the years. 

However, with newer technologies and solutions emerging, especially with generative AI transforming service management, we're also evaluating other options.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten, with ten being very expensive solution. 

There are other solutions in the market that might be better suited for simpler use cases.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

ServiceNow Now Platform is the preferred tool for most companies, although Freshdesk is gaining ground due to cost advantages.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend understanding the business requirements clearly. It's best to optimally configure the platform optimally and use only the features they need. This can help align the price with the requirements.

Overall, I would rate the solution a seven out of ten because there are many new-gen solutions that are coming, which are very agile and quite easy to configure now.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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reviewer2226330 - PeerSpot reviewer
Vice President at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
A stable, scalable, and strategic tool used in all the departments of my company
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
  • "In ServiceNow Now Platform, UI is an area with certain shortcomings requiring improvements."

What is our primary use case?

Managing business process automation related to primarily finance-related areas is what my company does with ServiceNow Now Platform.

How has it helped my organization?

There are three to four teams in my company, among which the first team deals with ServiceNow Request Management, the second team deals with workflow automation, and the third team deals with the portals, knowledge bases, chatbots, and other areas related to ServiceNow Now Platform.

What is most valuable?

Everything about the ServiceNow Now Platform is top-notch since ServiceNow is considered one of the market leaders. I don't see any other product delivering better services than ServiceNow, even though other companies are attempting to compete with it. Only on the UI front other companies might be offering better products than ServiceNow. Considering the functionalities provided, ServiceNow is way ahead of its competitors.

What needs improvement?

In ServiceNow Now Platform, UI is an area with certain shortcomings requiring improvements.

I want ServiceNow Now Platform to offer more in-built widgets that people or developers can use, as it can be quite helpful in the future.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using ServiceNow Now Platform for almost three years. My company is a customer of the product.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable solution.

How are customer service and support?

The solution's technical support is good. I rate the technical support a nine out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Earlier, my company was using an old version of a product named BMC Remedy.

How was the initial setup?

The product's initial setup phase did not have any issues as it is considered to be a strategic tool in our organization. From a finance-related perspective, for which my company chose the tool, we ensured that we carved out our own scope areas in the product as we have our own security measures and controls in place.

The solution is deployed on the cloud services offered by ServiceNow.

For the completion of the deployment phase of the product, a user needs to get the contract rolling, which may make the process tough since I feel that it takes more time internally in an organization as there are a lot of organizational compliances to take into consideration, owing to which many approvals might be required I can organizational level. After users get signed up, the deployment process doesn't take much time since they only have to set up the base structures to get things going in the solution.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

During the evaluation phase, my company did consider options like Appian and Unqork. From an organizational standpoint, ServiceNow Now Platform was more of a strategic tool that could be utilized in all the departments of my company.

What other advice do I have?

I think people should probably note down their requirements initially and then get the technical team to go through the listed needs before getting the sales team of ServiceNow to provide a small demo of the tool. ServiceNow shows some prototypes that can help potential customers decide whether to choose the tool or not. If potential users find that ServiceNow Now Platform suffices their needs, then it is a great tool for them.

I rate the overall tool a nine out of ten.

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
YashShah - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr Software Developer at a university with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Customizable, scalable, and has good performance; allows custom scripting, server-side scripting, and client-side scripting, plus dragging and dropping via the Flow Designer feature
Pros and Cons
  • "What I like most about the ServiceNow Now Platform is the flexibility of using JavaScript. I also like that the platform allows custom scripting, server-side scripting, and client-side scripting. Another valuable feature in the ServiceNow Now Platform is the Flow Designer which allows dragging and dropping code, and low code activities."
  • "What I didn't like in the ServiceNow Now Platform is testing, particularly with Visual Studio. It had a bad integration with Visual Studio because you can't compile and run it from there. You have to debug on your own and then find out where the error is through test scripts. The testing component in the ServiceNow Now Platform isn't that great. What I'd like to see in the next version of the ServiceNow Now Platform is an improvement in testing and writing scripts, and if there was a feature to just run it from the modules, then that would be great, instead of finding the error manually and checking where it is."

What is our primary use case?

My use case for the ServiceNow Now Platform is developing applications within TB.

How has it helped my organization?

The ServiceNow Now Platform improved the way my organization functioned.

What is most valuable?

What I like most about the ServiceNow Now Platform is the flexibility of using JavaScript. I also like that the platform allows custom scripting, server-side scripting, and client-side scripting.

Another valuable feature in the ServiceNow Now Platform is the Flow Designer which allows dragging and dropping code, and low code activities.

What needs improvement?

What I didn't like in the ServiceNow Now Platform is testing, particularly with Visual Studio. It had a bad integration with Visual Studio because you can't compile and run it from there. You have to debug on your own and then find out where the error is through test scripts. The testing component in the ServiceNow Now Platform isn't that great.

