CSDM data workflow and business model views

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of CSDM Data Workflow and Business Model Views

    The CSDM model provides a structured approach for organizations to enhance their reporting and operational resilience. ServiceNow products utilize this model to organize Configuration Management Database (CMDB) data, enhancing functionality and supporting various business model perspectives.

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    Key Features

    • Data Collection: Gathers information from diverse sources such as risk management, incident management, business continuity, compliance, and operational data.
    • Data Integration: Centralizes data through mapping, normalization, and quality checks to ensure accuracy.
    • Data Analysis: Identifies risks, assesses controls, evaluates disruptions, and finds trends in operational resilience.
    • CSDM Integration: Supports processes like risk assessment, control documentation, and remediation planning using analyzed data.
    • Reporting and Visualization: Offers tools to communicate insights, aid decision-making, and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs).

    Key Outcomes

    By implementing this data workflow, organizations can:

    • Integrate operational resilience with CSDM to assess control environments.
    • Identify and mitigate risks effectively.
    • Enhance the effectiveness of controls and processes.
    • Support informed decision-making and prioritization of actions.

    This proactive, data-driven approach helps organizations maintain a robust control environment, aligning with their overarching goals.

    Business Model Views

    CSDM can be adapted to various business contexts, such as:

    • Process View: Focuses on specific business processes like financial reporting or procurement.
    • Functional View: Evaluates control environments in functional areas like finance or IT.
    • Entity View: Assesses individual subsidiaries within a larger organization.
    • Cross-Functional View: Examines processes that span multiple functions, such as risk management.
    • Enterprise View: Ensures a consistent control framework across the entire organization.

    Applying CSDM across these views allows organizations to identify risks, document controls, and foster continuous improvement, ensuring compliance and enhancing operational efficiency.

    The CSDM model offers a framework for evaluating and enhancing an organization's reporting and resilience environment, applicable to various business model views. ServiceNow® products are CSDM aware, and their Configuration Management Database (CMDB) data is organized according to CSDM guidelines, leveraging this structure for improved functionality.

    CSDM data workflow

    Integrating CSDM data workflow with Operational Resilience uses data from various sources to support the assessment and improvement of the control environment. Here's a high-level overview of the data workflow.

    Data collection
    Gather data from various sources, including:
    • Risk management systems (for example, risk registers, risk assessments)
    • Incident management systems (for example, incident reports, root cause analysis)
    • Business continuity management (BCM) systems (for example, business impact analysis, recovery plans)
    • Compliance and regulatory data (for example, audit reports, regulatory requirements)
    • Operational data (for example, key performance indicators (KPIs), metrics)
    Data integration
    Integrate data from various sources into a centralized repository or data warehouse, using techniques such as:
    • Data mapping and transformation
    • Data normalization and standardization
    • Data quality checks and validation
    Data analysis
    Analyze the integrated data to perform the tasks:
    • Identify operational resilience risks and control deficiencies
    • Assess the effectiveness of controls and processes
    • Evaluate the impact of disruptions on business operations
    • Identify trends and patterns in operational resilience data
    CSDM integration
    Use the analyzed data to support CSDM processes:
    • Risk assessment and control objective definition
    • Control activity identification and documentation
    • Control evaluation and testing
    • Remediation and corrective action planning
    Reporting and visualization
    Provide reporting and visualization capabilities to perform following tasks:
    • Communicate operational resilience and CSDM insights to stakeholders
    • Support decision-making and prioritization of actions
    • Monitor progress and track key performance indicators (KPIs)

    By following the data workflow, organizations can perform the following tasks.

    • Integrate operational resilience and CSDM data to support a comprehensive control environment assessment
    • Identify and mitigate operational resilience risks
    • Improve the effectiveness of controls and processes
    • Enhance business continuity and resilience
    • Support informed decision-making and prioritization of actions

    This data-driven approach enables organizations to proactively manage operational resilience and ensure a robust control environment that supports their overall objectives.

    Business model views

    CSDM provides a framework that can be applied to various business model views, as shown in the following examples.

    1. Process view: Assess and improve the control environment for specific business processes, such as financial reporting, procurement, or customer onboarding.
    2. Functional view: Evaluate the control environment for specific functional areas, like finance, HR, or IT.
    3. Entity view: Assess the control environment for individual entities or subsidiaries within a larger organization.
    4. Cross-functional view: Evaluate the control environment for cross-functional processes, such as risk management, compliance, or internal audit.

    5. Enterprise view: Assess the control environment across the entire organization to ensure a consistent and effective control framework.

    In each of these views, the CSDM model can help organizations perform the following tasks.

    • Identify and assess risks
    • Define and document control objectives and activities
    • Evaluate control effectiveness
    • Foster a culture of continuous improvement
    By applying the CSDM model to different business model views, organizations can benefit from the following activities:
    • Identify and mitigate risks at various levels
    • Improve process efficiency and effectiveness
    • Enhance compliance and regulatory adherence
    • Ensure a consistent control environment across the organization

    This flexible approach, along with the use of Main node configurations, enables organizations to customize their CSDM implementation to meet their specific business needs, ensuring a robust and effective control environment.

    For information on setting up the Main node configurations, see Main node configurations: A component of the Data Relationships Framework.

    For information on gathering Operational Resilience data aligned with the CSDM model, see Gathering data aligned with the CSDM setup and Landing page and dashboard views.