servicenow governance framework … · • portfolio governance o establishes the processes and...

ServiceNow Governance Framework A Practical Approach

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Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 3 Holistic Framework ..................................................................................................................................... 3

Goals of a Holistic Framework ............................................................................................................... 3 Holistic Framework Overview ................................................................................................................ 4 Center of Excellence .............................................................................................................................. 4 Progression to an Enterprise Program ................................................................................................... 4

Governance Model ................................................................................................................................... 5 Aspirational Maturity Overview ............................................................................................................. 5 The Four Categories of Governance ................................................................................................... 6 Governance Attributes .......................................................................................................................... 7 Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support Service Awareness ............................................ 7 Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support Service Experience ............................................ 8 Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support a Service Economy ........................................... 8

Governance Activities ............................................................................................................................... 9 Technical ................................................................................................................................................. 9 Strategic ................................................................................................................................................. 10 Portfolio .................................................................................................................................................. 10 Convergence ........................................................................................................................................ 10

Governance Execution ........................................................................................................................... 11 Governance Roles ................................................................................................................................ 11 Governance Meetings ......................................................................................................................... 12 Program Alignment .............................................................................................................................. 12 Program Execution Teams ................................................................................................................... 12 Governance-Driven Demand Process ............................................................................................... 13 Development Team Models ................................................................................................................ 14 Centers of Excellence (COE) ............................................................................................................... 14 Platform Support Model ....................................................................................................................... 15


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Introduction To properly support current and future service offerings, transform and elevate the use of ServiceNow with strategy and management of the ServiceNow program rather than simply implementing yet another tool. This guide is intended to provide a holistic recommendation for proper governance, which will enable organizations to be strategic in the use of ServiceNow. Why should this be done?

• To enable alignment with organizational goals and vision • To create a standardized development structure • To provide a scalable framework that supports business growth • To hold platform owners accountable for meeting enterprise standards

Holistic Framework Goals of a Holistic Framework A holistic framework is designed to provide guidance and structure which enables the program to move quickly while maintaining focus on long-term goals and value realization. This framework is designed to:

• Align stakeholders on strategy, goals, and execution • Drive and shape demand for ServiceNow platform consumption • Measure and assess value realization • Understand ServiceNow’s place in the larger business technology landscape • Support enterprise adoption

Alignment• Project Selection• Demand Management

Architecture• Process Adherence• Best Practices

Delivery• Quality Assurance• User Experience

Value• Value Realization• Business Alignment


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Holistic Framework Overview Regardless of an organization’s size, the ServiceNow program framework must include strategic planning and tactical execution. Both are important to informing decisions and enabling value realization through superior execution. A central, holistic framework that allows for good management and governance of the ServiceNow program will empower decision-making based on:

• Issues aligned to the business • A common roadmap • Established standards

The purpose of a governance framework is to support activities ranging from the most strategic, such as roadmap development and vision setting, to the most tactical, such as development and delivery standards. It is through these distinct levels of governance that organizations move from strategy to demand shaping, allowing them to proactively control demands for services, seamlessly transitioning into delivery and ultimately driving continuous service improvement.

Center of Excellence Centers of Excellence (COE) support outcomes and continuous improvements for areas of focus. The COE is designed to provide the following:

• Communication and Organizational Change Management (OCM) strategy • Ability to drive and shape demand • Promotion of service management best practices • Alignment between business needs and ServiceNow technologies • Detailed investigations related to value realization • Management of design, build, and release capabilities • Proactive issue resolution due to the inclusion of key personnel Progression to an Enterprise Program


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With proper governance execution, an organization can progress from managing ServiceNow like any other tool, to managing it as a holistic program, offering transformational services across the enterprise. The execution of technical governance, alongside the platform support team, is required from the beginning. As usage increases, the need for governance maturation to include ideation, demand, portfolio management, and alignment to business technology strategy is of paramount importance.

The incorporation of COEs becomes relevant as additional services are introduced and the need for specialized teams to focus on continuous improvement for services develops.

Governance Model Aspirational Maturity Overview 1. ServiceNow is a tool: “Why use ServiceNow outside of the current implementation?”

a. When this question is asked, it is clear that ServiceNow is considered a point-solution tool rather than a holistic, organization-wide platform or enterprise application that can be used by all.

b. A service tool can only ever deliver value to one area of the organization and does not allow for strategic development.

c. In this phase, the focus is simply on the next release and technical governance. 2. ServiceNow is a platform: “Can ServiceNow do that?”


