What is ServiceNow: Guide Every Decision-Maker Should Have in 2025

“If you are struggling to find what exactly ServiceNow does that drives better business processes, this guide is for you.”

Imagine you are part of a company’s IT team, and employees are constantly submitting requests like:

• “My laptop isn’t connecting to Wi-Fi.”
• “Can you reset my password?”
• “The new software update isn’t installing.”

Or, you are a Head of Customer Service and want to see entire customer service requests coming in a year, and how efficiently customers handle the queries?

Difficult for you to handle it, right? Traditionally, these requests come in through emails, calls, or even spreadsheets—making it hard to track and prioritize them. With digital transformation in recent years, businesses have already move on from spreadsheets to digital system of records. Now, with massive amounts of data stored in various systems, and applications managing these requests efficiently has become a challenge of its own.

So, what’s the solution? Well, the solution is to have one unified intelligent platform which is secure to connect people, process, data and systems. Amid huge competition between cloud solutions, it is difficult to choose which one is the most reliable, scalable, and tailored to meet your organization’s specific needs.

We are breaking down to you the most powerful solution: ServiceNow, its transformative offerings, and benefits.

What is ServiceNow?

Explaining ServiceNow is no walk in the park. It’s like asking someone to define “the internet” back in the ’90s: it’s vast, powerful, and means different things to different people. But don’t worry, we’ll simplify it for you.

ServiceNow is a cloud-based AI-enhanced platform that automates enterprise workflows to streamline processes, improve efficiency, and enhance customer experiences by through customization and extensibility. ServiceNow solutions build and operate business processes that are workflow driven.

As a SaaS (Software as a Service) and PaaS (Platform as a Service) platform ServiceNow is not a system of record—but rather a System of Action to replace legacy systems with simple easy to use interfaces and an ability to purposefully orchestrate workflows for smoother operations. In simpler terms, ServiceNow helps you to reduce cost, increase productivity and drive growth by:

• Connecting all your data and workflows.
• Orchestrating processes for smoother operations.
• Automating repetitive tasks to save time and resources.

History of ServiceNow: How it all started

Established in 2003 by former Perefrine Systems CTO Fred Luddy, ServiceNow is headquartered in Santa Clara, California. Over time, ServiceNow has transformed into a powerhouse to drive business success with its various offerings, including IT service management, IT operations management, customer service management, and human resource management. security operations, risk and compliance, workplace service delivery, telecommunications service management, and Now Assist infused with GenAI capabilities – all built on the award-winning Now Platform.

• In 2018, Forbes magazine named it under one of its lists of the world’s most innovative companies.
• ServiceNow is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the Russell 1000 Index and S&P 500 Index.
• Formerly Known as Glidesoft, ServiceNow’s current CEO, Bill McDermott, with a manpower of 23,000 employees and revenue of approximately $10.93 billion, continues to lead the company in delivering transformative solutions for enterprises worldwide.

What is Now Platform?

ServiceNow is built on Now Platform to provide a complete visibility for cross-enterprise workflows. Now Platform is a cloud built with a single code base, one data model, and one architecture keeping the workflows seamless reducing complexity for end-users. It provides you with pre-built out-of-the-box applications and ServiceNow store apps to make critical business processes easier.

What makes ServiceNow so special, and what does it do?

When someone ask you to tell what are some things we can do with ServiceNow or how can it help us achieve our business goals

ServiceNow helps organizations of every size, in every industry, and for everyone putting AI-powered solutions. Here are some of the features that make ServiceNow unique.

1. Automate siloed Processes to Improve Efficiency

ServiceNow streamlines workflows by connecting and automating processes that were previously disconnected or manual. This eliminates redundancies, reduces delays, and ensures data flows seamlessly across departments, boosting organizational efficiency.

2. Makes Work Better for Everyone for a productive workplace

By centralizing workflows and providing intuitive interfaces, ServiceNow empowers employees, managers, and IT staff alike to accomplish their tasks effortlessly. It reduces frustrations stemming from inefficiencies and fosters a more collaborative, productive workplace.

3. Improves the Employee Experience reducing dependencies

ServiceNow enhances the day-to-day experiences of employees through personalized portals, self-service options, and AI-driven support. Employees can access what they need, when they need it, reducing dependence on manual support and improving satisfaction.

4. Improves Service Delivery for top-notch customer experience

With tools to automate and optimize service workflows, ServiceNow ensures that customer and employee services are delivered faster, more consistently, and with fewer errors. Leveraging AI-powered capabilities like predictive analytics and generative AI, ServiceNow anticipates customer needs, provides intelligent recommendations, and enables personalized interactions. This enhances satisfaction and builds trust in service reliability by offering proactive and tailored solutions.

