--- sourceDocument: Australia Enterprise Architecture sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/application-portfolio-management Release : - australia ft:locale : - en-US ft:publication_title : - Australia Enterprise Architecture ft:clusterId : - appportman bundleId : - appportman workflow : - Technology --- # Tech debt indicator score for application rationalization # Tech debt indicator score for application rationalization {#ariaid-title1} Release version: Australia Updated March 12, 2026 ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 3 minutes to read Summarize ![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete. ## Summary of Tech Debt Indicator Score for Application Rationalization The Technology Reference Model (TRM) Technical Debt indicator is a customizable metric within ServiceNow's Enterprise Architecture workspace that measures the technical debt score of Business Applications. This score reflects the count of associated technologies that do not comply with TRM standards, helping identify high-risk applications and prioritize modernization and rationalization efforts effectively. Show full answer Show less Note that Technology Lifecycle Management (TLM) was formerly known as Technology Portfolio Management (TPM). Depending on your application versions, you may see TPM or TLM labels in the interface. ## Technical Debt Indicator Score Logic * **Compliant Applications:** Applications listed in TLM Discovered Technologies but not in TRM Technical Debts have a tech debt score of 0 and a normalized value of 10. * **Unassessed Applications:** Applications not found in TLM Discovered Technologies are not assessed and do not receive a score. * **Non-compliant Applications:** Applications found in both TLM Discovered Technologies and TRM Technical Debts have a debt score based on the count of non-compliant technologies (range 1--10) and a normalized value from 1 through 10. * **Hardware-Only Applications:** Applications with only hardware associated and no technical debt entries are not assessed and receive no score. ## Operational Requirements Two key scheduled jobs must be run to populate and update data: * **Populate TLM Discovered Technologies and Lifecycles:** Populates technology lifecycle data including support and end-of-life dates. * **Populate TRM Technical Debts in EA Workspace:** Updates the technical debt data for software products based on TLM Discovered Technology information. This job requires the Software Asset Management (SAM) Foundation or Professional plugin. These jobs ensure up-to-date technical debt information for accurate scoring and analysis. ## Using the Technical Debt Indicator * **On-demand Regeneration:** You can regenerate the Technical Debt indicator score from the Setup page to obtain real-time assessment of application risks. * **Application Rationalization List View:** The indicator score appears as a sortable column, enabling easy prioritization of applications based on their technical debt. * **Application Rationalization Bubble Chart:** The Technical Debt indicator can be selected as the bubble size, providing a visual representation of debt levels across applications. ## Benefits for ServiceNow Customers By leveraging the TRM Technical Debt indicator score, customers can: * Identify applications with high technical debt and non-compliance risks. * Prioritize rationalization and modernization projects effectively. * Visualize and analyze technical debt trends using integrated lists and charts. * Maintain up-to-date technical debt data through automated scheduled jobs and on-demand scoring. The Technology Reference Model (TRM) Technical Debt indicator is a customizable application metric that evaluates the technical debt score for each Business Application. This score reflects the number of associated technologies that don't comply with established TRM standards. It offers a clear and measurable value that can be leveraged across the Enterprise Architecture workspace for scoring, analysis, and visualization. Important: Technology Lifecycle Management (TLM) was previously known as Technology Portfolio Management (TPM). TPM and TLM refer to the same feature. Table names and scheduled job names continue to use TPM and haven't been renamed. Whether your instance displays TPM or TLM also depends on your application versions. TLM labels appear only when both the Enterprise Architecture Workspace application (version 9.2.1 or later) and the Technology Lifecycle Management plugin, sn_apm_tpm (version 1.11.0 or later), are installed. If either application is on an earlier version, the interface continues to show TPM. By highlighting technology non-compliance, the TRM Technical Debt score helps identify high-risk applications enabling teams to prioritize modernization and rationalization initiatives effectively. ## TRM Technical Debt Indicator Score Logic {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__section_vzt_ntz_rgc} The application weight is the number of technical debts for that business application. If a business application has high technical debts, then its normalized value is considered as low. If a business application has low technical debts, then its normalized value is considered as high. Following is the logic to generate the TRM technical debt indicator score: * Compliant Applications If a Business Application (BA) is listed in the TLM Discovered Technologies (sn_apm_tpm_discovered_technology) but not in the TRM Technical Debts (sn_apm_trm_standards_technical_debt), then the application is considered as compliant. * Tech debt score: 0 * Normalized value: 10 {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_mn3_v5z_rgc} * Unassessed Applications (Not Discovered) If a business application isn't found in the TLM Discovered Technologies table: * The application isn't assessed * No score is assigned {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_iww_5c1_sgc} * Non-compliant applications If a business application is found in both the TLM Discovered Technologies and TRM Technical Debts: * The application is considered non-compliant * Tech Debt score: Based on the number of non-compliant technologies (range: 1--10) * Normalized value: From 1 through 10 {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_jfg_bd1_sgc} * Hardware-Only Applications If a business application is found in the TLM Discovered Technologies but only has hardware associated and isn't listed in the TRM Technical Debts table: * The application isn't assessed * No score is assigned {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_mv5_hd1_sgc} {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_e2r_45z_rgc} ## Run scheduled jobs {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__section_yhs_g21_sgc} You must run the following scheduled jobs to populate the TLM and TRM data in EA Workspace: * Populate TLM Discovered Technologies and Lifecycles This job populates the technology life-cycle data in the TLM Technology Lifecycle \[sn_apm_tpm_technology_lifecycle\] table. Note: The data includes end of support date, end of extended support date, and end of life date for your software products and hardware models. For instructions, see [Run a scheduled job to generate TLM lifecycle data](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/UkcgZNEP3qKRJkJLCKntSg "Run a scheduled job to fetch the technology lifecycle data for your technology portfolio."). For updating the TLM data for a selected business application, see [Update TLM data for a business application or application service](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/6M29SFzEFz74U0QOnGKq9g "Manually update the Technology Lifecycle Management (TLM) lifecycle data for software and hardware models in your business applications and application services."). * Populate TRM technical debts in the EA Workspace This job updates the Technical Debt \[sn_apm_trm_standards_technical_debt\] table with the latest technical debt data for your software products. The data is available in the TLM Discovered Technology \[sn_apm_tpm_discovered_technology\] table. Note: The Populate TRM technical debts in the EA Workspace scheduled job are available only the Software Asset Management (SAM) Foundation or Software Asset Management (SAM) Professional plugin is installed. For instructions, see [Update TRM technical debt data using scheduled job](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/46bBW0f8U8Y0fUG0J44znQ "Run the scheduled job to update technical debt data based on Technology Reference Model (TRM) phases. This job identifies products not approved for use in your enterprise and can be scheduled to run periodically."). {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__ul_omv_321_sgc} ## Regenerate indicator score {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__section_tqk_jf1_sgc} Update application indicator scores on-demand, to assess the application for a technical risk, and gather real-time insights, regenerate indicator score for the Technical Debt indicator from the Setup page. Select the Technical Debt indicator from the list, then select the Regenerate indicator score. ## Technical Debt indicator score on the Application Rationalization List view page {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__section_qlt_yg1_sgc} The Technical Debt indicator score is available as a column on the Application Rationalization List page. You can sort the applications by their score from highest to lowest debt. ## Technical Debt indicator as bubble size on the Application Rationalization Bubble Chart page {#trm-tech-debt-indicator-for-app-rat__section_vx2_kjg_sgc} The Technical Debt indicator is listed in the Bubble Size list under the Settings of the Bubble Chart page. You can select the indicator from the Bubble Size list to see its score for business applications in the X and Y axes.