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a. When this question is asked, the organization has realized value from ServiceNow and would like to repeat that success in other areas but may not know how. At this point, demand management is critical to ensure high-value projects are taking priority.

b. A service platform delivers diverse ownership and a proactive configuration and data management strategy.

c. In this phase, organizations can introduce enterprise architecture, best-fit usage, and focus on the development and delivery of a strategic roadmap.

3. ServiceNow is an enterprise program: “Why not use ServiceNow to fill that need?” a. When this question is asked, more complex topics are introduced as part of the

ServiceNow landscape, and organizations then realize organization-wide value as opposed to service or business unit-specific value.

b. An enterprise program maximizes interconnectivity of data and extends value realization to the entire organization.

c. In this phase, to be successful, organizations must become more strategic in their decision-making processes. COEs may require an introduction to drive continuous improvement on a micro-level and feed the high-level roadmap with requirements for enhancements and potential service offerings.

As organizations mature, the focus shifts from strictly tactical to strategic thoughts on how to achieve even more value with the enterprise program. The below maturity model allows organizations to reflect on where they currently are and would like to be, as well as how ServiceNow can align with organizational maturation goals.

The Four Categories of Governance


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There are four key categories of governance that should be applied at varying levels depending on whether the goal is to become Service Aware, to improve Service Experience, or to engage in the Service Economy:

• Technical Governance o Establishes standards to ensure the platform is technically sound and following good

practices to ensure upgradability, usability, manageability, performance, and scalability

• Strategic Governance o Establishes governing bodies and activities that align the platform with overall

organizational strategies • Portfolio Governance

o Establishes the processes and documentation related to the management of services provided on the platform and multiple workstreams

• Convergence Governance o Integrates the ServiceNow platform with the enterprise standards and data

management between other systems o Positions the ServiceNow team as a strategic business partner of other teams

throughout the company Governance Attributes

Tech Governance Strategic Governance Portfolio Governance Convergence

Governance

Emphasis on basic platform management, stability, and supportability as a foundation upon which to build

Articulates the roadmap for ServiceNow utilization, features, and functionality to maximize value and ROI

Defines business services within service portfolios that are focused on markets, customer needs, deliverables, and vendors

Builds an integrated portfolio and identifies key performance indicators of success

Defines the platform support model with clear roles, responsibilities and executive sponsorship

Establishes strategies that align key stakeholders, account for resource and funding plans, and forecasted budgets

Align platforms and applications into an application portfolio that takes costs, capabilities, products, and suppliers into consideration

Governs platform data to manage and mature the enterprise-wide strategy, model, and quality standards

Introduces instance strategy, data quality, platform policies and standards, and development best practices

Creates an organizational change management plan with supporting activities to drive successful transition and adoption

Formalizes the ideation and demand processes that empower decision-makers

Executes and audits platform compliance, control and test plans, processes, and stakeholder requirements

Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support Service Awareness


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Becoming Service Aware requires certain governance practices to be in place to ensure the technical base is sound, the strategy is understood, and a process exists to manage platform services, including enhancement requests and documentation delivery.

Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support Service Experience As an organization develops ServiceNow offerings, and matures its purpose to include improving Service Experience, governance practices must be added as shown below. An organization will continue to apply the product-level governance, but expansion is necessary as additional services are offered. This includes increased strategic focus and portfolio management along with the introduction of convergence, as integration with other business systems may be more complex. (Added practices bolded below.)

Applying Governance to ServiceNow to Support a Service Economy


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The final maturity level requires understanding and measurement of the economy of a service with other business systems. To achieve this, ServiceNow must become a strategic solution in the business technology landscape. At this stage, becoming part of an integrated, enterprise portfolio and enterprise service bus requires representation on governance boards that include other business technology solutions to ensure architectural and best-fit usage between systems, ensuring business strategies are implemented most effectively. (Added practices bolded below.)

