Automate IT Ticketing with ServiceNow Workflows

Your IT support team is drowning in tickets. Password resets. Software requests. Hardware issues. Everything hits the same queue, gets manually categorized, manually routed, and manually escalated.

Meanwhile, users wait hours for responses that should take minutes—and your team wastes time on repetitive tasks instead of solving real problems.

ServiceNow workflows can automate 60-70% of this manual work. Today we're building automation that routes tickets instantly, resolves common issues automatically, and escalates problems before they become critical.

What You'll Learn

Auto-categorizing tickets using business rules
Building approval workflows for common requests
Automatic assignment based on skills and workload
Self-service automation with catalog items
Escalation workflows for SLA compliance
Integration with Slack and email for notifications

The Manual Ticketing Problem

Without automation, every ticket requires manual intervention:

User submits ticket → Sits in general queue
Agent reads ticket → Determines category
Agent reassigns → Sends to appropriate team
Specialist reads ticket → Starts working on it
Resolution → Closes ticket

Time wasted: 10-15 minutes per ticket on routing alone Result: Slow response times, overwhelmed staff, poor user experience

ServiceNow Workflow Automation

ServiceNow workflows automate the entire process:

Prompt

Ticket submitted
    ↓
Auto-categorize (Business Rules)
    ↓
Auto-assign to team (Assignment Rules)
    ↓
Check for auto-resolution (Knowledge Base)
    ↓
If not resolved → Route to specialist
    ↓
If no response in 2 hours → Escalate
    ↓
Monitor SLA → Alert if at risk
    ↓
Resolve and notify user

Workflow 1: Automatic Ticket Categorization

The Goal

Categorize tickets based on keywords, user department, and priority level.

Business Rule Configuration

Navigate to: System Definition → Business Rules

Create New Rule: Auto-Categorize Incidents

javascript

1(function executeRule(current, previous /*null when async*/) {
2    
3    // Extract description and short description
4    var description = current.short_description + ' ' + current.description;
5    description = description.toLowerCase();
6    
7    // Password Reset Detection
8    if (description.indexOf('password') > -1 || 
9        description.indexOf('reset') > -1 ||
10        description.indexOf('login') > -1) {
11        
12        current.category = 'Password Reset';
13        current.subcategory = 'Account Access';
14        current.assignment_group = 'Identity Management';
15        current.priority = 3; // Low priority
16    }
17    
18    // Software Request Detection
19    else if (description.indexOf('software') > -1 || 
20             description.indexOf('install') > -1 ||
21             description.indexOf('license') > -1) {
22        
23        current.category = 'Software';
24        current.subcategory = 'Software Request';
25        current.assignment_group = 'Software Management';
26        current.priority = 4; // Medium priority
27    }
28    
29    // Hardware Issue Detection
30    else if (description.indexOf('laptop') > -1 || 
31             description.indexOf('monitor') > -1 ||
32             description.indexOf('keyboard') > -1 ||
33             description.indexOf('hardware') > -1) {
34        
35        current.category = 'Hardware';
36        current.subcategory = 'Equipment Issue';
37        current.assignment_group = 'Desktop Support';
38        current.priority = 3;
39    }
40    
41    // Network Issue Detection
42    else if (description.indexOf('network') > -1 || 
43             description.indexOf('wifi') > -1 ||
44             description.indexOf('internet') > -1 ||
45             description.indexOf('connection') > -1) {
46        
47        current.category = 'Network';
48        current.subcategory = 'Connectivity';
49        current.assignment_group = 'Network Operations';
50        current.priority = 2; // Higher priority
51    }
52    
53    // VPN Issue Detection
54    else if (description.indexOf('vpn') > -1) {
55        current.category = 'Network';
56        current.subcategory = 'VPN Access';
57        current.assignment_group = 'Network Security';
58        current.priority = 2;
59    }
60    
61    // Email Issue Detection
62    else if (description.indexOf('email') > -1 || 
63             description.indexOf('outlook') > -1) {
64        
65        current.category = 'Email';
66        current.subcategory = 'Email Access';
67        current.assignment_group = 'Messaging Team';
68        current.priority = 3;
69    }
70    
71    // Default - Unknown Category
72    else {
73        current.category = 'General IT';
74        current.subcategory = 'Needs Classification';
75        current.assignment_group = 'IT Help Desk';
76        current.priority = 4;
77    }
78    
79    // Log categorization
80    gs.log('Auto-categorized ticket ' + current.number + 
81           ' as: ' + current.category);
82
83})(current, previous);

Rule Configuration:

When: Before Insert
Condition: Category is empty
Active: True

Testing the Rule

Create test incident: "I forgot my password"
- Expected: Category = "Password Reset", Group = "Identity Management"
Create test incident: "Need Photoshop installed"
- Expected: Category = "Software", Group = "Software Management"

Workflow 2: Intelligent Assignment Based on Workload

The Goal

Assign tickets to agents with lowest workload and relevant skills.

