Rethinking Transformation with ServiceNow: Innovation: When Doing It Better Isn’t Enough
Apr 15
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This post is part of a 4-part blog series: Rethinking Transformation with ServiceNow
Innovation: When Doing It Better Isn’t Enough - ← you are here
Transformation: Rethinking How the Business Actually Works - coming soon!
You’ve done the hard work of iteration—cleaning up the noise, streamlining the basics, stabilising the platform.
Now what?
Now you get to reimagine.
Iteration Was Maintenance. Innovation Is Momentum.
If iteration is where you stop the bleeding, innovation is where you start building muscle.
Innovation isn’t about adding features. It’s about creating value—value that didn’t exist before.
It’s not just solving old problems faster—it’s solving different problems entirely. Problems that were previously invisible because the noise was too loud.
That’s the difference.
What Innovation Really Means in ServiceNow
Innovation with the ServiceNow platform means stepping back from “how we’ve always done it” and asking:
“What should this experience actually look like?”
Here’s how it plays out:
From process to experience – Not just moving tasks around, but improving how they’re felt
From modules to outcomes – Stop starting with Incident. Start with “How should people get help?”
From manual control to intelligent support – Use AI to augment decisions, not replace them
This is where platform maturity becomes creative power.
Innovation in Practice: Hypothetical Scenarios
Let’s walk through a few fictional but realistic examples that show what innovation might look like in the wild:
Scenario 1: Breaking Out of Silos
Imagine a People & Culture team using a scoped task app. A new HR system goes live, and suddenly they're swamped with repetitive issues.
The kicker?
They can't view or raise incidents because they don’t have ITIL licenses. No visibility. No escalation path. Just a wall.
The iterative fix?
Give them a form to escalate an incident manually.
The innovative solution?
Introduce an AI agent that monitors related cases across apps, detects patterns, and automatically flags when a broader issue (like a bug) might require escalation. Link related tasks without relying on human memory.
This isn’t automation. It’s insight. And it changes the game.
Scenario 2: Fixing Fulfilment by Understanding Context
A fulfilment team is overloaded with vague requests like “I need access” or “Something’s broken.” Half their time is spent clarifying before they can start working.
Iterative fix?
Add mandatory fields to the form.
Innovative fix?
Use GenAI to rewrite and summarise unclear requests, predict category, and suggest relevant knowledge—before the agent even opens the record.
You’re not just cleaning up—you’re improving the quality of work itself.
Scenario 3: ServiceNow Innovation. From Workflow to Orchestration
Your onboarding process has been digitised. Good. But it’s still linear, slow, and fragmented across departments.
Innovative step?
Use Flow Orchestration + AI to track dependencies, detect risks (e.g. missing hardware order), and proactively notify teams. Make onboarding adaptive—not just automated.
How to Spot Innovation Opportunities
You’re likely already sitting on them. Look for places where things "work"… but nobody’s happy.
Here are some signals:
“Every team solves this problem differently.”
“It works, but it still causes friction.”
“We’re constantly building custom logic for the same type of work.”
“This flow technically functions—but nobody likes using it.”
“There’s data we’re not using—but we know it could help.”
Innovation isn’t just about AI. It’s about rethinking how things should feel to the people involved.
What Innovation Requires
You don’t need a bold vision or a 12-month roadmap to innovate. But you do need a few things in place:
Stable foundation – If iteration hasn’t happened yet, innovation will just magnify the mess
Curiosity – A willingness to ask “Why do we do it this way?”
Safe spaces to experiment – Try things in pilot, in shadow mode, or on non-critical workflows
Business involvement – The best innovation happens when tech and ops design together
How to Test Innovation (Without Big Risk)
Prototype new flows using fake data or parallel processes
Run workshops with users and ask what they’d change
Use dashboards to surface invisible work or repetitive patterns
Apply AI or automation to augment—not replace—human judgement
Small experiments lead to big wins. Especially if they reveal problems people stopped trying to solve years ago.
How to Measure Innovation
Don’t just measure throughput or volume. Look at how work quality and experience improve.
Try:
Reduction in rework
Agent satisfaction scores (yes, measure your team’s experience too)
Time from request to resolution, not just assignment
Improved self-service resolution rates
User sentiment captured via feedback or AI analysis
Remember: Innovation is valuable when it changes how people feel about using the platform—not just how fast it runs.
Voice of Experience
Some of the most transformative ideas I’ve seen didn’t come from execs or architects.
They came from someone on the ground who said:
“I know this technically works, but it’s still a nightmare.”
Innovation doesn’t mean creating something brand new.
Sometimes it means asking better questions—and having the space to try new answers.
And when it lands? You start solving problems people never thought you could.
The Catch with Innovation
Innovation built on chaos just creates cleverer chaos.
You need iteration first. You need clarity, consistency, and control.
Once that’s in place, innovation becomes exciting—because you’re building on solid ground. You’re solving the right problems, for the right people, in ways they didn’t expect.
Next: Transformation
Innovation helps you rethink the experience.
Transformation helps you rethink the business.
In the final blog in this series, we’ll explore what it means to move from projects to platforms, from delivery to enablement, and from features to capability.
Part 4 coming soon!
Need clarity on where you are—and where to go next?
The 3-layer framework I introduced in this blog is part of the roadmap process we run with customers. It’s designed to meet you where you are—whether you’re cleaning up, scaling up, or just trying to get unstuck.
If you want to explore what that looks like in your environment, let’s have a conversation.
