We are using only ITSM. Any reasons to switch to Employee center portal?

[Suggy]

We are using only ITSM. We dont have any plans to use HRSD.

Are there any reasons to switch from Service portal to Employee center portal? If yes, what are the reasons (looking for answers in simple language)

Thanks in advance!!!

[pavani_paluri]

Hi @Suggy ,

Please see my understandings and observations till now between Service portal and Employee Center:

• ServiceNow is focusing all new features and innovations on Employee Center, so while Service Portal still works, it will become outdated over time—making Employee Center the recommended, future-ready option.
• EC has smart layout features provided OOB
• AI Powered Search which is faster and more accurate
• EC has prebuilt components which can be easily configurable and customizable.
• EC has mostly data driven (Activity Configurations, Taxonomies, Topics) widgets which helps to make changes with low code.

Mark it helpful if this helps you to understand. Accept solution if this give you the answer you're looking for
Kind Regards,
Pavani P

[Chai Maddula]

Hi @Suggy 

Definitely very interesting question as client might be adamant to migrate. I could think of 2 reasons, one is long term scalability when ServiceNow investment grows to other departments, also EC gives you things like "My Requests", "My Approvals", "Recommended Articles" — all ready without custom widgets and other is I believe you are using KB  portal separately when you use SP portal. where as if you shift to ESC portal you will be managing only portal rather than two.

Also there is docs site which explained differences between both may give you some more information.

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/yokohama-employee-service-management/page/product/employee-ce...

Even if you use only ITSM, switching to Employee Center gives you:

• A modern, AI-powered portal

• Easier navigation for users

• Out-of-the-box widgets to reduce development

• And it aligns with ServiceNow’s future roadmap

It’s like upgrading from a basic website to a full-service help experience — smoother, faster, and easier to maintain. Service Portal is in maintenance mode. EC is ServiceNow’s strategic direction — so all new features, UI upgrades, and performance improvements are going into EC

[Deepak Patel1]

We are currently using only ITSM in ServiceNow — mainly for things like incidents, requests, problems, and changes. We are not using HR, Finance, or any other business units, and we also don’t have any plans to expand into HRSD in the near future.

So the big question is:

Should we move from Service Portal to Employee Center Portal?

The answer is: Yes, it can still be a good idea — even if you’re only using ITSM.

Here are the reasons explained in a simple and real-world way:

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1. Modern and Cleaner Design

Employee Center has a newer, more modern look. It feels like browsing a current-day website — smooth, responsive, and user-friendly.
For example, when a user wants to report an issue or submit a request, the layout is cleaner, easier to understand, and works better on mobile devices too.

---

2. Smarter and Faster Search

In Service Portal, users often have to type exact words to find something.
But Employee Center has better search capabilities — it can handle spelling mistakes, show suggested results, and display knowledge articles, catalog items, and tasks all in one place.

Think of it like searching on Google versus an old company search tool. Even if you type “printer not wrking,” it still understands and gives the right result.

---

3. Future-Ready Platform

ServiceNow is building all new features, updates, and AI tools for Employee Center — not for the old Service Portal.
So even if your Service Portal is working now, you may find in the future that it’s harder to get new capabilities or support.

It’s like continuing to use an older version of an app — it still works, but all the exciting improvements are happening somewhere else.

---

4. Personalized User Experience

Even within ITSM, different teams or roles might need different information.
Employee Center lets you show specific content based on the user’s role, department, or location.

For example, field engineers might see “Mobile Device Requests” at the top of the portal, while developers see “Access Requests.” This kind of personalization is much easier to manage in Employee Center.

---

5. Easier to Scale Later

Right now, you might only need ITSM. But if later you decide to bring in other services — like onboarding, facilities, or HR — the Employee Center is already built for that. You won’t need to build a new portal again.

It’s like buying a house with extra rooms — even if you don’t use them today, they’re ready when you need them.

---

6. Built Using New Tools (UI Builder)

Employee Center is built using a newer design tool called UI Builder. It allows better layout control, reusable components, and low-code configuration.

That means it’s easier to maintain and update without relying heavily on custom code or developers.

---

So, in simple words:

Even if you're only using ITSM, switching to Employee Center gives you:

• A better experience for your users

• Smarter search

• A future-ready and modern portal

• Easier maintenance and updates

• Flexibility for future growth

If your current Service Portal is working fine, there's no urgent need to move. But if you want a better user experience and plan to stay updated with ServiceNow's future direction, Employee Center is worth considering — even for ITSM-only use.

[GlideFather]

Hi @Suggy,

regardless the module you use, Employee Service Centre is different in sense of access.

Service Portal had categories, ESC has taxonomy and you can make it better tailored on what users will see what with these taxonomies. 

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/xanadu-employee-service-management/page/product/employee-cent...

With this said, you will have better control (if configured correctly) that the user will access only relevant information and items.

Also, it is always good to follow ServiceNow intentions as this is new feature, thus all the enhancements and best functions will be prioritised for ESC while the SP will never stop being supported (or not in next few years).

Service Portals are designed separately - one for IT, one for HR, one for customers, another one for department etc.

And if you decide to for example re-brand your platform, you will need to do the same change to each of the portal separately. While the ESC is unified and you do just one change and it is reflected everywhere.

Branding was just a simple example, but this goes to any other functionalities as well.

Let me know if you have any further questions.