Assignment Rule Script

Navigate to: System Policy → Assignment Rules

javascript

1// Get all active agents in the assignment group
2var agentGroup = current.assignment_group;
3var activeAgents = new GlideRecord('sys_user');
4activeAgents.addQuery('active', true);
5activeAgents.addQuery('u_assignment_group', agentGroup);
6activeAgents.query();
7
8var leastBusyAgent = null;
9var lowestWorkload = 9999;
10
11// Loop through agents to find least busy
12while (activeAgents.next()) {
13    
14    // Count active tickets assigned to this agent
15    var ticketCount = new GlideAggregate('incident');
16    ticketCount.addQuery('assigned_to', activeAgents.sys_id);
17    ticketCount.addQuery('active', true);
18    ticketCount.addAggregate('COUNT');
19    ticketCount.query();
20    
21    if (ticketCount.next()) {
22        var currentWorkload = parseInt(ticketCount.getAggregate('COUNT'));
23        
24        // Check if agent has required skills
25        var hasSkills = checkAgentSkills(activeAgents, current.category);
26        
27        if (hasSkills && currentWorkload < lowestWorkload) {
28            lowestWorkload = currentWorkload;
29            leastBusyAgent = activeAgents.sys_id;
30        }
31    }
32}
33
34// Assign to least busy agent with skills
35if (leastBusyAgent) {
36    current.assigned_to = leastBusyAgent;
37    
38    // Send notification to assigned agent
39    gs.eventQueue('incident.assigned', current, 
40                  current.assigned_to, current.assignment_group);
41}
42
43// Check if agent has required skills for category
44function checkAgentSkills(agent, category) {
45    var skills = new GlideRecord('user_skills');
46    skills.addQuery('user', agent.sys_id);
47    skills.addQuery('skill.name', category);
48    skills.query();
49    
50    return skills.hasNext();
51}

Workflow 3: Password Reset Self-Service

The Goal

Auto-resolve password reset requests with self-service link.

Workflow Builder Configuration

Navigate to: Workflow → Workflow Editor

Create Workflow: Auto-Resolve Password Resets

Steps:

If (Condition)
- Category = "Password Reset"
- State = "New"

Send Email (Core Activity)

Prompt

To: ${caller_id.email}
Subject: Password Reset Instructions - ${number}

Body:
Hello ${caller_id.first_name},

We received your password reset request.

Please use our self-service portal to reset your password:
https://yourcompany.service-now.com/selfservice/password_reset

If you continue to have issues, please reply to this email.

Ticket Number: ${number}
IT Support Team

Update Ticket (Set Field Values)
- State = "Resolved"
- Resolution Code = "Self-Service Provided"
- Resolution Notes = "User directed to self-service portal"
- Work Notes = "Auto-resolved - self-service link sent"
Wait (30 minutes)
If (Condition Check)
- Still Resolved (user didn't reopen)
Close Ticket
- State = "Closed"
- Close Code = "Solved"
- Close Notes = "Resolved via self-service"

Result: Password reset tickets resolved in under 2 minutes with zero manual work.

Workflow 4: Software Approval Automation

The Goal

Route software requests through approval chain automatically.

Approval Workflow

Create Workflow: Software Request Approval

Steps:

Set Variables
- Software Cost = ${requested_item.cost}
- Requester Manager = ${caller_id.manager}
- Department Budget = ${caller_id.department.budget}

Approval - Manager (if cost > $100)

Prompt

Approver: ${caller_id.manager}
Conditions: Cost > 100

Message:
${caller_id.name} has requested ${requested_item.name}
Cost: $${requested_item.cost}
Business Justification: ${justification}

Please approve or reject.

Approval - Finance (if cost > $1000)

Prompt

Approver: Finance Team
Conditions: Cost > 1000 AND Manager Approved

Message:
Software purchase approval needed.
Item: ${requested_item.name}
Cost: $${requested_item.cost}
Department: ${caller_id.department}
Budget remaining: ${department_budget_remaining}

If Approved → Proceed
- Assign to Software Management team
- Create procurement task
- Notify requester: "Request approved"
If Rejected → End
- Close request
- Notify requester with rejection reason
- Log to metrics

Result: Automatic routing through approval chain based on cost thresholds.

Workflow 5: SLA-Based Escalation

The Goal

Automatically escalate tickets approaching SLA breach.

