We use the product for ITSM, DevOps, change management, problem management, and incident management. We utilize all the modules.
Devops Engineer at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
Has valuable incident and problem management features, but the scalability needs improvement
Pros and Cons
- "The product's integration functionality in the change management module has significantly improved efficiency in our organization."
- "They could improve license management, particularly when integrating different applications or toolsets."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
The product's integration functionality in the change management module has significantly improved efficiency in our organization. It has enhanced the delivery process with automated operations.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable aspects of ServiceNow are incident and problem management in the workspace. It helps us create meetings within the platform where users can collaborate to resolve issues.
What needs improvement?
They could improve license management, particularly when integrating different applications or toolsets. The process of how licenses are billed and the potential for noncompliance issues could be clearly stated during module purchase. It results in unforeseen costs when integrating various tools, such as DevOps, where contributors from projects may be misinterpreted as core contributors, leading to unnecessary charges. They could make the licensing process clear to understand.
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ServiceNow
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about ServiceNow. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
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For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using ServiceNow since 2020. We use the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable platform.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have 30000 ServiceNow users in our organization. It needs to be more scalable, particularly in the context of Microsoft's roadmap. The existing cloud integrations and point-to-point integrations with Azure DevOps might have challenges during a transition to GitHub. We have to manually re-configure the same.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support services are dependent on integration partners.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Negative
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We used Jira before.
How was the initial setup?
It is a cloud solution. The initial setup is difficult. It requires someone with knowledge of the ServiceNow platform. One can take assistance from a DevOps engineer for configuration.
It takes a few weeks to complete. We have deployed it in different regions. We need to synchronize the changes across all the regions as well.
What about the implementation team?
We take assistance from our integration partner for implementation.
What was our ROI?
We have experienced improvements in time-saving since implementing ServiceNow. The change module has allowed for identifying and onboarding services with low business criticality, streamlining the approval process for changes and deployments. It makes the deployment process simple, fast, and easy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It is an expensive platform.
What other advice do I have?
We have bought the product's standard version with different components implemented across all the departments of our organization. We can add more components as per requirement.
We need assistance from specialists with in-depth knowledge of the platform, such as those holding ServiceNow certifications for complex business requirements.
I rate it six out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Program Architect at Afiniti.com
The workspace feature helps us manage multiple projects, but it's not as user-friendly as some solutions
Pros and Cons
- "I like ServiceNow's Workspace feature. With Jira, we had to edit a ticket by going into it. We couldn't perform edits from within the project plan. ServiceNow allows you to edit everything from one screen. It's like an Excel spreadsheet, but Jira requires you to drill down into the ticket. ServiceNow is more convenient if you are working on multiple projects and workflows."
- "We can't update bulk tickets using a simple query language. Jira lets us update hundreds of tickets with one command. In ServiceNow, you need to select each task separately to close them. The dashboards could also be more user-friendly. Monday.com has better dashboards."
What is our primary use case?
I work in the compliance department at my company, and we use ServiceNow to manage our team members' tasks.
How has it helped my organization?
ServiceNow helps us deliver projects on schedule. When we start a new project, we share the deadlines with the various team members, and they perform their assigned tasks.
What is most valuable?
I like ServiceNow's Workspace feature. With Jira, we had to edit a ticket by going into it. We couldn't perform edits from within the project plan. ServiceNow allows you to edit everything from one screen. It's like an Excel spreadsheet, but Jira requires you to drill down into the ticket. ServiceNow is more convenient if you are working on multiple projects and workflows.
What needs improvement?
We can't update bulk tickets using a simple query language. Jira lets us update hundreds of tickets with one command. In ServiceNow, you need to select each task separately to close them. The dashboards could also be more user-friendly. Monday.com has better dashboards.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used ServiceNow for a month and a half.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate ServiceNow nine out of 10 for stability. We haven't had any downtime except for platform maintenance and upgrades.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I rate ServiceNow 10 out of 10 for scalability. ServiceNow is a highly scalable platform that can work for large enterprise. We have around 1,000 employees, and we use it heavily. Scalability is never an issue.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We previously used Jira and Monday. Monday is user-friendly and interactive. It's more appropriate for beginners. ServiceNow is better for professional teams who have some knowledge and experience. Monday is accessible and intuitive. It's easy to create dashboards,
How was the initial setup?
