professional woman facing a crossroads with two signs going in either direction that say CODE and NO CODE

To Code or Not to Code (this is the question!)

October 9, 2024Posted inConfiguration, Customization, Design, Out of the Box, PlatformNo Comments
‘Tis it nobler to bend to false conventional wisdom or to follow the found truth; ay, there's the rub! Introduction Unless you’re brand new to the ServiceNow ecosystem or have completely ignored all talk and literature about the platform in recent years, you’ve heard the drumbeat of a couple of key messages (that I’ll paraphrase): Low and no code solutions are the future Stay “Out of the Box” as much as possible Out of the gate, the question I’ll pose is: does low code / no code matter? If so, why does it matter? In this article, I’m going to…
construction built from the ground up

Buy versus Build

June 25, 2024Posted inPlatformNo Comments
How all those who work with ServiceNow should think about buying a solution versus building their own “Construction is the art of making a meaningful whole out of many parts.” — Peter Zumthor Introduction Buy versus build is a discussion perhaps as old as software itself. Certainly it has become more prevalent as software has evolved beyond canned (boxed) point solutions into development platforms. Modern platforms provide the ability to use existing components to develop new solutions and ServiceNow is no exception. In fact, ServiceNow was designed to do this from the ground up - it was the vision of…
architectural structure

Wherefore Architecture?

June 12, 2024Posted inArchitecture, Configuration, Custom Applications, Customization, Design, Platform, UpgradesNo Comments
If ServiceNow is built to support Citizen developers, why do we need ServiceNow architects? “Thinking about design is hard, but not thinking about it can be disastrous.” - Ralph Caplan Introduction For almost 14 years in the ServiceNow space, and across a rapid expansion of the exosystem, it has been interesting to observe and analyze various organization’s approaches to developing and maintaining their ServiceNow environment. Specifically, how do organizations manage the inflow of business needs, the distribution and velocity of development, configuration and administrative work, and the ongoing maintenance of the platform? As the footprint of ServiceNow has expanded conjunctionally…
platform part 2

It’s the Platform, Stupid* (Part 2)

February 20, 2024Posted inPlatformNo Comments
* - A play on the famous James Carville quote about the economy, not implying that ServiceNow folks are stupid It’s been a few years since I wrote Part 1 of this article, going through the history and evolution of the ServiceNow platform, and the morphing of the company strategy from platform to product. After working with multiple clients in the meantime, and reading lots of new marketing and going through many platform release upgrades, I thought it time to revisit the subject with new perspective and analysis. A quick recap: In the early 2000s, ServiceNow (nee “Glide”) was envisioned…
Seamless Integration

What We’ve Got Here Is Failure to Communicate – Part 2

May 9, 2023Posted inArchitecture, Configuration, Design, PlatformNo Comments
In Part 1 of this article, I delved into Inbound and Outbound design considerations. Now, in Part 2, I’ll cover considerations for a true eBonding type integration as well as other general tips I’ve learned through the years building integrations. eBonding Design Considerations and Good Practices As mentioned previously, the example I’m working from is a bi-directional application to application integration, meaning that the systems are integrating application records throughout the lifecycle of that application’s workflow. For example, an Incident in system X that integrates with a ServiceNow Incident and exchanges updates throughout the life of both incidents, regardless of…
Integration puzzle piece

What We’ve Got Here Is Failure to Communicate – Part 1

May 8, 2023Posted inArchitecture, Configuration, Design, PlatformNo Comments
Good Practices for Designing Integrations in ServiceNow Captain: You can have the easy way, Luke... Or you can have it the hard way... It's all up to you. - Cool Hand Luke If you work in a ServiceNow environment in 2023, it’s more than likely you’ve got it integrated with other systems. Given ServiceNow’s place in the market, it’s unlikely that an instance is running in an environment small enough or segregated enough to not need to be integrated with other systems. At the very least, you’re likely getting your core data from somewhere outside of ServiceNow, and hopefully not…
Improvement graph

PD (Platform Disfunction) is Treatable

April 14, 2023Posted inConfiguration, Customization, Out of the Box, PlatformNo Comments
The things ServiceNow should change or enhance yesterday "Continuous improvement is not about the things you do well — that’s work. Continuous improvement is about removing the things that get in the way of your work. The headaches, the things that slow you down, that’s what continuous improvement is all about." - Bruce Hamilton I’ve written previously about the power of the platform, and my belief in its terrific original design and flexibility. In recent years, in its push to create and sell products, ServiceNow has sacrificed enhancements to the platform which us architects, developers and admins have to work…
core strength

Building Core Strength

February 20, 2023Posted inConfiguration, PlatformNo Comments
Why good core data is both the roots and the flowers of your ServiceNow tree "A tree with a rotten core cannot stand." — Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn In the fitness world, and in fact the physical human world, your core is the central part of your body. It includes the pelvis, lower back, hips and stomach. Exercises that build core strength lead to better balance and steadiness, also called stability. Stability is important whether you're on the playing field or doing regular activities. In fact, most sports and other physical activities depend on stable core muscles. As ServiceNow has moved further…
architecture

Building The Perfect Architect – Part 2

February 7, 2023Posted inArchitecture, Design, Platform, ProductNo Comments
What makes a good ServiceNow architect? And what makes “architect” a misnomer? In part one, we discussed what an architect is within the ServiceNow and the larger IT ecosystems. Now, we’ll delve into design documentation - a key part of an architect’s deliverables, and some of the behaviors of folks who may have the title architect but whose actions belie the title. Documenting designs and implementations A good architect understands the value of documentation, and both creates and enforces documentation. My rules of thumb for documentation are: Any custom development that includes creating new tables needs design documentation. This does…
architecture

Building the Perfect Architect – Part 1

January 11, 2023Posted inArchitecture, Design, Platform, ProductNo Comments
What makes a good ServiceNow architect? And what makes “architect” a misnomer? “Architecture is not an inspirational business, it's a rational procedure to do sensible and hopefully beautiful things; that's all.” - Harry Seidler If you’re here and reading this, you probably have a concept of what a ServiceNow architect is. (In this context, “architect” means a ServiceNow technical architect.) And you’ve likely worked with folks who have the title “architect”, whether on implementation projects or as part of a larger IT ecosystem. But what does this mean, and what should it mean? I’ll spend the rest of this article…