Data management for CSM release notes

  • Release version: Washingtondc
  • Updated February 1, 2024
  • 6 minutes to read
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    Summary of Data Management for CSM Release Notes

    The Washington DC release of ServiceNow® Data Management for the Customer Service Management (CSM) application introduces enhancements designed to improve data organization for both internal users and external customers. Key updates focus on streamlining workflows, user management, and enhancing contextual insights for agents.

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    Key Features

    • Product Instance Identifier: Connects new and existing products to related assets and configurations, improving tracking and management.
    • Life-Cycle State Synchronization: Ensures consistency of states across asset and install base classes, facilitating better lifecycle management.
    • Unified User Profiles: Allows the creation of a single profile for users, simplifying account management and supporting B2C services.
    • Business Location 360: Provides agents with comprehensive data on business location issues, enhancing resolution capabilities.
    • Omni-Channel Support: Enables business location staff to record support interactions across various channels.
    • Customer Life Cycle Management Workflows: Streamlines the management of sold products through new actions available in the customer account interface.
    • Sales and Order Management Enhancements: Introduces improved entity configurations and multi-instance selection features for optimized workflow management.

    Key Outcomes

    With the updates in the Washington DC release, ServiceNow customers can expect:

    • Improved data integrity and streamlined workflows for sold products.
    • Enhanced agent capabilities through better access to contextual information and user profiles.
    • More efficient management of customer interactions and issues across multiple channels.
    • Increased productivity through integrated sales and order management features.

    To leverage these enhancements, customers should ensure activation of the necessary plugins and stay updated on browser requirements, as mobile devices and Internet Explorer are no longer supported.

    The ServiceNow® Data management for the Customer Service Management application enables you to organize and manage the data for both your internal users and external customers. Data Management for Customer Service Management was enhanced and updated in the Washington DC release.

    Data management highlights for the Washington DC release

    • Support workflows with the enhanced data model changes in the sold product table.
    • Use contracts and entitlements that are also modeled as sold products and are part of the hierarchy so that you can have complete information about the sold product and its services.
    • Identify and track the new and existing install base items by using the product instance identifier.
    • Unify a user's identity personas so that you don't need to create and manage multiple user accounts for a single user. With this feature, you can seamlessly provision business-to-consumer (B2C) services.
    • Get a comprehensive, 360-degree view of the business location issues so that your agents get the required contextual data to effectively resolve the reported issues.

    See Data management for Customer Service Management for more information.

    New in the Washington DC release

    Product instance identifier

    Connect new and existing products and services with the related assets and configurations by using the product instance identifier.

    Link the install base items to an asset class, configuration item class, and product model class by using the Model Category field.

    Synchronization of life-cycle states between the asset and install base

    Synchronize the State field across both the asset class and install base class to maintain the consistency of states between both entities. The synchronization of the State fields depends on the states that you select in the life-cycle fields.

    Comply with the Common Service Data model framework by establishing a link between the existing State field and the new life-cycle fields on the install base form.

    Data model for Sold products and Install base

    Create an install base item by using the Specification field on the install Base form during order fulfillment.

    Support life-cycle management workflows for sold products by using the fields that are added to the Sold products table.

    Sales and Order Management workflows

    Configure the metadata for the lead-to-cash entities by mapping the entities and configurations.

    Use the lead-to-cash operations like Create Instance, Delta, Effect, and Commit Instance to compose and build workflows for a seamless flow of information between entities. To learn more, see LeadtoCashCore - Scoped.

    Customer Life Cycle Management Workflows

    Manage the life cycle of your sold products by activating the Customer Life Cycle Management workflows (com.snc.customer_lifecycle_mgmt_workflows) store application.

    Update the existing products and services by triggering the sold product to order and the order to sold product flows. You use the Modify, Suspend, Resume, and Disconnect actions on the sold product related list on the accounts page to trigger this flow.

    Change the current configuration of the sold product on the Configurator UI by performing the Modify action.

    Make a definite or indefinite suspension of a sold product by using the Suspend action.

