Top ServiceNow Implementation Mistakes to Avoid

ServiceNow, a leading provider of cloud based solutions, enables companies to automate operations that include asset management, IT helpdesk, enterprise service management and helps to achieve transformation for company’s IT service and infrastructure. With over 3500 implementations across 50 countries, ServiceNow is a preferred choice for organizations across all industry verticals.

It can consolidate legacy systems and automate processes which are manual with a user-friendly single system of action. Based on the best ITIL practices, ServiceNow is easy to deploy and helps in giving better control over the core processes in the company.

According to some of the statistics shared by Chris Bedi, CIO of ServiceNow, there are success stories where organizations have been able to reduce their incident resolution time to about 60% using ServiceNow and cut down the SLA breaches by around 58% with automation of IT service management. There are also organizations which have achieved about $1.6 million reduction of labor and operating costs per year with automation of key processes.

With the help of ServiceNow Certified Experts, the implementation of ServiceNow can be typically achieved quickly and efficiently and enterprises can realize their core business goals with ease. However, there are some common mistakes which are committed during the implementations. This blog aims to take a look at such common mistakes and also shares some pointers on how to avoid those.

Key ServiceNow Implementation Mistakes to Avoid

Lack of business case

ITIL adoption needs to be a planned approach. Enterprises should not blindly follow what other companies are doing and expect to get the best results. Every organization is different and the needs are, therefore, quite unique to the organization. A careful assessment is required to chalk out the roadmap to achieve success in the efforts along with a proper cost and benefit analysis which is clear to all.

Planning in isolation

Companies should consider including the linkages and dependencies among various ITSM and core IT processes even if it’s not required immediately. This proves to be useful for making any future enhancements. Not planning for integration of technology even if it may not be useful for IT, but used by other business systems is a common mistake made by companies. It’s essential to include all the stakeholders and end users in the ITIL planning phase as it allows to test out certain capabilities and see if they will work.

Lack of focus and timeframe

Lack of focus on the short-term and long-term goals using ITIL and its purpose can be detrimental to the business. Besides, it’s important to know how the processes, and technology will be used further in the company and if there is a team with the right capabilities and expertise to take the process further. There needs to be a realistic timeframe for ITIL adoption within the company that considers the people, processes and technologies being currently used.

Laying emphasis on simple stuff

It’s quite understandable to start with the easier task such as incident management and then proceed to the more challenging ones. However, in this process, companies might fail to progress further to consider the other vital aspects of ITIL which may include capacity management and availability. This may leave them on only focusing on easier things which they are already good in managing and neglect the other core issues.

Not thinking about organizational change and processes

Sometimes, the use of the word ITIL implementation can make people focus more on processes and the technology at the cost of organizational change. Most companies overlook the fact that ITIL is a planned approach to IT delivery and not a set of ITSM processes that is backed by technology. A more holistic approach is necessary.

Excessive reliance on technology

Most companies who use ITIL solutions believe that only technology can help them get the best results and unfortunately, they fail in their efforts. ITIL solution implementation should be linked to the business rather than treating it as a technology implementation. Enterprises need to see how it can help in achieving specific business goals. Technology alone can never guarantee the right outcomes of ITIL adoption and it’s important to have the right people first who can manage technology.

It’s important to ensure that some of these common ServiceNow ITIL mistakes do not stop your company from adopting more efficient IT service delivery and business operations. ServiceNow ITIL solutions have already resulted in success for many organizations who have used it in the right manner to reap the best benefits for their business. Just like with any other project, it’s critical to have the right ITIL vision and planning in place by learning from the experiences of others who have gone through the process. This can ensure that your ITIL adoption process is smooth, fast and efficient to get greater success for your company.

At InfoBeans, we have a team of ServiceNow Certified Experts who can guide you through your ServiceNow Implementation exercise. If you have any questions, apprehensions, and queries, feel free to get in touch with us and we will be happy to schedule a call with one of our ServiceNow Experts.