What I'd like to see in the next version of the ServiceNow Now Platform is an improvement in testing and writing scripts, and if there was a feature to just run it from the modules, then that would be great, instead of finding the error manually and checking where it is.

For how long have I used the solution?

My experience with the ServiceNow Now Platform was one and a half years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I found the ServiceNow Now Platform to be very stable, with no performance issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The ServiceNow Now Platform is very scalable. I didn't experience any lag or any issues when scaling it.

How are customer service and support?

I didn't get a chance to engage with the technical support for the ServiceNow Now Platform.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We used Microsoft Power Apps before we switched to the ServiceNow Now Platform. We found the design of Microsoft Power Apps to be non-scalable and non-performing. The performance was very bad on Microsoft Power Apps, so we moved to the ServiceNow Now Platform.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup for the ServiceNow Now Platform was straightforward. It took one to two months to fully deploy the platform.

What about the implementation team?

We did the deployment for the ServiceNow Now Platform in-house.

What was our ROI?

I haven't seen ROI from the ServiceNow Now Platform.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

From what I heard, the license for the ServiceNow Now Platform is paid monthly, and on a scale of one to five, I'm rating it a three in terms of pricing, so it's on the cheaper side. I don't know of any additional costs associated with the ServiceNow Now Platform, apart from the standard licensing fees.

What other advice do I have?

I've used the ServiceNow Now Platform in the past twelve months.

My company had around three hundred end users on the ServiceNow Now Platform. Five people took care of the deployment and maintenance of the platform.

I have no idea about plans to increase the usage of the ServiceNow Now Platform because another team handles that.

My advice to anyone looking to implement the ServiceNow Now Platform is that if your use case is workflow-based, then it would be good for you to use the platform to implement your use case. The ServiceNow Now Platform is also very customizable, scalable, and performance-wise, it's very good.

My rating for the ServiceNow Now Platform is eight out of ten.

I'm a customer of ServiceNow.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
KrishnaPrasad1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Principal Consultant at TAG
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
ITOM Discovery is a great feature but the solution is rigid with its customization
Pros and Cons
  • "ITOM Discovery is a great feature."
  • "The UI is very bad and needs to be updated."

What is our primary use case?

We are using this product for global IT support, specifically the IT infrastructure application and IP service development for end users as well as the ITSM, ITOM modules, and SAM. We are customers of ServiceNow. 

What is most valuable?

ITOM Discovery is great in the sense of the entire ServiceNow platform, as well as the ITSM and ITOM modules.

What needs improvement?

The UI is very bad and needs to be updated. It would be helpful if there was access to the backend with low code or no code features. ServiceNow is a bit rigid with customization of the tool heavily dependent upon JavaScript. They need to keep pace with the market by being low code or no code with regards to customization and development so that it becomes more scalable and more users can adapt and adopt ServiceNow to their existing business processes more efficiently.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for nine years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable; we have close to 225 licensed users and close to 11,000 end users.

How are customer service and support?

We've used the customer support many times and they are okay but there could definitely be some improvement. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is easy with most things being out of the box. Deployment took us two weeks.

What was our ROI?

Because of the high cost of this product, you don't always see an ROI. You need to gain value from the tool, which requires an understanding of how the tool can help you. There are a lot of aspects that can be enhanced to gain value, but as an IT organization, it might help you more by selling that to your customers. As a business, buying Servicenow for your internal IT, might not make sense unless you're a large organization able to play with the volume.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Licensing costs range between 49 and 59 GBP per user per month for a resolver license. It's possible to get a cheaper deal based on the relationship you have with the resellers. It's quite expensive when compared with tools such as Remedy, Jira, or ManageEngine. A resolver license requires the purchase of additional extras. There's also a SNOW-based discovery license, SNOW-based SAM license, that requires a separate approval license. It's complicated. 

What other advice do I have?

This is a leading product in the market with all the features. It's important to understand your business requirements and how the ServiceNow Platform will sit in a particular solution portfolio because it's an expensive product. The returns should be worth the cost. A price can't be put on everything but there should be some value added to customers. Not every company is an IT giant with 100,000 employees. The ROI should be there, even for small or medium-scale organizations. That is not the case currently. Other solutions are catching up to ServiceNow and they need to pick up their game. As a result, I rate this product seven out of 10. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Solution Architecture at Accenture
Real User
Scalable and uniquely versatile, letting you leverage any part of it to any other application, anywhere
Pros and Cons
  • "At this point, over and above what ServiceNow actually is, the key is that it's really nothing but a web service. Whether it's a form or anything, the best part is that you can easily leverage anything of ServiceNow for any application anywhere just by calling the REST endpoints and handling the request messages."
  • "ServiceNow is not open source, so there is a license you must pay. As for how much it costs, what I have observed is that it often depends on your subscriptions. Suppose that you go with some subscriptions such as IDSM or any type of package like it, then the license cost will be impacted accordingly. Similarly, the cost is also adjusted based on your headcount of how many users will be using it."