I wasn't part of the deployment, but I believe it was straightforward because ServiceNow is a cloud-based application. The initial planning took about three months, but the deployment only took one or two weeks.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I rate ServiceNow eight out of 10. It's too expensive.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We're currently considering Microsoft's SharePoint portal.
What other advice do I have?
I rate ServiceNow seven out of 10. ServiceNow is better than competing solutions we've used like Jira and Monday.com, and they're working hard to improve organizational processes. They're doing a great job. I would recommend them. Their technical support and deployment team are better than the solution itself. They understand how to refine processes to help you perform better.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Buyer's Guide
ServiceNow
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about ServiceNow. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
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Senior Business Systems Analyst - Enterprise Methodology and Process Program Manager at Judicial Council of California
Fantastic out-of-the-box dashboards and reporting, great stability, and very user-friendly
Pros and Cons
- "The Idea Portal and the PPM platform are most valuable. Their out-of-the-box dashboards and reporting are fantastic. I use them almost on a weekly basis. I have developed a couple of PMO dashboards for reporting. It is user-friendly. Everything is done through a navigation bar, and it makes things a lot easier that way."
- "They can maybe improve the area of agile project management. They do have user storyboards and other things, but we kind of lean on Jira for that work. This is perhaps an area that could be looked at a little more."
What is our primary use case?
Primarily, we use it for our service desk and IT help desk ticketing. We also have the PPM module. ServiceNow is our main PPM platform at the moment. We use the Idea Portal for project requests, and we are also in the process of installing the financial module. We're using the latest version of ServiceNow.
How has it helped my organization?
It has improved the way in which projects are requested and assessed. We used to have two forms that PMs used to send out. We had a committee that would say yes or no and allocate the resources and the time for the project. PMs used to bring the forms, and I used to go through them with the committee. With the Demand process, we have been able to automate that. We now have what is called a Demand Pipeline. PMs still come and present at the committee, but everything is easier to track now and automated. We go through the process of the demand and then turn it into a project, which I find very useful, at least on my end.
It does exactly what I need it to do. I report to the CIO and senior managers for the overall projects. It is great for me because I can show them fancy graphics and makes my life easy.
What is most valuable?
The Idea Portal and the PPM platform are most valuable. Their out-of-the-box dashboards and reporting are fantastic. I use them almost on a weekly basis. I have developed a couple of PMO dashboards for reporting.
It is user-friendly. Everything is done through a navigation bar, and it makes things a lot easier that way.
What needs improvement?
They can maybe improve the area of agile project management. They do have user storyboards and other things, but we kind of lean on Jira for that work. This is perhaps an area that could be looked at a little more.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for about two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a great product. I haven't had any issues with it so far, and it has been working well.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It has been really good for us. For portfolio and program management, which is my area, ServiceNow is my go-to place. It is only the agile module that people aren't using as much because they're used to Jira. We kind of allow our project managers to use whichever product they want for their project management.
We are adding modules as we proceed. The financial module is coming soon. We already have the Service Portal deployed, which is being used. We are also looking at doing a service catalog type of thing.
We are a large organization, but ServiceNow is mostly being used by our IT. Our user base is around 300. We have one admin.
How are customer service and technical support?
I haven't interacted with them.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We used to use Planview, and we moved to ServiceNow to incorporate one platform for everything. It also made a lot of sense financially. We were at the end of our contract, so we decided to go for a new solution. It took us some time to deploy it, but overall, it works better for us. It has good metrics.
How was the initial setup?
It was pretty straightforward. It took about three months. We had to migrate our former projects from Planview PPM. It wasn't hard. We just had to make sure that everything was in there.
What about the implementation team?
We worked with a third-party company to get things set up, and they were experts in those areas. They were fantastic.
What other advice do I have?
