--- sourceDocument: Australia Governance, Risk, and Compliance sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/governance-risk-compliance Release : - australia ft:locale : - en-US ft:publication_title : - Australia Governance, Risk, and Compliance ft:clusterId : - grc bundleId : - grc workflow : - Technology --- # Structured workflows for Crisis events # Structured workflows for Crisis events {#ariaid-title1} Release version: Australia Updated March 12, 2026 ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 4 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 Structured workflows for Crisis events ServiceNow's Business Continuity Management (BCM) Workspace enables BCM program managers to efficiently manage crisis events through structured workflows. These workflows help coordinate response efforts by associating impacted assets, business continuity plans, and recovery strategies with each crisis event. Managers can assign and submit tasks to appropriate teams and track progress within the BCM Configurable Workspace. Show full answer Show less ## Key Features * **Crisis Event Creation and Management:** Create crisis records, classify severity, set priorities, assign response teams, and document initial actions to respond to significant business disruptions. * **Task Assignment and Bulk Editing:** Add tasks individually or in bulk using task template groups. Users with edit permissions can perform bulk updates on event tasks' state, assigned groups, and timing, improving efficiency when managing multiple tasks. * **Event Task State Management:** Event tasks follow defined state transitions such as Pending, Open, Work In Progress, and various Closed states. The system enforces valid transitions and logs all changes, ensuring accurate tracking and control. * **Recovery Task Member Access:** Recovery team members can update task statuses through "My Recovery Tasks" without accessing the full event workspace, allowing them to mark tasks complete and add notes while restricting field edits. * **Nested Plans and Dependencies:** Automatically create nested plans within crisis events and define dependencies between activated plans to streamline recovery efforts and improve system performance. * **Automated Task Import:** Import automated tasks from business continuity plans into actual events to accelerate response and reduce manual effort during crises. * **Ad Hoc Action Items and Collaboration:** Crisis managers can create action tasks during ongoing events or exercises and leverage collaboration threads to coordinate with recovery teams and send email updates. * **Issue Tracking and Task Grouping:** Add or create issues to document problems found during crisis events, and group similar or duplicate tasks to minimize redundancy and optimize task management. * **Approval Workflows:** Request and manage approvals for crisis events directly within the BCM Workspace to maintain governance and oversight. ## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers * Streamlines crisis response by consolidating asset tracking, planning, task assignment, and recovery activities in a single workspace. * Enables efficient management of multiple tasks through bulk editing and clearly defined task state workflows, reducing administrative overhead. * Facilitates collaboration between crisis managers and recovery teams, including external members who have limited access but can update task statuses. * Improves accuracy and accountability with automated logging of task state transitions and activity notes. * Supports comprehensive crisis documentation with issue tracking and task grouping features, aiding in post-event analysis and continuous improvement. * Automates routine recovery steps by importing predefined automated tasks, accelerating response times during actual crisis events. Manage crisis events using structured workflows in the Business Continuity Workspace (also known as BCM Configurable Workspace). Business Continuity Management (BCM) program managers create crisis events to coordinate response efforts. They associate relevant assets, business continuity plans, and recovery strategies with each event, then assign and submit event tasks to appropriate teams for execution. * For more information on reporting a crisis event, see [Start a crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/PQuD5b8dF7YFhwZofiSjBQ "Report a crisis event in the BCM Configurable Workspace. A crisis event is any significant disruption that threatens business operations. The Business Continuity Workspace enables you to create crisis records, classify severity levels, set priorities, assign response teams, and document initial actions."). * For more information on adding an asset and plan to the crisis event, see [Track impacted assets and add related plans](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/oahrQm3h17pGnEODXcLh1w "Track the impacted assets and add a related plan during a crisis event. You can monitor the assets and plans for the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace. You can then recover your assets in the planning stage."). * For more information on adding an event task to the crisis event, see [Add a task to the crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/Gsz_GBpukI11SZmuLGBi8g "Add a task to the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace. You can then monitor and complete the required actions to respond to the crisis event."). * For more information on submitting the event task, see [Request an approval and approve the crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/AdCkq_R7wy_3cZ5mv~ttFQ "Approve the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace."). * You can add event tasks in bulk by applying task template groups or individual task templates from the Event tasks tab. For details, see [Add a task to the crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/Gsz_GBpukI11SZmuLGBi8g "Add a task to the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace. You can then monitor and complete the required actions to respond to the crisis event.") and [Event task creation progress in exercise and crisis events](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/TK0Tpuu0HRAcib9C4EF~oQ "When event tasks are created in bulk from task template groups or task templates, the Event tasks list defers refresh to avoid impacting large events. This topic explains the banner and auto-refresh behavior."). {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__ul_xmz_3ft_byb} ## Bulk editing of tasks from the Event tasks related list {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__section_epl_mlf_3bc} Starting with version 6.1.x of the Business Continuity Management application, users with editing access to event records can perform bulk edits from the Event tasks related list. This feature is beneficial for users who manage multiple event tasks simultaneously. In the recovery tasks list, users with the necessary edit permissions can modify these fields simultaneously: * State * Assigned to * Actual start * Actual end * Assigned group {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__ul_qnf_2mf_3bc} Once an event is initiated, these users can also modify the state of an event task either from the list view or the form view. The process for updating the state of an event task from the list view is demonstrated in the example. If a state transition is not allowed, an error message is displayed to indicate that the update is invalid. The table details the permitted state transitions for an event task.