What is our primary use case?

As a solution architect and developer working on service management and HR, many of my projects cover the development of modules for

  • operations management,
  • project management,
  • finance management,
  • resource management, 
  • governance,
  • risk and compliance,

and more, typically within the sphere of business management in general.

For me and my team, ServiceNow Now Platform has many capabilities that we  leverage to bring solutions to the problem statements in these areas, mainly according to agile methodology.

If we are required, for example, to extend an application to external or internal users of your company, we would use ServiceNow to help with this process. Specifically, in this case, we would use HRSD (HR Service Delivery) which interlinks all of your own employees, external users, and others. The CSM part of ServiceNow aids in linking all your business services that are being used by service providers and everyone else, and it enables you to derive your own organizational service management structure exactly as you want it.

ServiceNow also provides a powerful system that gives you ample information on what has broken and where, and offers plenty of solutions for fixing those things, particularly when it comes to orchestration, which really extends your capability for automation. You could say that it brings a sort of intelligence into your organization with its various features and functionalities. 

Having implemented ServiceNow Now Platform for many global clients with millions of users over the years, I have seen it in use across vendors, former resources, internal resources, external resources, and amongst these in many different ways and through many different applications.

Our standard deployment environment nowadays is via the cloud, and we don't keep anything on-premise. However, I have previously implemented ServiceNow Now Platform on-premises during the initial stages of working with ServiceNow in the banking sector where we deployed it on-premise, but they eventually never released it. This work mainly involved the ITSM and operations part of ServiceNow Now Platform.

We also utilize ServiceNow to help take care of cloud and asset management, such as when dealing with the licensing for Azure, Amazon Web Services, and so on. Then there's the work I've done with ServiceNow Security Operations, which involved using various SecOps modules for security incidents, etc., and which required integrations with tools such as Tanium, Splunk, and Azure Security Management. Here we used ServiceNow to generate the events, security incident alerts, and more, and currently we still have remediation tasks being completed in ServiceNow, where the risk assessment features and other solutions are in place to orchestrate everything.

How has it helped my organization?

The customer service management aspect of ServiceNow Now Platform lets you create your own custom organizational service management structure just the way you want it, while providing a troubleshooting system that helps you figure out what's broken and how to fix it with multiple possible solutions. ServiceNow's orchestration mechanisms also help to extend an organization's automation capabilities in such a way as to bring a real sort of intelligence to the table.

What is most valuable?

At this point, over and above what ServiceNow actually is, the key is that it's really nothing but a web service. Whether it's a form or anything, the best part is that you can easily leverage anything of ServiceNow for any application anywhere just by calling the REST endpoints and handling the request messages.

Let's say you want to onboard new users or customers, import new company details, or add any different type of data — with ServiceNow Now Platform, this becomes easy. As a concrete example, suppose you have some users on Active Directory, some on LDAP, and some on your own cloud, you can integrate all of these users and uniquely manage them with ease thanks to how mature ServiceNow is in terms of scalability and flexibility. 

What needs improvement?

Concerning the new features that they're releasing, it does feel as if something is missing in terms of customization options.

Something else I have noticed is that ServiceNow don't give you much support when it comes to implementing functionality that you have developed yourself.

That said, I think ServiceNow has become a major contender in this market and many other solutions are simply following in ServiceNow's wake. There are a lot of improvements happening all the time, and the way in which it has grown over a decade of development really tells its own story. Nowadays, it's a constantly-evolving centralized application that provides ample solutions for both businesses and developers.

One example of an area in which I have seen their improvements is in AI, which, after the past few years, is finally becoming mature and enabling better automation and intelligence at the end-users' side. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using ServiceNow Now Platform for about four or five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is quite advanced and much improved these days. Previously, I saw that there were a few glitches or immature functionality being introduced, but right now it's being standardized according to the industry, particularly in areas such as AI automation. I believe they have improved a lot since they started.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

ServiceNow Now Platform is really quite a scalable solution, whether you're talking about leveraging ServiceNow for other applications or onboarding new users, customers, companies, data, etc. You can do these things very easily, even when you're working with multiple disparate technologies such as AD, LDAP, or your own access control system in the cloud, and all of this is handled in a mature, reliable manner.

Having been in a team where many of us have experience with ServiceNow for 10+ years, I have seen how it has grown and evolved into the scalable platform that it is now. Through all the implementations I've done for different global clients, I've seen millions of users using it successfully.