5. Offers Highly Customized Solutions

ServiceNow adapts to the unique needs of businesses with its highly customizable platform. From tailored workflows to specific integrations, organizations can design solutions that align perfectly with their operational goals and challenges.

6. Integrates Systems Seamlessly

ServiceNow serves as a unified platform, seamlessly integrating with existing systems, tools, and third-party applications. This eliminates silos, improves data visibility, and provides a single source of truth for the organization, enabling smarter decision-making.

Why Enterprises Should Adopt ServiceNow?

ServiceNow has revolutionized how organizations manage and streamline their operations. Here’s why businesses should opt for ServiceNow and the benefits it offers:

1. Connects All Digital Workflows of the Organization

ServiceNow acts as the central hub for all your digital workflows, breaking down silos and enabling seamless communication across departments. It ensures that processes, data, and teams are aligned, increasing productivity and efficiency.

2. Delivers Modern and Meaningful Experiences at Scale

With its intuitive user interface and customer-centric approach, ServiceNow delivers personalized, modern, and impactful experiences for employees and customers. This elevates user satisfaction and builds trust across stakeholders.

3. Infused Generative AI Across Workflows

ServiceNow leverages generative AI to enhance workflows by automating repetitive tasks, providing intelligent insights, and ensuring quick problem resolution. This advanced AI integration fosters innovation and enables businesses to achieve more in less time.

4. Seamless Integration with Third-Party Applications and Existing Systems

ServiceNow’s robust integration capabilities allow it to work harmoniously with your existing tools and systems. Whether it’s legacy software or cutting-edge applications, ServiceNow ensures a unified ecosystem without disruption.

5. Automating Every Business Process in Your Organization

By automating mundane, repetitive, and manual processes, ServiceNow frees up your workforce to focus on strategic and high-value tasks. Automation reduces errors, speeds up execution, and ensures consistent outcomes.

6. Proactively Prevents Security Risks

ServiceNow strengthens your organization’s security posture by identifying and addressing vulnerabilities before they escalate. Its proactive approach minimizes risks, protects sensitive data, and ensures compliance with industry standards.

7. Empowers Higher ROI

ServiceNow helps businesses achieve a higher return on investment (ROI) by reducing operational costs, improving process efficiency, and driving innovation. Its scalability ensures businesses can grow without worrying about increasing complexities.

ServiceNow Products

ServiceNow has grown widely over the years and expanded its offerings according to the modern needs of organization. Here we have categorized ServiceNow offerings by:

• Workflow
• Solution
• Industry

By Workflow

ServiceNow Modules are categorized into five major enterprise workflows: technology, employee, customer, creator, and finance and supply chain. They are further classified as:

Here are few of the ServiceNow modules explained and its benefits:

1. ServiceNow ITSM (IT Service Management):

ServiceNow IT Service Management (ITSM) helps your teams to be efficient by intelligently delivering resilient IT services on one AI platform for business transformation. ITSM helps in:

• Increasing employee productivity while lowering costs.
• Ensure service resilience while increasing business agility.
• Elevate employee experiences and satisfaction.

2. ServiceNow ITOM (IT operations)

ServiceNow IT Operations Management has full control for both on-premises and cloud to run proactive operations. With capabilities like AIOps, it breaks down silos, eliminates friction, improves process automation, and enables continuous improvement seamlessly within the Now Platform. ITOM helps in:

• Maps your digital services automatically.
• Predict and prevent issues before they impact users.
• Bridges the gap between traditional IT operations and DevOps.

3. ServiceNow ITAM (IT Asset Management)

ServiceNow IT Asset Management can rectify lack of visibility, maintaining legacy apps, and the need to manage disparate systems. ITAM helps you in:

• Better visibility of digitized services across on-premises and cloud deployments.
• Automate processes to speed up service delivery in real-time view.
• Eliminate the need of expensive integrations with a unified platform integrating ITAM with CMDB/ITSM/ITOM.

4. ServiceNow CSM (Customer Service Management)

ServiceNow Customer Service Management facilitates self-service capabilities to resolve issues quickly and via preferred engagement channels. CSM helps you in:

• Optimizing omnichannel self-service and AI-driven issue resolution.
• Automate customer operations processes across departments.
• Empower agents with real-time intelligence and productivity tools.

5. App Engine

ServiceNow App Engine provides a low-code development and configuration approach that enables anyone to build powerful apps fast. It removes the complexity with proven out-of-the-box capabilities.

• Deploy a scalable, reliable, and secure platform on which every business line can easily build its own apps.
• Creates a consumer-easy experience that turbocharges productivity and user satisfaction.
• Connect data, processes, and experiences to share and create value across your entire business.