{#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__table_wpr_psf_3bc__entry__8} | Transition from state | Pending state | Open state | Work In Progress state | Closed Complete state | Closed Incomplete state | Closed Skipped state | Closed Failed state | |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| | Pending | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | | Open | No | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | | Work In Progress | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Closed Complete | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | | Closed Incomplete | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | | Closed Skipped | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | | Closed failed | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | [Table 1. Permitted state transitions for an event task] {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__table_wpr_psf_3bc} Note: All changes to state transitions and updates to the start or end dates are listed in the Task activity log. Consider these key details about the state transitions of an event task. 1. The event task can only be opened from the Closed complete state. 2. Once the event task moves to the Open state, users of the event task can edit it further. 3. The task can then be moved from the Open state to the Closed Skipped state. 4. Only users with access to the event can reopen the event task. While recovery task members can change the status of the event task, they cannot reopen it. {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__ol_wvx_trl_3bc} The table summarizes the UI actions available for an event task and their corresponding states:{#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__table_cqf_5pf_3bc__entry__3} | UI action | State of the event task | Notes | |-|-|-| | Trigger | Pending | This condition is applicable only when an event has been started. | | Skip task | Pending, Open, Work in progress | - | | Work in progress | Open | - | | Closed complete | Work in progress | - | | Closed incomplete | Work in progress | - | | Closed failed | Work in progress | - | | Re-trigger as a manual task | Closed | - | | Re-trigger automation | Work in progress, Closed | This condition is applicable for an automated task only. | [Table 2. UI actions and the associated states of the event tasks] {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__table_cqf_5pf_3bc} If a task is mistakenly closed, users of the event task can reopen it to make the required edits, ensuring the recovery process remains accurate and complete. ## Updating the event task as a recovery task member {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__section_svg_4pl_3bc} Generally, recovery task members update the status of event tasks. Although they do not have access to the event page or workspace, they can navigate to My Recovery Tasks in the instance to access the recovery task. By modifying the UI action, they can change the status of the event task, as demonstrated in the example. For instance, when members of the recovery task mark the task as Closed complete, all fields on the form become locked. This implies that while members of the recovery task cannot modify the fields, they are still able to add activity notes. Only users who have access to the event task can edit the fields on the form. For information on importing the automated task in an event, see [Import automated tasks and start an event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/YKfHeeo77MXhqGF5tGj9Cg "Import the automated task from the business continuity plan in an actual event. Utilizing automated tasks during an actual event enhances efficiency and reduces response time for users."). * For information on reporting a crisis event from the Home page, see [Home page view](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/VQfVgABDPPsy2gy3KdTvow "The Home page in Business Continuity Workspace serves as the landing page of the BCM application."). * For information on managing threats, feeds, and alerts in the Crisis map interface, see [Crisis map interface](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/7iqySbg2quUnynOjw519pw "You can integrate Crisis map with the BCM application and initiate the response workflows for crisis management. After installing the Crisis map application, you can view the Threat and Alert Data Feeds module in your BCM application instance."). * For information on performing administrative tasks in the Crisis map interface, see [Setup for Crisis map](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/nK4cuJd~ns72X67JZmPySQ "BCM administrators perform the administrative tasks to set up the Crisis map interface."). {#perform-tasks-to-manage-crisis-events__ul_lbv_4xy_cyb} * **[Start a crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/PQuD5b8dF7YFhwZofiSjBQ)** Report a crisis event in the BCM Configurable Workspace. A crisis event is any significant disruption that threatens business operations. The Business Continuity Workspace enables you to create crisis records, classify severity levels, set priorities, assign response teams, and document initial actions. * **[Using nested plans](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r6hmm6XnJbXmeFQIzekpjQ)** Configure a system property to control activated plan levels in an event. The system automatically creates nested plans within an event, reducing the manual effort of adding plans and improving system performance. You can also add dependencies between multiple activated plans by updating the Dependencies field in the event tasks. * **[Track impacted assets and add related plans](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/oahrQm3h17pGnEODXcLh1w)** Track the impacted assets and add a related plan during a crisis event. You can monitor the assets and plans for the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace. You can then recover your assets in the planning stage. * **[Add a task to the crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/Gsz_GBpukI11SZmuLGBi8g)** Add a task to the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace. You can then monitor and complete the required actions to respond to the crisis event. * **[Import automated tasks and start an event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/YKfHeeo77MXhqGF5tGj9Cg)** Import the automated task from the business continuity plan in an actual event. Utilizing automated tasks during an actual event enhances efficiency and reduces response time for users. * **[Creating action items in crisis events](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/ZItnv8MXzOm64vBMPbMWyg)** Starting with BCM release 9.0.x, crisis managers can create action tasks for recovery members or teams anytime during open crisis events or exercises. Crisis managers can create these tasks on the fly without mapping them to event assets or recovery plans. These action tasks are also not included in the event recovery timeline. * **[Creating collaborations in exercises and crisis events](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/vKcnUF7Z1bDa1eho~hPbeg)** Starting with BCM core release 12.x.x, crisis managers can create collaboration threads on crisis events to coordinate responses with recovery teams and send email updates. * **[Create a similar tasks group in a crisis](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/G9t2sp2m2umKd_6OXIk1Rg)** Identify and group similar or duplicate tasks related to a crisis event using the Similar tasks groups tab. Grouping similar tasks helps you to optimize event task management and minimize redundant work. * **[Add or create an issue from a crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/HKJ3Fs2vcuztkDeqg3JuMA)** Add an existing issue or create an issue to track problems identified during a crisis event. * **[Request an approval and approve the crisis event](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/AdCkq_R7wy_3cZ5mv~ttFQ)** Approve the crisis event in BCM UIB Workspace.