Escalation Workflow

SLA Definition:

P1 (Critical): 1 hour response, 4 hours resolution
P2 (High): 4 hours response, 24 hours resolution
P3 (Medium): 8 hours response, 48 hours resolution
P4 (Low): 24 hours response, 5 days resolution

Escalation Workflow:

javascript

1// Scheduled Job - Runs every 15 minutes
2var incidents = new GlideRecord('incident');
3incidents.addQuery('active', true);
4incidents.addQuery('state', '!=', 6); // Not resolved
5incidents.query();
6
7while (incidents.next()) {
8    
9    // Calculate time remaining on SLA
10    var slaRemaining = calculateSLARemaining(incidents);
11    
12    // 80% of SLA time elapsed - First escalation
13    if (slaRemaining < 0.2 && incidents.escalation_level == 0) {
14        
15        // Escalate to team lead
16        incidents.assigned_to = getTeamLead(incidents.assignment_group);
17        incidents.escalation_level = 1;
18        incidents.urgency = increaseUrgency(incidents.urgency);
19        
20        // Notify team lead
21        sendEscalationEmail(incidents, 'team_lead', 'First Escalation');
22        
23        // Add work note
24        incidents.work_notes = 'Auto-escalated: 80% of SLA time elapsed';
25        incidents.update();
26    }
27    
28    // 95% of SLA time elapsed - Critical escalation
29    else if (slaRemaining < 0.05 && incidents.escalation_level == 1) {
30        
31        // Escalate to manager
32        incidents.assigned_to = getITManager();
33        incidents.escalation_level = 2;
34        incidents.urgency = 1; // Critical
35        
36        // Notify management
37        sendEscalationEmail(incidents, 'management', 'CRITICAL Escalation');
38        
39        // Trigger Slack notification
40        sendSlackAlert(incidents);
41        
42        // Add work note
43        incidents.work_notes = 'CRITICAL: Auto-escalated to management - SLA breach imminent';
44        incidents.update();
45    }
46}
47
48// Helper functions
49function calculateSLARemaining(incident) {
50    // Calculate percentage of SLA time remaining
51    var sla = new GlideRecord('task_sla');
52    sla.addQuery('task', incident.sys_id);
53    sla.addQuery('active', true);
54    sla.query();
55    
56    if (sla.next()) {
57        var totalTime = sla.duration.getValue();
58        var elapsedTime = sla.business_time_left.getValue();
59        return elapsedTime / totalTime;
60    }
61    return 1; // No SLA found, return 100%
62}
63
64function sendSlackAlert(incident) {
65    // Integration with Slack
66    var slackMsg = {
67        'text': '🚨 SLA BREACH ALERT',
68        'attachments': [{
69            'color': 'danger',
70            'fields': [
71                { 'title': 'Ticket', 'value': incident.number, 'short': true },
72                { 'title': 'Priority', 'value': incident.priority, 'short': true },
73                { 'title': 'Assigned To', 'value': incident.assigned_to.name },
74                { 'title': 'Description', 'value': incident.short_description }
75            ]
76        }]
77    };
78    
79    // Send to Slack webhook
80    var r = new sn_ws.RESTMessageV2();
81    r.setEndpoint('https://hooks.slack.com/services/YOUR/WEBHOOK/URL');
82    r.setHttpMethod('POST');
83    r.setRequestBody(JSON.stringify(slackMsg));
84    r.execute();
85}

Workflow 6: Knowledge Base Auto-Suggestion

The Goal

Automatically suggest KB articles to users and agents.

Configuration

Navigate to: Knowledge → Knowledge Base

Create Business Rule: Suggest KB Articles

javascript

1(function executeRule(current, previous /*null when async*/) {
2    
3    // Search knowledge base for relevant articles
4    var searchTerms = current.short_description + ' ' + current.description;
5    
6    var kb = new GlideRecord('kb_knowledge');
7    kb.addQuery('workflow_state', 'published');
8    kb.addQuery('text', 'CONTAINS', searchTerms);
9    kb.orderByDesc('sys_view_count'); // Most viewed articles first
10    kb.setLimit(5);
11    kb.query();
12    
13    var suggestions = [];
14    
15    while (kb.next()) {
16        suggestions.push({
17            'title': kb.short_description.toString(),
18            'number': kb.number.toString(),
19            'link': kb.getLink()
20        });
21    }
22    
23    if (suggestions.length > 0) {
24        // Add work notes with suggestions
25        var notes = 'Suggested Knowledge Articles:\n\n';
26        
27        for (var i = 0; i < suggestions.length; i++) {
28            notes += (i+1) + '. ' + suggestions[i].title + 
29                     ' (' + suggestions[i].number + ')\n';
30            notes += '   ' + suggestions[i].link + '\n\n';
31        }
32        
33        current.work_notes = notes;
34        
35        // Email suggestions to user
36        var email = new GlideEmailOutbound();
37        email.setSubject('Possible solutions for your ticket ' + current.number);
38        email.setFrom('noreply@yourcompany.com');
39        email.setRecipients(current.caller_id.email);
40        
41        var body = 'Hello ' + current.caller_id.first_name + ',\n\n';
42        body += 'We found these articles that might help resolve your issue:\n\n';
43        body += notes;
44        body += '\nIf these don\'t solve your problem, our team will respond shortly.\n\n';
45        body += 'Ticket: ' + current.number;
46        
47        email.setBody(body);
48        email.send();
49    }
50
51})(current, previous);

Result: Users get instant KB article suggestions, often resolving issues without agent intervention.