6. Automation Engine

ServiceNow Automation Engine empowers businesses to accelerate workflows by integrating AI, RPA (Robotic Process Automation), and low-code development to automate repetitive tasks and complex processes. Automation Engine helps in:

• Streamlining workflows across enterprise systems.
• Reducing manual efforts with AI-powered automation.
• Enhancing scalability and agility to adapt to changing business needs.

7. Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM)

ServiceNow SPM enables organizations to align investments with business priorities by providing a centralized platform for managing portfolios, projects, and resources. SPM helps in:

• Driving better business outcomes by aligning goals with investments.
• Enhancing resource allocation and project visibility.
• Delivering faster time-to-value with actionable insights and automation.

8. ServiceNow HR Service Delivery (HRSD)

ServiceNow HRSD redefines employee experiences by automating HR processes and delivering seamless, personalized services. HRSD helps in:

• Enhancing employee satisfaction with a unified service experience.
• Automating HR workflows for faster issue resolution.
• Empowering employees with self-service tools and AI-driven recommendations.

9. Security Operations (SecOps)

ServiceNow SecOps strengthens an organization’s security posture by integrating security tools and processes to detect, respond to, and remediate threats faster. SecOps helps in:

• Reducing response time with automated threat prioritization and resolution.
• Enhancing collaboration between IT and security teams.
• Providing real-time visibility into vulnerabilities and risks.

10. Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)

ServiceNow GRC streamlines risk and compliance management by centralizing policies, controls, and audits on a single platform. GRC helps in:

• Simplifying compliance management across global standards.
• Identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks proactively.
• Enhancing decision-making with continuous monitoring and real-time reporting.

11. Workspace Service Delivery (WSD)

ServiceNow WSD enables organizations to manage physical and digital workspaces effectively, providing a seamless experience for employees. WSD helps in:

• Optimizing workspace utilization with intelligent tools.
• Automating service requests for better employee productivity.
• Ensuring a safe and efficient work environment for hybrid models.

12. Field Service Management (FSM)

ServiceNow FSM improves field service efficiency by connecting teams, workflows, and tools in real-time to deliver superior customer experiences. FSM helps in:

• Automating scheduling and dispatching for faster resolution.
• Empowering field agents with mobile-first tools and data.
• Enhancing service delivery with predictive insights and AI-driven recommendations.

13. Finance and Supply Chain

ServiceNow Finance and Supply Chain capabilities streamline operations by integrating workflows, automating tasks, and providing real-time insights for better decision-making. These solutions help in:

• Enhancing financial operations with end-to-end visibility.
• Automating supply chain processes for greater efficiency.
• Reducing costs and risks by improving compliance and collaboration.

By Solution

• Cloud Transformation and Enablement
• Employee Experience
• Finance and Supply Chain
• Low-code and intelligent automation
• Customer Service
• Enterprise-wide risk and resilience
• Global Business Services
• Cyber Security and Resilience
• Facilities Management
• IT and Digital Operations

By Industry

1. Education

ServiceNow empowers educational institutions by streamlining administrative processes, automating workflows, and enhancing the student and faculty experience. From simplifying enrollment systems to improving IT and facilities management, ServiceNow enables institutions to focus on delivering quality education.

2. Government

ServiceNow supports government agencies by modernizing legacy systems, enhancing citizen services, and ensuring operational efficiency. With secure and scalable workflows, it helps governments improve transparency, meet regulatory requirements, and respond swiftly to public needs.

3. Non-Profit

ServiceNow enables non-profits to optimize their operations, manage donor relationships, and streamline volunteer coordination. Organizations can focus more resources on achieving their missions by automating workflows and centralizing data.

4. Telecommunications, Media, and Technology

ServiceNow helps telecom and tech companies accelerate service delivery, improve customer support, and manage complex networks. Its solutions enhance operational visibility, reduce downtime, and drive innovation in a competitive market.

5. Energy and Utilities

ServiceNow aids energy and utility companies in modernizing operations, maintaining infrastructure, and meeting sustainability goals. Automating asset management and improving service delivery ensures efficiency and reliability in critical industries.

6. Healthcare and Life Sciences

ServiceNow enhances patient care and operational efficiency for healthcare providers by streamlining clinical workflows, managing compliance, and improving IT services. It also supports life sciences companies in accelerating research and ensuring regulatory compliance.

7. Retail

ServiceNow helps retailers deliver exceptional customer experiences by optimizing supply chain operations, managing in-store and online services, and improving employee productivity. It ensures seamless operations across all retail channels.