On the PPM side, I am quite satisfied with what is there. Apart from submitting tickets, I haven't used the ticketing system to its full functionality, so I can't really comment on that. We are quite satisfied with the tool. Its out-of-box reporting is quite balanced. We didn't require much customization when we deployed it. We did some customization, but we tried to stay out of the box as much as possible to make things easier for us. It has been working really great out of the box.
If you have no experience in using it and if you are just deploying it, not migrating from another solution, it should be pretty straightforward. With a little bit of training and help from ServiceNow, it should be up and running in a couple of days. If you are doing a large-scale migration, as we did, I would probably recommend using a third-party contractor.
I would rate ServiceNow a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
ITSM Process Owner at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Allows for role-based access, with integrated machine learning and AI
Pros and Cons
- "For the nuts and bolts running of an IT organization, I can't really say there's anything lacking feature-wise."
- "One thing I don't care for is the reporting and the way it functions."
What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution for ITSM and a little bit of ITOM. However, we don't use it for ITBM.
What is most valuable?
Role-based access is a 'positive'.
ServiceNow has a feature called Orchestration. In that, you can utilize the tool to communicate with applications and systems to issue commands and perform actions. That's a positive, it's something that does exist in the tool. We are in our infancy in utilizing that.
There's a relatively new feature called performance analytics. It's supposed to provide a lot more information. It's got machine learning and some AI built into it. We're our infancy with that.
For the nuts and bolts running of an IT organization, I can't really say there's anything lacking, feature-wise.
The solution is relatively easy to use.
What needs improvement?
One thing I don't care for is the reporting and the way it functions. Exporting a report, from a view, initiates a rerun of the query in the background - highly inefficient.
In terms of the implementation, there seems to be a dearth of basic table joins, on initial install, necessitating the creation of your own database views to get seemingly related data to act like related data. In other words, it's popular to have incidents linked to changes, and linked to problems, and linked to other types of records. And vice versa, you could have an incidents caused by a change. You could have an incident that has a problem record built off of it. However, there are several modules where, if you don't create table joins - for example, for demand records and demand tasks - between those two, then the only option is pull two reports (one for Demands, one for Demand Tasks), and manually merge them outside of the tool. It's highly inefficient. That is something that is a deficiency within the tool design overall.
The initial setup is a bit complex (could have been designed to be profile-driven, as an alternative).
While I recognize that it's a popular thing to do, due to poor design, update sets have to be moved manually, from platform to platform, easily introducing errors (sequence, origin, etc.) along the way. I've seen far better promote-to-production schemes with other tools.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using ServiceNow for more than 5 years.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Scales 'up' well.
Scales 'down' poorly.
The solution is not exactly scalable for a mom-and-pop shop (and SMBs). The costs would be too prohibitive for that.
Someone once said, a bird, no matter the size, has the same number of bones. If you're going to do incident change problem, asset config, things like that, for a mom-and-pop, technically, you have the same number of types of things you need to be concerned about. It's just the volume of how it's being applied. A mom-and-pop store might carry 50 items in its inventory. A large company is going to have thousands upon thousands. Therefore, ServiceNow would not be a good solution for a small organization with few assets.
If you don't have a full CMDB to begin with it really makes a lot of things awkward within the tool.
We have 4,000+
How are customer service and support?
ServiceNow Technical support needs improvement.
One example -
Order - (context - business rules) - ServiceNow allows you to have any number of rules with the same order number.
ServiceNow's official answer to 'how does the database code decide which rule to execute first, when multiple business rules are assigned the same order level?': we have no answer
(it goes without saying - use unique order levels)
How was the initial setup?
What other advice do I have?
We're just a customer and an end-user.
We started on-prem and then switched to cloud. We switched to the cloud about three years ago.
- fill out the CMDB before you start implementing the tool - make the time.
- plan out table joins as you implement new modules.
I'd rate the solution at an eight out of ten. I would just warn others that it's too easy to incorporate abysmally poor design.
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.
Senior Principal at Devoteam Management Consulting
A reliable solution with exceptional customer service
Pros and Cons
- "I think the technical support is pretty good. They can be a little bit slow sometimes, but overall I think they're good."
- "ServiceNow doesn't cater to the Middle Eastern market."
What is our primary use case?
