Demand workflow

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Demand workflow

    The demand workflow in ServiceNow defines the sequential stages a demand passes through, from initial intake to assessment, approval, and execution. This structured process ensures demands are progressively refined, validated, and aligned with business and strategic objectives before resources are assigned. The workflow supports traditional demand management but allows customization through custom playbooks.

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    Key Features

    • Create a demand: Demands can enter the system via the Service Catalog, Idea Portal, or be submitted directly by demand managers or users. Ideas submitted by business users are evaluated and can be promoted to demands.
    • Complete demand details: Demand managers or users add necessary details, moving the demand from draft to submitted state.
    • Refine and finalize demand: Demand managers provide comprehensive information including size, impact, business case, timeline, resources, costs/benefits, stakeholder registry, and strategy alignment. They can also assign tasks or request SME support.
    • Move demand to screening: Demand managers advance the demand to screening, initiating stakeholder assessments for scoring.
    • Complete assessments: Stakeholders submit assessments during the screening stage.
    • Move demand to qualified: The demand is automatically or manually moved to qualified after assessments are complete or as appropriate.
    • Review demand: Stakeholders review qualified demands to approve or defer them.
    • Approve or defer a demand: Demand managers set the demand to approved to proceed or deferred to pause.
    • Convert demand to strategic/operational entity: Upon approval, demand managers create related entities such as projects or Enterprise Agile Planning (EAP) items, with demand data migrated accordingly.
    • Complete demands: Demands are marked completed automatically when linked entities finish or manually by demand managers at any stage.

    Key Outcomes

    • Enables systematic evaluation and alignment of demands with business goals.
    • Facilitates transparency and collaboration through defined stages and stakeholder involvement.
    • Supports informed decision-making by incorporating assessments and reviews.
    • Streamlines transition from demand approval to execution via entity conversion.
    • Allows customization of workflow states and activities to fit organizational processes.

    The demand workflow defines the stages a demand moves through, from initial intake to assessment, approval, and execution. At each stage, you can evaluate the demand, align it with business objectives, and set up the right processes before resources are assigned.

    Workflow overview

    The following table lists the end-to-end life cycle for managing demands. This workflow provides a process for demands so they are progressively refined, validated, and aligned with business and strategic objectives.

    Note:
    This workflow describes the traditional demand management process. You can customize the states and activities by defining a custom playbook.
    Table 1. Demand workflow overview
    Task Description Demand states involved Roles involved
    Create a demand Demands enter the system via Service Catalog or Idea Portal, or being submitted directly by demand managers:
    • Business users can submit an idea via the Service Catalog or Idea Portal. The idea is then evaluated by demand managers after which they can promote it to a demand.
    • Business users can bypass the ideation process and submit a demand directly from the Service Catalog.
    • Demand managers or demand users can directly submit demands from the Next Experience for Demand Management.
    		 Draft Business user, demand manager, demand user
    Complete demand details The demand manager or demand user reviews and adds required details.

    The demand moves from the draft to the submitted state after the basic demand details are added.

    		 Draft → Submitted Demand manager, demand user
    Refine and finalize demand The demand manager completes all required information (size, impact, business case, timeline, resources, costs/benefits, stakeholder registry, strategy alignment). The demand manager can assign tasks or request SME (subject matter expert) support. Submitted Demand manager
    Move demand to screening The demand manager moves the demand to screening.

    Assessments are sent to the stakeholders to score the demand after it reaches the screening state.

    		 Submitted → Screening Demand manager
    Complete assessments Stakeholders complete and submit assessments for scoring. Screening Stakeholder
    Move demand to qualified The demand moves to the qualified state after the required assessments are submitted.
    • Next Experience for Demand Management updates the state automatically.
    • The demand manager manually sets the demand to qualified while it is in screening, for example, when assessments are delayed or not required.
    		 Screening → Qualified Demand manager, Next Experience for Demand Management
    Review demand Stakeholders review the demand for approval or deferral. Qualified Stakeholder
    Approve or defer a demand The demand manager sets the demand to approved (moves forward for execution) or deferred (moves to the Deferred state). Qualified → Approved or Deferred Demand manager, demand approver
    Convert demand to strategic/operational entity After the demand is approved, the demand manager creates the selected entity such as project, enhancement, or Enterprise Agile Planning (EAP) entities.

    The created entity is based on the values in the Category and Type fields of the Demand record.

    Depending on the type of record created, the demand data is migrated to the created entity.

    		 Approved Demand manager
    Complete demands Based on the selection in the Close Demand field, a demand is completed automatically when the converted entity is completed, or manually by the demand manager at any state. Approved → Completed Demand manager, Next Experience for Demand Management