Governance Activities Technical Below are the activities and tasks associated with the application of Technical Governance

Basic Platform Management•Make platform decisions•Define support processes and

metrics•Evaluate needs and change impacts•Manage incoming requests

Policies and standards•Ensure configurations are fit for

scale, performance, and upgradeability

•Maintain integrity of ServiceNow platform

Platform Data Governance•Define data ownership and

stewardship roles•Set up data standards•Create data dictionary with field

descriptions

Instance Best Practices•Right size environment•Replicate instances correctly•Develop security access control

model•Ensure proper maintenance

Development Best Practices

•Oversee code and update sets•Ensure proper migration of system

changes between environments

App Creation•Identify best method for app

creation based on requirements•Follow consistent UI design

specifications


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Strategic Below are the activities and tasks associated with the application of Strategic Governance

Portfolio Below are the activities and tasks associated with the application of Portfolio Governance

Convergence Below are the activities and tasks associated with the application of Convergence Governance

Vision & Roadmap•Prepare SWOT analysis•Review portfolio and supplier

ecosystem•Define technology needs•Document clear roadmap and

activity sequencing

Decision Body•Determine governing boards/

bodies•Define and clarify roles of groups

and potential implications•Make informed decisions

Platform & Capabilities•Create strategy plans•Develop funding, resource, and

budget plans•Prepare technology plan•Align stakeholders

Execution strategy•Align plans and strategy•Integrate OCM and Program plans•Leverage governing boards/ bodies

to execute

OCM Plan•Detail the planned change(s)•Determine organizational readiness

for change(s)•Build the communication and

engagement plans

Program Plan•Assess current state and adjust as

necessary•Align projects with vision and goals•Oversee and control during

program execution

Ideation•Manage ideas and assess them before promotion

•Track progress of an idea as it moves through the lifecycle

Demand•View and analyze business

demands•Collaborate on demand assessment•Approve demands•Promote demands

Services Taxonomy & Portfolio•Determine taxonomy and business

services•Create service definitions and

alignment•Analyze markets and customer

needs

Project Management•Create project tasks•Manage stories in a project•Visualize large projects with

complex relationships and dependencies

Software Dev Lifecycle•Define tasks required for

developing and maintaining software throughout the lifecycle

•Track software development and projects across the business

Best-Fit Usage•Analyze solutions to determine the

bestfit•Technology consolidation and

migration to ServiceNow•Ensure fit-for-purpose and fit-for-

use


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Governance Execution Proper execution of governance requires active participation and contribution to the areas with which the correct participants are best aligned. Below is an outline of those roles aligned to the governance categories.

Governance Roles

Tech Governance Strategic Governance Portfolio Governance Convergence

Governance

Support Committee Executive Steering Demand Board Business Tech Board

• Platform Architect

• Platform Owner

• IT Process/ Domain Owners

• Program Manager

• Project Manager(s)

• Business Analyst(s)

• Quality Assurance Lead

• Security/ Compliance Lead

• Development Lead

• User Experience Lead

• Chief Information Officer (CIO)

• Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

• Executive Sponsor

• Business Unit/ Department Representative(s)

• Vendor Manager(s)

• Key Supplier(s)


• Platform Owner

• IT Process/ Domain Owner(s)

• Portfolio/ Service Owner(s)

• Demand Manager(s)

• Program Manager

• Business Analyst(s)

• Vendor Manager(s)

• Key Supplier(s)

• CIO

• CTO

• Platform Owner


• Enterprise Architect

• Enterprise Technology Owner(s)

• Portfolio/ Service Owner(s)

• Business Relationship Manager(s)

• PMO Leader

• Demand Manager(s)

Enterprise Compliance•Create control and test plans•Engage stakeholders on an ongoing

basis•Adhere to policies and standards

Enterprise Data Governance

•Set up clear stewardship and data auditing capability

•Manage availability, usability, integrity, and security of data

Business Intelligence•Support CSI•Alignment of business value to

strategic objectives•Analysis of business value and

visibility to outcomes

Enterprise Service Bus•Promote agility and flexibility

between applications both in and out of ServiceNow

•Control deployment and versioning of services

Integrated Enterprise Portfolio

•Provide data governance•Manage and interface internal and

external portfolios

Strategic Business Alignment

•Become a strategic business partner of stakeholder groups

•Advise on best ways to achieve value


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Governance Meetings To appropriately execute, it’s important to have established meeting cadences to address the focus of each group and ensure continued alignment.