Monitoring and Reporting

Key Metrics to Track

Create ServiceNow Dashboard: IT Automation Metrics

Widgets:

Auto-Resolution Rate

sql

1SELECT 
2    COUNT(*) as total,
3    SUM(CASE WHEN resolved_by = 'system' THEN 1 ELSE 0 END) as auto_resolved,
4    (SUM(CASE WHEN resolved_by = 'system' THEN 1 ELSE 0 END) * 100.0 / COUNT(*)) as percentage
5FROM incident
6WHERE sys_created_on >= DATE_SUB(NOW(), INTERVAL 30 DAY)

Average Time to Assignment
- Track time from creation to first assignment
- Goal: Under 5 minutes
SLA Compliance Rate
- Percentage of tickets meeting SLA
- Goal: Above 95%
Escalation Frequency
- How often tickets escalate
- Goal: Under 10%
Category Accuracy
- Manual re-categorization rate
- Goal: Under 5%

Best Practices

1. Start Simple

Begin with one workflow:

Password reset automation
Measure results
Refine
Add next workflow

2. Monitor and Tune

Review weekly:

Incorrect auto-categorizations
False escalations
Auto-resolution failures

Adjust rules based on data.

3. Keep Humans in Loop

Don't automate everything:

Complex issues need human judgment
Upset customers need empathy
Political situations need discretion

4. Document Everything

Workflow diagrams
Business rule logic
Approval chains
Integration points

5. Test Thoroughly

Before production:

Test each workflow separately
Test edge cases
Test with real data
Get team feedback

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
Tickets not auto-categorizing	Check business rule active/conditions
Wrong agent assignments	Review skill mappings and workload calc
Escalations not triggering	Verify SLA definitions and scheduled job
KB suggestions irrelevant	Refine search terms and ranking logic
Approval workflow stuck	Check approver availability and notifications

Conclusion

ServiceNow workflow automation transforms IT support from reactive firefighting to proactive service delivery. By automating categorization, routing, approvals, and escalation, you:

Reduce response time by 60%+
Increase agent capacity by 40%+
Improve user satisfaction scores
Ensure SLA compliance
Free agents for complex work

Start with password reset automation. Measure results. Expand from there. Each workflow compounds the benefits.

Your IT team shouldn't waste time routing tickets. They should solve problems. Let ServiceNow handle the routing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to build these workflows? Basic workflows (auto-categorization, assignment): 4-8 hours. Complex workflows (approvals, escalations): 2-3 days. Plan 2-4 weeks for comprehensive automation including testing.

Do we need ServiceNow developers? Not for basic workflows. ServiceNow's workflow builder is low-code. For complex custom scripts, developer skills help but aren't required—many admins build these successfully.

What's the ROI of ServiceNow automation? Typical ROI: 3-6 months. A team of 10 agents saving 2 hours/day on routing = 20 hours daily = $100K+ annually in productivity gains.

Can workflows break existing processes? Yes, if not tested properly. Always test in non-production first, start with non-critical tickets, and keep human oversight initially.

How do we handle exceptions? Build in manual override options, monitor for patterns that need new rules, and maintain human review for escalated or complex tickets.

Automate IT Ticketing with ServiceNow Workflows

What You'll Learn

The Manual Ticketing Problem

ServiceNow Workflow Automation

Workflow 1: Automatic Ticket Categorization

The Goal

Business Rule Configuration

Testing the Rule

Workflow 2: Intelligent Assignment Based on Workload

The Goal

Assignment Rule Script

Workflow 3: Password Reset Self-Service

The Goal

Workflow Builder Configuration

Workflow 4: Software Approval Automation

The Goal

Approval Workflow

Workflow 5: SLA-Based Escalation

The Goal

Escalation Workflow

Workflow 6: Knowledge Base Auto-Suggestion

The Goal

Configuration

Monitoring and Reporting

Key Metrics to Track

Best Practices

1. Start Simple

2. Monitor and Tune

3. Keep Humans in Loop

4. Document Everything

5. Test Thoroughly

Troubleshooting

Conclusion

Frequently Asked Questions

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