ServiceNow Operational Technology Management on the Now Platform Xanadu release
In the latest Xanadu release, we are excited to introduce three major innovations designed to enhance the user experience, accelerate productivity, and improve collaboration for Operational Technology Management. These new features are:
- Task-oriented landing pages
- Operational Technology Vulnerability Response (OTVR) solution management
- OT request management
Each of these innovations addresses key challenges faced by industrial organizations and provides effective solutions to minimize downtime.
Task-oriented landing pages
When OT engineers begin their work, they are often confronted by cluttered landing pages that have very little to do with what they need to get done. This visual complexity makes it difficult for them to navigate the pages, prioritize the most critical work, and finish their tasks. The extra time needed to filter and find relevant information makes users less efficient and adds to operator dissatisfaction.
The task-oriented landing page solves this problem by providing personalized landing pages based on persona and an uncluttered experience surface to ensure that users only see relevant information for their role. Now, OT engineers can view which tasks require their immediate specialized attention. A visual summary of assigned tasks and their statuses helps users manage their work. Important data and tasks are highlighted, enabling engineers to work more effectively and efficiently.
Operational Technology Vulnerability Response (OTVR) solution management (featuring CSAF sources)
Often, when an OT device needs patching or maintenance, it is best to consult the OEM. The vendors have recommended procedures that have been battle-tested, and any deviation from this can place the OT ecosystem in danger. Accessing OT vulnerability remediation recommendations from various third-party sources can be time-consuming and laborious. As the complexity of the mixed OT environment with multiple OT OEMs rises, the sheer effort in collating all of these recommendations becomes an enormous risk to security and uptime. Moreover, ad-hoc fixes done without reference to these vendor guides can often be incorrect, leading to further risk of downtime.
OTVR solution management (featuring CSAF sources) helps users save time and reduce effort by pooling authoritative OT recommendations directly from vendors such as Siemens, Schneider, and other CSAF-supporting OEMs and making them available in one trusted source. By providing authoritative and trusted OT recommendations directly from vendors, OTVR solution management significantly reduces the time and effort required to access and implement these recommendations.
OT request management
Engineers need an intuitive and user-friendly system to create and manage OT requests. In addition, requesting remote access for third parties to resolve OT issues and managing complex, multi-step OT requests can be challenging without a centralized platform.
OT request management allows users to request remote access for external service providers and vendors to resolve OT issues. By centralizing the platform for tracking, monitoring, and managing OT requests, users gain greater visibility and control over the OT landscape. The intuitive and user-friendly system simplifies the process of creating and managing OT requests, making it easier for engineers and technicians to fulfill their tasks efficiently and effectively.
Next Steps
The new features in the OTM for Xanadu—task-oriented landing page, OTVR solution management, and OT request management—address critical challenges in Operational Technology Management and offer comprehensive solutions to improve efficiency, productivity, and user experience.
Curious to learn more? Check out this demo to see these solutions in action or read the Xanadu release notes to learn about the other features and enhancements for this release.
