Universal Task

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 1 minute to read

    • The ServiceNow Universal Task application is a tasking framework that enables your agents to request extra information from employees who submit tickets or to task employees to accomplish an activity in order to resolve a ticket.

    Let's consider an example. Aditi, an employee, has lost a laptop and has requested a replacement laptop. Dan, who is the agent working on this incident, needs the lost report from Aditi to proceed with the incident resolution. Dan could choose to use an activity stream to request the lost report but that adds a lot of extra work for Dan. By using an activity stream to get the report, Dan must close the incident and open a new request for the laptop. This process creates a disjointed experience for both Dan and Aditi.

    With Universal Task, Dan can task Aditi to upload a lost report from within the incident. On receiving the report, Dan can task Aditi to order a new laptop by using a submit catalog item task under the same incident.

    Enhance employee experience

    Activity streams can be confusing for agents and employees. Universal Task ensures a guided tasking experience where both agents and employees are aware of all the action items and the status of each item throughout the ticket resolution process.

    Standardize employee experience across services

    You can configure Universal tasks for any ticket type that extends the task table to ensure a consistent experience for your employees regardless of the ticket type or service type.

    Increase fulfillment efficiency

    Predefined task types enable agents to quickly task employees to get the information required for fulfilling the ticket in the most efficient way possible. Universal Task due dates ensure that your agents can share the fulfillment responsibility with your employees.

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