The C4 model for ServiceNow Solution Design and Documentation

[Martin Ivanov]

NOTE: This is an article that was initially published on https://servicenowguru.com/

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Intro

Having been in the software development space for over seven years, I have observed multiple issues occurring in almost every project, regardless of industry, company size, type of implementation, tools, etc. You might have guessed already: I am talking about documentation, or rather the lack thereof.

Problem definition

Even when documentation is present, it is often written in a freeform manner, comprising a mixture of screenshots, URLs, and explanations. Each stream lead or architect has their own understanding of best practices and documentation layout, which, especially in large and complex implementations, results in many different documents that are inconsistently structured and formatted.

These documents might be readable during the implementation phase or shortly thereafter, but if a new joiner needs to quickly catch up, they will have a really hard time—trust me, I’ve been there and done that.

The list of issues with freeform documentation goes on and on. Sometimes an executive or an enterprise architect needs to quickly check something and make a decision based on it. Instead, they must read through the aforementioned documents and spend a lot of time trying to find that one piece of information. And we all know how frustrated they become when their most precious resource is wasted. We all do.

Here comes the solution: The C4 model.

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