Summary

In this Chapter:

Table of Contents
Executive Summary

_CHAPTER

00

Executive Summary

_CHAPTER

01

ServiceNow Adoption Trends: Tenure and Team Composition

_CHAPTER

02

Operational Practices: Deployment, Upgrades, and Cloning

_CHAPTER

03

Governance, Compliance, and Security Practices

_CHAPTER

04

_CHAPTER

05

_CHAPTER

06

_CHAPTER

07

Technology Adoption: GenAI and Module/Product Expansion

Challenges Across Cohorts

Industry-Specific Insights

Conclusion

Executive Summary

As organizations expand their ServiceNow footprint, they face increasing complexity in balancing rapid delivery with effective governance and instance management. The State of ServiceNow Operations Report 2024 analyzes customer behaviors, operational patterns, and emerging trends to help platform owners optimize their ServiceNow operations and industry trends.

This report synthesizes insights from our inaugural annual survey conducted in Q4 of 2024, revealing nuanced patterns in how organizations approach ServiceNow delivery, instance management, and operational governance as they mature.

Key Findings

of respondents have used ServiceNow for 3-5 years, with 27% exceeding 10 years.

of respondents operate with medium-sized development teams (6-15 members). In Financial Services, larger teams (16+ members) are prevalent, reflecting the complexity of regulatory environments.

of respondents release new features weekly, while 5% manage daily deployments—a key indicator of operational agility.

Customer Tenure and Platform Maturity:

Team Structures and Deployment Practices:

41%

50%

35%

Key Findings, Continued…

of respondents frequently experience disruptions due to clone-down processes, leading to extended downtimes and delayed feature releases.

of respondents have already integrated ServiceNow’s GenAI innovations.

nearly all organizations plan to onboard at least one new ServiceNow module in the next 12 months, demonstrating the platform’s expanding role in the enterprise.

plan to implement GenAI within the next year, signaling a growing focus on smart automation and productivity enhancement.

Cloning issues are particularly acute in heavily regulated industries, where 91% report frequent disruptions.

still manage audit logs using spreadsheets, leaving systems vulnerable to compliance breaches.

limit admin privileges to only development instances, a potential risk factor for production environment security.

of healthcare respondents maintain no formal audit records, despite stringent regulatory requirements.

Operational Bottlenecks:

Adoption of GenAI:

Future ServiceNow Expansion:

Governance, Compliance, and Security Gaps:

70%

14%

~100%

70%

30%

25%

20%

91%

Challenges Across Different Cohorts

Conclusion: Driving Operational Excellence with ServiceNow

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Customization vs. Standardization emerges as the top challenge across industries and team sizes.

The survey highlights an industry-wide push toward improving governance, streamlining operations, and enhancing platform scalability. As organizations increasingly adopt GenAI and expand their ServiceNow usage, addressing operational bottlenecks and refining governance structures will be essential.

●

Governance and Compliance consistently rank as major concerns, especially in sectors with stringent regulatory frameworks.

Organizations that successfully overcome challenges related to cloning disruptions, administrative privilege management, and audit logging will gain significant advantages in speed, security, and compliance. The rise of GenAI and module expansions suggests a growing need for solutions that enhance automation, visibility, and governance—an opportunity for ServiceNow teams to redefine operational excellence in the coming years.