How are customer service and support?

There are sometimes instances where you need the support for whatever reason. In general, I would give them a four out of five rating.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is easy. Let's suppose you already know what you have to keep where, after that it's such a simple process that any average Joe who knows how to initiate his own service management can easily update the information and get working on it. It's not a big deal, and the installation gives you everything you need to get started with a guided setup such that anyone can quickly jump in and initiate ServiceNow. The way it is developed means that it's quite effortless for users to onboard themselves quickly and easily, simply by adding the required information.

As for the actual deployment, it's a matter of how you plan it. There are many implementations that start out according to the greenfield process. By greenfield, I mean arranging your environment from scratch and then introducing your company details, group details, UTI, and so on. Once that is achieved, you can easily add any other applications you want. And, of course, the internal modules such as discovery can be brought into your organizational scheme with even further ease.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

ServiceNow is not open source, so there is a license you must pay. As for how much it costs, what I have observed is that it often depends on your subscriptions. Suppose that you go with some subscriptions such as IDSM or any type of package like it, then the license cost will be impacted accordingly. Similarly, the cost is also adjusted based on your headcount of how many users will be using it.

Compared to other contenders who give you the cheapest in the market, you will find a huge difference when it comes to ServiceNow and its subscriptions. However, I would definitely say it is worth the money.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to others who are looking to get started with ServiceNow Now Platform is to reach out to your implementation partners, because they will have the experience and solutions required to help you get where you want to be with this product. ServiceNow is a vast application, but thankfully there are a variety of different solutions that can be easily adopted and managed according to your particular organizational structure.

I would rate ServiceNow Now Platform a ten out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1575015 - PeerSpot reviewer
Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
Reseller
Provides ITSM-related modules such as incident management, problem management and CMDB
Pros and Cons
  • "The CMDB is robust, with a strong data model and well-structured data."
  • "It would be great if the ServiceNow Now Platform supported satellite technologies in its telecom models and integrated with tools like OpenAI, LLaMA, or any Google AI platforms such as Vertex AI or Bard."

What is our primary use case?

We utilize the Now Platform for ITSM-related modules such as incident management, problem management, CMDB, and HAM. These modules are typically deployed at the majority of our customer locations. Customers generally view the Now Platform from an IT infrastructure management perspective. A few of our telecom customers have also extended their platform use. Telecom companies use the CSM module to manage customer-related incidents and queries.

How has it helped my organization?


What is most valuable?

The base features are good. ServiceNow is introducing AI and AIOps capabilities. The CMDB is robust, with a strong data model and well-structured data.

What needs improvement?

It is flexible and has a robust SaaS model. However, the licensing model may need reconsideration. Due to its SaaS nature, many customers are interested in adopting it, but the cost is relatively high. Tier-one providers might be able to afford it, but tier-two and tier-three customers may find it very high. Therefore, the pricing should be more flexible, with different pricing for different geographies and types of customers.

It would be great if the ServiceNow Now Platform supported satellite technologies in its telecom models and integrated with tools like OpenAI, LLaMA, or any Google AI platforms such as Vertex AI or Bard.

The ITSM modules are highly effective. However, when it comes to telecom modules, we often face challenges in obtaining suitable software solutions.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using ServiceNow Now Platform as a reseller for five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the solution’s stability a seven or eight out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution scales very well.

I rate the solution’s scalability an eight out of ten.

How was the initial setup?

Since spinning up an instance on the ServiceNow Now Platform is very easy, we can quickly get it up and running.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The license model is not flexible for small clients. It is generally more suitable for large enterprises and, to some extent, for mid-sized organizations. However, it may be less affordable for smaller or tier-three companies.

What other advice do I have?

The workflow engine is highly flexible and can be utilized in various ways. However, ServiceNow still needs to mature when it comes to industry-specific solutions. For example, we look at different products in the telecom industry, specifically telco-grade products. ServiceNow has recently ventured into this area, but the modules available are fewer than those of similar products in the industry.

ServiceNow has its own robust set of proprietary APIs, but the telecom industry has advocated for adopting TM Forum Open APIs. Currently, only a few of these Open APIs are supported. However, the specifications and the product need to mature. It's an ongoing process.

While we use the SaaS model, some customers choose the on-premises model due to regulatory constraints requiring their data to remain within their country. However, opting for an on-premises model may not provide all the benefits of SaaS, as it often involves significant hardware and infrastructure requirements. It ensures security by keeping data within the country, and it provides robust functionalities within its SaaS modules.

Generally, ServiceNow is often compared with Remedy. While Remedy started with a strong foundation, its more rigid models and limited scalability across different domains may have given ServiceNow an advantage in adaptability and growth.

Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
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Buyer's Guide
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Updated: October 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free ServiceNow Now Platform Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.