The Best 10 Features of ServiceNow's San Diego Release

What you need to know from a ServiceNow Partner’s Perspective

ServiceNow’s newest release is out! Here is what you should know:

ServiceNow releases always include new features and improvements. This release is said to add new levels of productivity, automation, and innovation wherever work happens using these smarter experiences on the Now Platform.

If you are an existing ServiceNow customer, you probably know that each release is named after a city in alphabetical order. This release is named San Diego because it follows the pattern of Quebec, Rome and now San Diego (Q, R, S…). Releases happen twice a quarter and ServiceNow announced this release in late March.

What to Expect

Next Experience UI (Polaris)
- Modern, intuitive and personalized workplaces to engage teams and increase productivity in a single platform
Automation Engine
- Automate UI actions and connect ServiceNow to modern and legacy systems
Purpose-built industry solutions for Banking, Insurance, Technology and Telecom
- Modernize insurance operations
- Create transparent and repeatable processes for banking
- Launch services quickly and streamline experiences for Technology and Telecom

Modern, intuitive and personalized workplaces to engage teams and increase productivity in a single platform

Automate UI actions and connect ServiceNow to modern and legacy systems

What to Expect

Next Experience UI (Polaris)
- Modern, intuitive and personalized workplaces to engage teams and increase productivity in a single platform
Automation Engine
- Automate UI actions and connect ServiceNow to modern and legacy systems
Purpose-built industry solutions for Banking, Insurance, Technology and Telecom
- Modernize insurance operations
- Create transparent and repeatable processes for banking
- Launch services quickly and streamline experiences for Technology and Telecom

Product Updates Include Changes to:

Customer Service Management (CSM)
Employee Experience (HRSD)
IT Service Management (ITSM)
IT Operations Management (ITOM)
Legal Service Delivery
Safe Workplace
Security Operations (SecOps)
Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) (Formerly ITBM)

Learn about each product in depth by booking a meeting with CRI Advantage or visiting ServiceNow’s San Diego Fact Sheet. If you would like to know about Platform Release Features, we will be listing out many of the noteworthy features in the next few paragraphs.

The Best 10 Features of ServiceNow’s San Diego Release

Platform Release Features Include:

Next Experience UI
Integration Hub
Virtual Agent
App Engine Studio
UI Builder
Mobile App Builder
Flow Designer
Security Updates
Automated Test Framework (ATF)
Studio

Contact CRI Advantage for Help or Upgrade Questions

We know there are things that fall through the cracks when upgrading or implementing a new product. That’s why we are here to help you navigate your upgrade or implementation. Working with CRI as your trusted partner can help improve your efficiency and productivity. Focus on your business, while we do the heavy lifting.

Platform Release Features:

1. Next Experience UI

This is the update that we are most excited about! Because the User Interface makes up most of the experience of the user, we’re seeing a big shift with the Next Experience UI. We think that users will be just as excited as we are for this new UI.

New landing page with a fun theme
The menu has moved to the top and can be pinned
Dropdown menus include favorites, history, and workspaces
The search bar now includes filtering
You can now “star” items to add them to your favorites
User Menu now has access to themes like “dark mode” to help with eye fatigue
Lists are now fullscreen
Links are now blue

2. Integration Hub

With this new change, you can now upload excel files. No need to code. Integration Hub is only available with an App Engine License.

New source configuration to import data from an excel file
Now use the excel integration directly from the app engine

3. Virtual agent

This is an application that we really like. It’s a useful function with 24/7 availability. Virtual agent provides an additional and personal layer of self-help.

A new app called conversational home
Monitor all virtual agents from one place

4. App Engine Studio (AES)

We think the App Engine Studio is a big deal. It’s a creator’s dream within the IT world. This feature has been around since Quebec, but with San Diego, it is easier for low code development. Another big change is that it is now integrated with the Process Automation Designer. AES is only available with an App Engine License.