• Support Committee – Should meet quarterly at a minimum, for upgrade planning, to determine which features and functionality should be considered for adoption

• Executive Steering – Should meet semi-annually to refine roadmap and strategy, evaluate benefits

• Demand Board and Business Technology Board – Should meet monthly to create and build roadmap, manage and shape demand, and measure success

Program Alignment Execution of continuous Project/ Program oversight, organizational change activities, and operational governance will drive the execution and adoption of strategic decisions and the roadmap established. Below is a diagram that lists the actions and activities associated with each program workstream

Program Execution Teams The execution teams drive activities associated with the decisions made through the governing board. They are responsible for execution of the strategy and adherence to the standards set forth. These team members may also be participants in the holistic program strategy and governance.


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Demand Shaping Solution Design Solution Delivery

Demand Board • Platform Owner

• Process/ domain Owners

• Application Architect

• Program Manager

• Key Supplier(s)

• Focus Group Lead

• Demand Manager

• Business Analysts

• Business Relationship Managers

Design Team • Application Architect

• Development Lead

• User Interface & Experience

• Quality

Program Management Office (PMO) • Program/ Project/ Scrum

Managers

• Release Management

• Business Analysts

• Quality

• Training

Platform Support • Development Lead

• Administrator(s)

• Developer(s)

• Release Support

Meets at least monthly to create/ build roadmap, manage/ shape demand, and measure success.

Meets as needed to review and drive decisions around approved demand.

These groups operate to fulfill demand (the PMO is engaged in project-related activities and may not engage for minor enhancements). The Platform Support Teams execute the work defined and designed to drive development efforts to quality expectations and release compliance.

Governance-Driven Demand Process This simple diagram below displays a good practice for shaping the demand, associated roles, and activities.


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Development Team Models Below are three common development team models. The chart includes pros and cons of aligning with each option. ServiceNow recommends the ‘Centralized with Distribution’ model, which allows teams to effectively govern the program while being able to work in an agile environment.

Distributed Centralized Centralized with Distribution

Difficult to govern due to lack of governance

Governance is easy, but will limit the use of the platform due to limited resources

Governance is achievable, but allows for broad use of the platform

Each team manages their own demand

One team manages demand and accepts changes into the environment

Each team manages their own demand, but global/ shared objects are reviewed/ approved by a central, governing body

Living on a single instance can become challenging unless everyone agrees and follows the same processes

Limits the adoption of ServiceNow, as typical, centralized teams cannot move fast enough to handle demand

Allows for independent development, as appropriate, but still allows for governance and acceptance from the centralized team

Centers of Excellence (COE) COEs are teams, shared facilities, or entities that provide consultative leadership, evangelism, best practices, research and innovation, and organizational change strategy for focus areas. Introduce COEs to increase focus on specific services or process areas. For example, the ServiceNow platform team may establish a COE for the management of the platform itself to drive adherence to standards and represent the continuous improvement of ServiceNow as a service. Typically, COEs are an outcome of governance. Recommendations from these groups to improve processes and services should be delivered to the appropriate governing body to be considered for roadmap and overall program strategy.

Result Activity

Consultative Leadership and Evangelism

• Provide Service Management expertise to specific initiatives

• Help establish a vision

• Align capabilities to business needs and provide solution options

• Help shape demand for product and services

Research and Innovation

• Define best practices by documenting outcome of research and communication activities

• Participate in ServiceNow communities, live and virtual, to discover platform capabilities that can be used or maximized to drive solutions

• Organize proof of value activities by working with process owners to determine value realization and ROI


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Organizational Change Management

• Orchestrate communication and training strategy and contribute to communications

• Support stakeholder and impact analysis

• Drive adoption and value realization activities

• Create and support user/ focus groups to understand usability and other needs to create greater adoption and demand

Vendor Interaction

• Participate in vendor-supplied events and learning/ innovation opportunities

• Orchestrate vendor presentations, including opportunities for enhanced capabilities via vendor interaction/ integration

Platform Support Model This diagram provides an overview of the roles that should be included in your ServiceNow support team. Not every role requires a full-time equivalent (FTE), and one person may be able to fill multiple roles. The number of employees required to support the platform depends on the development team model and the number of services being supported.

Executive Sponsor

Platform Owner

ServiceNow Platform Architect

ServiceNow System

Administrator

ServiceNow Developer

ServiceNow Quality

Assurance

ServiceNow Business Analyst

ServiceNow Trainer

ServiceNow Project

Manager

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