Case and account escalation

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Case and Account Escalation

    The escalation feature in ServiceNow Customer Service Management enables users to highlight critical cases or accounts, increasing visibility and facilitating communication around important customer issues. Escalations help track progress toward resolution, ensuring timely attention and management of high-priority problems.

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    Key Features

    • Escalation Roles: Users with the escalation requester role can initiate escalations by selecting the Escalate Case link on case or account forms.
    • Case vs. Account Escalations: Case escalations are typically managed by customer service agents who work directly on the issue. Account escalations involve escalation managers handling multiple related cases under a single escalation record.
    • Configuration: System administrators configure escalation settings via guided setup, including creating escalation templates that define processing rules and optional approval workflows, as well as setting severity levels with color indicators (red for high, orange for medium).
    • User Tasks: Users can escalate, manage, and de-escalate cases or accounts. The system visually indicates escalation severity on lists and forms to prioritize work effectively.
    • Optional Approval Process: An approval step can be included where approvers review and approve or reject escalation requests before escalation records are created and linked.

    Key Outcomes

    • Improved visibility and prioritization of critical customer issues through color-coded severity indicators.
    • Streamlined communication and tracking of escalated cases and accounts, supporting faster and more organized resolution efforts.
    • Flexible escalation management with configurable templates and optional approval processes to fit organizational workflows.
    • Clear role-based responsibilities ensuring that escalation requesters, customer service agents, and escalation managers can effectively collaborate.

    Use the escalation feature to highlight specific cases or accounts and raise awareness of important customer issues.

    Escalating a case or an account provides the following benefits:
    • Increases attention about a customer issue.
    • Facilitates communication about that issue.
    • Provides a way to track progress toward a resolution.

    Users with the escalation requester role can escalate a case or an account by selecting the Escalate Case related link on the case or account form.

    Case and account escalation differences

    While the escalation process is similar for cases and accounts, there are some important differences to note.
    • Case escalations: A customer service agent typically manages a case escalation and works directly with the escalated case to resolve the issue.
    • Account escalations: An escalation manager typically manages an account escalation, which can include multiple associated cases, and records details in the escalation record.
    For more information, see Case and account escalation differences.

    Configuring case and account escalation

    The following table includes an overview of case and account escalation configuration tasks. Users with the system administrator role can perform these tasks.

    Table 1. Case and account escalation configuration tasks
    Task Description
    Configure escalation management Configure case and account escalation using Customer Service Management guided setup.
    Create a case or account escalation template Escalation templates determine how an escalation request is processed, including the type of escalation and an optional approval process.
    Create a case or account escalation severity Create definitions for different levels of escalation severity and select color indicators to highlight escalated cases and accounts in the user interface.

    Using case and account escalation

    The following table includes an overview of case and account escalation user tasks.

    Table 2. Case and account escalation user tasks
    Task Description
    Escalate a case or an account Escalate cases or accounts, either on behalf of customers or for internal purposes. Escalating a case or account creates an associated escalation record.

    Role required: escalation requester
    Manage an escalated case or account Manage a case or account through the escalation process using the escalation record. The system identifies cases and accounts on lists and forms with color indicators that correspond to the escalation severity: red (high) or orange (medium).
    Role required:
    • Customer service agent
    • Escalation manager
    De-escalate a case or an account De-escalate cases or accounts when the cause of the escalation is resolved.

    Role required: de-escalation requester
    Use an optional escalation approval process Include an optional approval step for approvers to review a request and either approve or reject an escalation.

    When using the optional approval step, the system creates the escalation record upon approval and associates it with the case or account.