Using Operational Technology Knowledge Management

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    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 Using Operational Technology Knowledge Management

    Operational Technology (OT) Knowledge Management enables ServiceNow customers to efficiently create, edit, publish, and retire knowledge articles related to OT incidents. Integrated with the Operational Technology Incident Management application, it allows teams to browse and generate knowledge articles directly from incident records. This capability supports the documentation and sharing of critical OT device knowledge, troubleshooting guidance, and process remediation information, helping front-line workers, technicians, and engineers collaborate effectively.

    Show full answer Show less

    Key Features

    • Knowledge Article Lifecycle Management: Articles can be created, published (with or without approval), and retired (immediately or via approval workflow) to maintain an accurate and current knowledge base.
    • Feedback and Review Workflow: Users can provide feedback on knowledge articles, triggering review and updates to ensure content relevance and accuracy over time.
    • Knowledge Article Types: Articles can cover standard operating procedures, lessons learned from incidents, annotated images, troubleshooting steps, and other crucial OT information.
    • Access and Visibility: Knowledge articles are accessible through the Industrial Workspace via list views, Agent Assist during incident handling, and global search, ensuring easy retrieval by authorized users with the knowledge role.
    • Creating Articles from OT Incidents: Users can create knowledge articles directly from OT incident records to document incident resolutions and related information.
    • Reporting Knowledge Gaps: Users can report gaps when relevant knowledge articles are missing, supporting continuous knowledge base improvement.
    • Approval Processes: Publishing and retiring articles can be controlled through approval workflows to ensure quality and relevance.
    • Feedback Task Assignment: Ability to assign feedback-related tasks to ensure updates and improvements to knowledge articles are addressed timely.

    Practical Application for ServiceNow Customers

    By implementing OT Knowledge Management, your team can centralize OT expertise, improve incident resolution times, and enhance operational efficiency. Front-line workers and engineers benefit from quick access to validated knowledge, while knowledge managers maintain control over article quality and relevancy through approval workflows. This streamlined approach supports continuous learning and documentation, fostering a well-informed OT workforce and reducing downtime in production environments.

    After you complete all the required set-up tasks for Operational Technology Knowledge Management, you can begin managing knowledge articles that are related to Operational Technology (OT) incidents.

    Operational Technology Knowledge Management overview

    By using  Operational Technology Knowledge Management, you can create, edit, and retire knowledge articles depending on the needs of your team. When used with the Operational Technology Incident Management application, you can browse articles that are related to an incident and create articles from an incident.

    The following examples show how to apply  Operational Technology Knowledge Management to your team:

    • An OT engineer with several years of experience wants to capture their OT device knowledge in one place for guide workers and junior technicians.
    • Front-line workers and technicians responsible for production process operations have noticed an issue on the factory floor and need a knowledge article that explains remediation.

    Basic Operational Technology Knowledge Management Process

    The following workflow describes the basic process for Operational Technology Knowledge Management.
    Figure 1. Basic OT Knowledge workflow
    Basic OT Knowledge Management workflow that describes the user creating a knowledge base, the knowledge article being added to the knowledge base, and other users using the knowledge article.

    Publish a knowledge article

    The following workflow describes how a knowledge article is created and published both with (Approve Publish) and without (Instant Publish) approval.
    Figure 2. Publish workflow
    The two available Publish a knowledge article workflows where the user can either immediately publish an article or the article needs to be approved by a manager or expert.

    Retire a knowledge article

    The following workflow describes how a knowledge article is retired both with (Approve Retire) and without (Instant Retire) approval. The Instant Retire workflow lets you retire articles immediately without needing an approval. The Approval Retire workflow sends an approval request to knowledge managers or experts to make sure that retiring the article is necessary.
    Figure 3. Retire workflow
    The two Retire a knowledge article workflows where the user can retire an article either with an approval from a manager or expert, or they can retire it without approval.

    Review and approve changes to a knowledge article

    The following workflow describes how an existing knowledge article is updated with user feedback.
    Figure 4. User feedback workflow
    Knowledge article is updated and republished with a user feedback workflow.

    Knowledge articles

    Knowledge articles provide information about workplace updates, self-help, troubleshooting steps, and other information that your OT team must access. For example, you can create the following knowledge articles for the following cases:

    • A standard operating procedure template used throughout your organization.
    • Lessons learned during an incident.
    • An image that annotates the different production materials.
    You can view the knowledge articles in the Industrial Workspace in the following ways:
    • Under the Knowledge module in the Industrial Workspace list view.
    • In the Agent Assist window when you open an OT incident.
    • Using the global search feature in the Industrial Workspace header.
    Under the Knowledge module in the Industrial Workspace list view, you can view knowledge articles in the following lists:
    Note:
    You must be assigned the knowledge role to see these list modules in the Industrial Workspace.
    Your unpublished articles
    The articles you’ve created that aren’t yet published in the OT knowledge base.
    Your published articles
    The articles you’ve created that are published to the OT knowledge base.
    All articles
    All articles that are available in the OT knowledge base.