I don't actually use this solution directly. We're a partner so we typically find a customer and do the necessary RSC, etc. I am responsible for managing a team of 19 professionals that use this solution and others. I've used ServiceNow in the past, but I am not currently using it.
What needs improvement?
For starters, the mobile capability is very European-focused and my primary work location is actually the Middle East. ServiceNow doesn't cater to the Middle Eastern market. For this reason, we actually had to develop our own solutions in order to accommodate our customers that need an interface in Arabic. ServiceNow doesn't support that. It doesn't have a language patch for that at all.
In addition, having a ServiceNow portal that has to be accessed via a browser on a mobile device is not always ideal for customers. Having a mobile application that specifically caters to those aspects, that provides users with access through the ServiceNow portal, is very important.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using ServiceNow for 13 years.
How are customer service and technical support?
I think the technical support is pretty good. They can be a little bit slow sometimes, but overall I think they're good.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
From a licensing perspective, various partners negotiate the price with ServiceNow directly. Certainly, from a product-platform perspective, the price is not too bad. I suppose it could be a little bit cheaper. We do get customers that complain that the product is expensive compared to others in the market.
What other advice do I have?
If you're interested in using this solution, contact us, we'll do it for you. Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give ServiceNow a rating of nine.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
Practice Manager, Automation & Orchestration at a tech services company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Cloud platform that supports large IT services, stable and easy to set up
Pros and Cons
- "ServiceNow was the first true enterprise to service management platform."
- "Service mapping could be less complicated."
What is our primary use case?
We run thousands of automations.
What is most valuable?
The reason that ServiceNow is as good as it is, and opposed to Remedy, Cherwell, and HP OpenView, is that ServiceNow was the first IT service management platform or enterprise.
ServiceNow was the first true enterprise to service management platform. They were the first to understand that a request is a request and service is service.
ServiceNow goes back internationally a long time ago when they were Fuji. ServiceNow releases are alphabetical. My experience started with Fuji, and they are on the Orlando release now. Even back then, they were able to put any process into ServiceNow, even if it wasn't and IT process, and have it managed through the platform.
What needs improvement?
Security needs some improvement. The governance, security incident management, cloud management, and the security module are getting better.
Service mapping could be less complicated. The configuration, and running it appropriately, but that's a difficult thing to do overall.
It needs to be more cost-effective because it can be pricey.
I would love to see ServiceNow create a solid mid-market entry point for it. They tried it in the past and it failed. That was ServiceNow Express.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using ServiceNow for over a decade.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
ServiceNow is incredibly stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This solution is scalable to a point. Once you get as large as the Department of Veterans Affairs you will have some issues, but it scalable.
We have 3000 people here in our company. Anyone who is in IT is using ServiceNow.
How are customer service and technical support?
I haven't contacted technical support.
If you are as close to out-of-the-box as you need to be then you won't have any issues at all with ServiceNow.
How was the initial setup?
ServiceNow is the least complex of all of the platforms available.
When I worked at the bank they went from zero to running it within three months. At that time when dealing with Remedy or other legacy systems, that was unheard of to go from nothing to running in three months.
With one of our customers, we had it up and running in one month.
We have seven members to maintain ServiceNow. They are developers, senior developers, and the head of service management.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The mandatory minimum is US$ 20,000 for licensing. They have a three-year cycle. I am not sure if it works out to be $60,000 for three years or if it's $20,000 for the three years.
It's mainly for licensing. The more that you use it and the more it goes to other areas in your organization, the more licensing you will have to pay.
There may be some who look at this and use it for the HR service delivery or they could use another HR application that looks cheaper, but they will be missing the point of having all of the information on a single platform.
What other advice do I have?
I manage an automation orchestration team. The focus of my team is external, not internal. The company uses ServiceNow. We are one of the largest and older consumers of ServiceNow. The members of my team have ServiceNow practice, infrastructure automation practice, could management platforms, containers practice, and DevOps.
Our team is focused on helping other organizations adopt and adapt to ServiceNow.
ServiceNow is in the cloud, it's basically remedy in the cloud. ServiceNow doesn't get deployed unless you are a Federal Agency because they have their own data centers. ServiceNow only allows Federal Agencies to have their own instant data Center.