    Restart the services of a disconnected or suspended sold product by using the Resume action.

    Make the sold product inactive by disconnecting a sold product and its full hierarchy.

    Use metadata configurations to transform data and define structures and workflows like Leads, Opportunities, Orders, Install base items, Sold products and more.
    Unified User-Employee as a Consumer
    Create a single, unified profile that supports both the internal and external personas from login through all interactions across the Customer Service Management product.
    Business Location 360
    Enable agents to accurately resolve reported business location issues by using the business location 360 template. Your agents can add data sources, display extra information, and represent entities, such as stores, government agencies, healthcare organizations, automotive dealerships, or departments, for enhanced contextual insights.
    Omni-channel support for the business location staff
    Enable your business location staff to interact and record all support interactions with each business location through omni-channel capabilities, including Virtual Agent, chat, and messaging applications.​

    Changed in this release

    Transfer related party configurations to sys_metadata
    Transfer the Related Party Configuration [sn_customerservice_related_party_configuration] table to the Application File [sys_metadata] table across customer instances by using the update sets.
    Associate an existing user to a consumer record
    Starting with the Washington DC release, only administrators can associate a user with the consumer record.
    Create users through the User lookup list on the Consumer form
    Starting with the Washington DC release, you can create sys_users directly from the User lookup list on the consumer form. This functionality applies to both internal (snc_internal) and external (snc_external) users.
    Integrate the Service Model Foundation with request management
    Monitor the case progress as a business location staff member directly from the Business Location Service Portal (BLSP) after you submit a catalog request.
    Support case creation for an external business location (EBL) staff
    Enable your internal business location (IBL) and external business location (EBL) staff to track issues. Your staff can track cases on behalf of a business location against sold products that are deployed at a business location or against installed base items that are deployed at a business location.
    Sales and Order Management core
    • Use the enhanced entity configuration types to support covered products along with other context types like transaction headers, lines, charactersitics, and pricing adjustments.
    • Support the multi-instance selection for different sales and order management workflows. For example, select multiple sold products to perform the Move, Add, Change functions.
    Create a quote with the Modify action by updating the characteristics of an existing sold product, by adding new products or disconnecting existing products.

    Activation information

    Customer Service Management is a ServiceNow AI Platform feature that is available with activation of the Customer Service Management plugin (com.sn_customerservice). For details, see Activate Customer Service Management.

    Additional Customer Service Management features are available with the activation of other plugins. For details, see Additional plugins for Customer Service Management.

    Sales and Order Management is a Order Management feature that is available with the activation of the Lead to Cash Core plugin (com.snd.l2c.core).

    Browser requirements

    Starting with the Washington DC release, ServiceNow® Data Management doesn't support mobile devices and Internet Explorer. For more information, see Browser support.

    Related ServiceNow applications and features

    Communities
    From the Customer Service Portal and Consumer Service Portal, enable your customers to connect, engage, and collaborate using the ServiceNow® Communities application. Customer Service agents can create cases from community discussion threads and resolve cases with community content.
    Field Service Management
    Customer Service Management includes an integration with the ServiceNow® Field Service Management application. With this integration, these users can perform the following tasks:
    • Field service technicians can view customer account and contact information on work orders and work order tasks in the Field Service Management application.
    • Customer service agents can create work orders from cases in the Customer Service Management application.
    • Customers and consumers can view case-related work orders from the Customer Service Portal and Consumer Service Portal.
    Workforce Optimization for Customer Service
    Manage and maintain the productivity of your workforce from a single application by using ServiceNow® Workforce Optimization for Customer Service. With this application, you can efficiently route work to your team, manage your team's skills and schedules, and monitor their performance.
    Workspace
    ServiceNow® Workspace is a graphical user interface that puts multiple tools on one page, including the tools that agents must find, research, and resolve issues. CSM Configurable Workspace and CSM Agent Workspace are customer service-specific implementations that provide tier 1 agents with the tools that they must respond to customers and to resolve cases.