8. Financial Services

ServiceNow empowers financial institutions by improving customer onboarding, managing compliance, and enhancing risk management. Its workflow automation ensures efficiency and innovation in banking, insurance, and investment operations.

9. Manufacturing

ServiceNow supports manufacturers in improving production efficiency, managing supply chains, and ensuring equipment uptime. By integrating IT and OT systems, it drives smarter decision-making and operational resilience.

10. Service Providers

ServiceNow helps service providers deliver consistent and high-quality experiences by automating service delivery, enhancing customer support, and optimizing workforce management. Its solutions enable scalability and adaptability in a rapidly changing landscape.

AI at ServiceNow  

ServiceNow, a leading provider of digital workflow solutions, is leveraging the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative AI to revolutionize business operations.

AI agents

Embedded in the Now Platform ServiceNow AI Agents are designed to automate repetitive tasks done by human. It engages with data to make decisions and perform tasks, improving effectiveness.

Now Assist

ServiceNow Now Assist is built with generative AI capabilities on the Now Platform to improve productivity and efficiency, deliver better self-service, recommend actions, and provide answers. It helps in chat summarization, conversational exchanges, content creation, code and flow generation, custom skills development, and AI search. Although Now Assist puts across every department of IT, HR, and customer service with ServiceNow’s latest release, Xanadu, Now Assist is more powerful and unique.

Virtual Agent

ServiceNow Virtual Agent is an end-to-end, intelligent conversational experience that enables instant resolution to common requests, keep agents focused on more pressing issues, and increases employee and customer satisfaction.

Leading Brands Using ServiceNow

With over 8,100+ customers, including 85% of Fortune 500 companies, ServiceNow has worked for some of the most highly regarded brands, including Coca-Cola, Dropbox, British Telecom, NatWest Group, Vodafone, NHS, ISG, Khan Bank, Lenovo, and many more.

What is Now Platform?

ServiceNow is built on Now Platform to provide a complete visibility for cross-enterprise workflows. Now Platform is a cloud built with a single code base, one data model, and one architecture keeping the workflows seamless reducing complexity for end-users. It provides you with pre-built out-of-the-box applications and ServiceNow store apps to make critical business processes easier.

ServiceNow Pricing

There is no fixed price for ServiceNow. ServiceNow pricing depends on specific needs and have to ask for a customized quote. When quoting for a ServiceNow solution several factors play a part like size of the organization, number of users, modules required, if it’s a greenfield project or existing ServiceNow platform. A renowned ServiceNow Partner can help you identify your requirements and handle the entire process from consulting to implementation.

Case Study

A leading telecommunications company implemented a CSM application to automate case management and streamline contract handling to reduce manual intervention. But they faced several challenges like unintentionally raised queries, lack of visibility into cases, and communication gaps.

They needed a solution to manage end-user queries while ensuring privacy, integrate a knowledge base for self-service, enable real-time notifications for improved visibility and better-decision making.

Read the full case study

Future Forward Your Digital Workflows with a Trusted ServiceNow Premier Partner

That said, ServiceNow offers myriads of benefits to drive digital-first innovation with its modern approach. If your operations and services are bogged by unstructured and manual processes, poor visibility, multiple siloed data and systems, ServiceNow is indeed a powerful tool to help you with. And, if you are looking to achieve streamlined operations for your enterprise, we have got you covered. As a leading ServiceNow Premier Partner we have a team of over 180+ ServiceNow technical architects, consultants, designers, business analysts, and project managers to ensure a successful implementation and consultation specific to your needs. With our global presence as a ServiceNow partner in the US, UK, and India, we are well-versed in market challenges and have helped several enterprises utilizing ServiceNow capabilities. We have worked with multiple brands across industries such as telecom, manufacturing, BFSI, retail, and healthcare. Ready to take your enterprise workflows to next-level talk to our experts today.

FAQs

1. What is ServiceNow Architecture?

ServiceNow follows a multi-tenant architecture framework that provides a single instance of applications, functionalities, and components, which aligns business processes, information systems, and technology infrastructures with business strategy.   

2. Which is better, Salesforce or ServiceNow?

Based on specific business goals, both cloud-based platforms have their own capabilities for refining business processes. Salesforce majorly focuses on CRM, sales, and marketing cloud, whereas ServiceNow provides comprehensive IT services, operations, HR, and other solutions that enhance customer and employee experiences.

3. Does ServiceNow use AI?

Yes, ServiceNow uses AI and Generative AI capabilities to all enterprise workflows improving operational efficiency, improving decision-making, and drive business transformation.

On which Platform ServiceNow is built?

ServiceNow is built on the Now Platform, which involves CMDB and Studio IDE. Now Platform provides unified visibility across business processes.