Make sure that you are big enough to afford it. If you have a small IT department, then ServiceNow is not for you. The problem is that you won't be able to afford it. You must be a mature enough and a large enough IT organization to start using it.
It doesn't just do IT things, it does more than that.
Make sure that you configure and not customize.
I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Project Engineer at NCGR
Offers benefits due to its compatibility and comprehensive approach for the entire chain process
Pros and Cons
- "Consolidating multiple functionalities into a single platform reduces the need to invest in various separate solutions. ServiceNow integrates ITSM, CMDB, Discovery modules, and more into one cohesive system."
- "ServiceNow might need to improve its capabilities to integrate with third-party tools."
What is our primary use case?
We're using ServiceNow for the entire chain process and all aspects of the module. It covers all modules and their associated problems.
How has it helped my organization?
It offers significant benefits due to its compatibility and comprehensive approach. Consolidating multiple functionalities into a single platform reduces the need to invest in various separate solutions. ServiceNow integrates ITSM, CMDB, Discovery modules, and more into one cohesive system. This unified approach provides a single view across all modules, reducing complexity and financial risk. By using a single technology, organizations can effectively meet their needs and address potential risks more efficiently.
What is most valuable?
This was very helpful in CMDP, particularly regarding extraction and workflows. The benefit lies in having a single console rather than multiple consoles, which significantly simplifies the process and improves efficiency.
What needs improvement?
ServiceNow has had a similar pattern, but when it comes to third-party integrations, Uddin appears to be more flexible than ServiceNow. ServiceNow might need to improve its capabilities to integrate with third-party tools.
Due to differences in naming conventions and data fragmentation between systems, we need to address compatibility issues by modifying naming conventions, altering fields, and making adjustments as necessary. ServiceNow has default field functionalities that may not align with those the MagOne system provides. Therefore, customization will be required to ensure compatibility and meet specific requirements.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using ServiceNow for six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is stable.
How was the initial setup?
Deployment depends upon the environment. For me, it takes three months to deploy the solution because it has different dependencies.
What was our ROI?
It saved 30% of the money compared to others.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We have three competitors. One is BMC product, the second is ServiceNow and the third is Atlassian.
What other advice do I have?
ServiceNow provides insights into topology, though it may sometimes lack detailed understanding. We have correlated it with our monitoring tools to trace the hierarchy and determine its impact across various business lines. This is part of the AIOps information, consolidating all relevant details into a single ticket for easy access.
I recommend the solution.
Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Last updated: Aug 6, 2024
Flag as inappropriateTechnical Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Streamlines task tracking, enhances communication transparency, and facilitates efficient issue resolution, making it a valuable tool for organizational workflow management
Pros and Cons
- "It facilitates the monitoring of major incidents and provides insights into the effort expended to resolve each incident."
- "It should include information on navigating various user interfaces for creating diverse requests directed to different teams."
What is our primary use case?
When we need to request a task from another team at my client's organization, we typically submit a request in ServiceNow. We provide all the necessary details through the ServiceNow platform, and any communication related to the request is documented in the form of comments. This approach ensures transparency by recording what was requested, actions taken by the assigned person, and the time taken to resolve the request. Using ServiceNow, we can easily track the progress of tasks, review the history of actions, and assess the workload of a specific individual over a given period, be it a week or a month.
What is most valuable?
It proves invaluable in tracking significant incidents within your work environment. It facilitates the monitoring of major incidents and provides insights into the effort expended to resolve each incident. This capability adds substantial value by allowing a comprehensive understanding of the incident resolution process and the associated resource allocation.
What needs improvement?
It should include information on navigating various user interfaces for creating diverse requests directed to different teams. Enhancing usability involves providing easy access to interfaces tailored for different types of requests across teams.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with it for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is proven to be reliable; we have not encountered any issues with it.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have nearly one hundred to one hundred fifty users.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is relatively straightforward.
What other advice do I have?
It's effective, indeed. If you aim to monitor the number of issues you're handling and wish to understand the effort required to resolve them, this serves as an excellent ticketing tool. Overall, I would rate it 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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