Relationship in CSM Module

[RathikaTS]

Hi,

In CSM/PSDS module, how are we handing parental relationship information ?
Is there a more effective or standardized way to store parental information (such as father and mother names) for a household member given that these are simple string fields in a form view and not linked to system users rather than creating separate multiple field as first name,email, Address etc..

[Rafael Batistot]

Hi @RathikaTS 

Here are two more standardized ways depending on how complex your requirement is:

1. Relationship records (recommended for PSDS/CSM household modeling)

• Create a Parental Relationship table (or use an extension of the existing Relationship table in ServiceNow).
• Store entries like:
  
• Child → Parent (relationship type = father, mother, guardian, etc.)
• Each entry links two Contact/Household Member records (sys_user or sn_customerservice_contact).
• Benefits:
  
• Normalized structure (no duplication of parent info).
• Easy to query/report (e.g., “get all children of X”).
• Scalable for other relationships (guardian, sibling, foster parent, etc.).
• Drawback: Requires more setup (table + reference fields + UI config).

2. Extended Contact/Household Model (simpler but structured)

• If you don’t want a relationship table, create a reference field to sn_customerservice_contact (or your household member table) for Father and Mother.
• Example:
  
• Field: father → Reference to Household Member
• Field: mother → Reference to Household Member
• This way, you don’t store just strings — you store actual related records.
• Drawback: limited if you need more than two parents/guardians (but okay for simple cases).

[RathikaTS]

Thanks Rafael for your quick suggestion, let me try it in our instance. 

[RathikaTS]

Hi Rafale,

We have tried to implement 1st solution in our instance, but what is the challenge means, all fields like First Name, Last Name, Age, Gender, Email, Address etc for father & Mother are in STRING fields but as per your solution it should be REFERENCE to use it in the relationship table.

Is there a way to get the string fields or any other alternate solution would be appreciated?

Thanks in advance,

Rathika

[Bhuvan]

@RathikaTS 

Can you explain the use case for your requirement ?

Check below documentation links for household, household member and consumer relationship

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/zurich-customer-service-management/page/product/customer-serv...

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/zurich-customer-service-management/page/product/customer-serv...

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/zurich-customer-service-management/page/product/customer-serv...

If this helped to answer your query, please mark it helpful & accept the solution.

Thanks,

Bhuvan