New Form Builder
- Can now create app templates with Template Authoring, it’s possible for you to create common templates based on use cases that you see
- Start from scratch or use an existing app
Process Automation Designer integration (PAD)
- Enable users to update PAD processes within the UI
- Playbook test button to test and debug playbooks as you build
App Engine Management Center to manage all aspects of the app development processes
- Collaboration tasks
- Pipeline monitoring

Can now create app templates with Template Authoring, it’s possible for you to create common templates based on use cases that you see
Start from scratch or use an existing app

Enable users to update PAD processes within the UI
Playbook test button to test and debug playbooks as you build

New Form Builder
- Can now create app templates with Template Authoring, it’s possible for you to create common templates based on use cases that you see
- Start from scratch or use an existing app
Process Automation Designer integration (PAD)
- Enable users to update PAD processes within the UI
- Playbook test button to test and debug playbooks as you build
App Engine Management Center to manage all aspects of the app development processes
- Collaboration tasks
- Pipeline monitoring

5. UI Builder

With UI Builder, you can build pages for configurable workspaces. This feature was enhanced and updated to support a low code environment.

Repeater will repeat a component or multiple components inside of a loop
Grid layouts without using code
Now supports a formula editor

6. Mobile App Builder

We like this feature because it allows you to preview what is built-in design. Updates to Mobile App Builder extend functionality enabling users to perform configurations for mobile features.

More screen configurations so you don’t need to go back to the platform
No code mobile development experience

7. Flow Designer

Flow designer components enable you to invoke flows or sub flows that are designed in the Flow Designer as part of the Workflow. We’re excited about this change because it may address the concerns about the previous version of flow designer, like parity with legacy workflows. “Try” should be a beneficial way to trap errors as it will enable you to run the actions inside the try-block. If any failure occurs – you can act by choosing the “if error occurs after step x…” “Try” allows the flow to continue.

Low code way to automate your processes
New diagramming view – providing a simplified and more intuitive way to add and edit components.
You’ll be able to see all relationships between components.
Try/catch added to flow logic menu
- Allows designers to trap potential errors and continue the flow.

Allows designers to trap potential errors and continue the flow.

8. Security

As a company that offers cybersecurity services, we appreciate the updates made to security. There have been additional measures taken to protect your ServiceNow accounts. Upgrading to this release should provide the most secure and up-to-date features.

Multifactor Authentication (MFA) and Single Sign Off (SSO) for specific companies/users
- Add challenges
New tokens for multiple devices
OpenID has been implemented for Facebook

Multifactor Authentication (MFA) and Single Sign Off (SSO) for specific companies/users
- Add challenges
New tokens for multiple devices
OpenID has been implemented for Facebook

9. Automated Test Framework (ATF)

This feature enables you to create and run automated tests to confirm that your instance works after making a change. Updates made to ATF should provide a few benefits, like replacing manual testing with automated testing, which could reduce upgrade and development time.

Set breakpoints by right-clicking
ATF Debug test – new pause before rollback checkbox

10. Studio

This feature is the preferred interface for building and modifying applications. With new updates to Studio, you should be able to easily publish applications to the ServiceNow app repository and so much more.

Stash changes are fixed, we can preview changes stored in a stash
Create and edit applications
Publish your company’s apps and changes directly to the application repository, and publish other company’s apps

Contact CRI Advantage for Help or Upgrade Questions

We know there are things that fall through the cracks when upgrading or implementing a new product. That’s why we are here to help you navigate your upgrade or implementation. Working with CRI as your trusted partner can help improve your efficiency and productivity. Focus on your business, while we do the heavy lifting.

Learn about each product in depth by booking a meeting with CRI Advantage or visiting ServiceNow’s San Diego Fact Sheet.

Sources:

https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/sandiego-release-notes/page/release-notes/family-release-notes.htm

Images used –

TechNow Ep 93 | Meet the Now Platform San Diego Release Platform Features