Questionnaire activity

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Questionnaire activity

    The Questionnaire activity in ServiceNow Playbooks allows you to collect user inputs during a playbook run without the need to create a data definition. It replaces the older Collect User Data activity and is ideal when you do not have an existing table for storing data, do not need to report on the data, or use the data outside the playbook. For scenarios where data storage and reporting are required, using the User Form activity with a pre-existing table is recommended.

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    Roles and Availability

    This activity is available as a common activity and can be added to a playbook by users with the admin, playbook.admin, or pdauthor roles. It supports dynamic data collection such as capturing shipping addresses or yes/no questions to influence subsequent playbook actions.

    Key Properties and Configuration

    • Label and Description: Set the title and descriptive information displayed on the activity and playbook card.
    • Run Condition: Define conditional logic using data from prior activities to control when the activity runs.
    • Start Rule: Configure when the activity or its containing stage starts, either immediately or after specified stages or activities complete.
    • Start with Delay: Optionally delay the start of the activity or stage by a specified duration.
    • Questionnaire Tab: Add or edit questions that agents respond to during the playbook run. This is managed within the activity’s interface.

    Inputs for Access Control

    To restrict who can perform the activity or edit collected data, you can specify:

    • Assignment Group: Limits access to a specified user group. If unset, any user can read and edit the data.
    • Assigned To: Limits access to specified individual users. This is independent of the Assignment Group setting.

    By default, these fields map to the assignment of the trigger record, meaning users assigned to the parent record have access to the questionnaire data.

    Outputs

    The activity produces an output record containing the collected data, which can be referenced by subsequent activities in the playbook. Using the pill-picker, you can dot-walk into the output record to access all collected variables.

    Practical Use for ServiceNow Customers

    This activity streamlines the collection of user inputs during playbook runs without requiring backend data structure setup, enabling faster playbook deployment for scenarios that do not require persistent data storage or reporting. It offers flexible timing and access controls to fit varied process requirements and integrates seamlessly with playbook logic through inputs and outputs.

    Collects inputs from a user during a playbook run to use later in the playbook.

    The questionnaire activity replaces the Collect User Data activity, but does not require you to create a data definition. Use the questionnaire activity if:
    • You don't have a table already,
    • You don't need to run reports on the collected data,
    • And you don't need to use the data outside of the playbook.
    If you already have a table to store the collected data, use the User Form activity.

    Roles and availability

    This activity is available as a common activity. Users with the admin, playbook.admin, or pd_author can add this activity to a playbook.

    During a playbook run, you can use data definitions to potentially:
    • Collect a shipping address, then reference the address when generating a shipping label.
    • Ask the user "yes" or "no" questions, and determine subsequent activities based on the user's responses.

    Common properties

    These properties are common to all to activities in Playbooks.

    Open the activity properties panel and configure your activity to add values for the following inputs. If the input value varies, use the pill-picker to show where to get the value. To learn more about the pill-picker, see Dot-walking examples.
    Input Type Description
    Label String Title to display as activity and playbook card.
    Description String Information to display about activity usage or outcome.
    Run condition Condition Builder Conditions that must be met to run an activity or stage. You can use data from prior activities to build conditions.
    Note:
    Select Show additional options to see this field.
    Start Rule Choice Under Schedule > Start Rule, select a start rule for when your stage should start running:
    • When process starts: Your stage starts running as soon as the playbook starts.
    • After specific stages: Your stage starts running after specified stage(s) have finished running.
    Under Schedule > Start Rule, select a start rule for when your activity should start running:
    • When stage starts: Your activity starts running as soon as its stage starts running. Your stage starts running when your playbook is triggered.
    • After specific activities: Your activity starts running after specified activities have finished running.
    Start with delay True/False Option to wait for a duration of time before running an activity or stage. When enabled, this input displays the Start with delay input properties.
    Note:
    Select Show additional options to see this field.

    Questionnaire

    In the Questionnaire tab, you can:
    • Add questions for agents to respond to,
    • Edit existing questionnaires.
    To learn more about adding or configuring questions, see Create a new questionnaire.

    Inputs

    Many of these inputs are common to activities in Playbooks.

    After configuring the required inputs for your activity, you can also choose to configure additional inputs. In the side panel, select Show additional options to display these advanced inputs. For more information, see Activity experience.
    Input Type Description
    Assignment Group for this Process Step Reference.Group [sys_user_group] Assignment group allowed to perform this playbook activity. If you don't set any values for Assignment Group or Assigned To, any user can read and edit the collected data. The Assignment group and Assigned to fields limit who has access to do so. To specify only individual users, use the Assigned To field. The same users do not need to be specified in both fields.
    Note:
    By default, these fields are mapped to the Assignment Group and Assigned To fields of the trigger record. This means that users assigned to work on the parent record have access to submit, view and edit the collected data by default.
    Assigned to this Process Step Reference.User [sys_user] User allowed to perform this playbook activity. If you don't set any values for Assignment Group or Assigned To, any user can read and edit the collected data. The Assignment group and Assigned to fields limit who has access to do so. To specify only individual users, use the Assigned To field. The same users do not need to be specified in both fields.
    Note:
    By default, these fields are mapped to the Assignment Group and Assigned To fields of the trigger record. This means that users assigned to work on the parent record have access to submit, view and edit the collected data by default.

    Outputs

    These outputs can provide data to other activities in your playbook. You can access this data as activity inputs when you configure your activity:
    Output Type Description
    Record Reference.Flow Data Reference to record containing collected data. Use the pill-picker to dot-walk to Outputs > Record > Vars to see all collected data. To learn more about the pill-picker, see Dot-walking examples.