Bring your ServiceNow documentation to the next level with BPMN process models and token simulations

In today’s fast-paced IT environments, thorough documentation is critical for successful implementation and maintenance, and this is particularly relevant for ServiceNow initiatives as well. While textual documentation is important, the human brain naturally processes and retains visual information more effectively. As a result, visual process models can greatly enhance stakeholders' understanding, communication, and decision-making, while overcoming many limitations of the textual descriptions.

Imagine attending a meeting where you need to decide how to optimize an existing process running on your ServiceNow instance. Before redesigning the future-state (TO-BE) of the process, it's crucial to fully understand the current state - the so-called AS-IS process. Instead of sifting through lengthy text descriptions or engaging in theoretical discussions with stakeholders, you are presented with a dynamic process model with a token simulation. This allows you to visually trace how a process instance behaves from start to finish, offering a clear and dynamic view of the flow logic.

Still not convinced? Consider the following model where a ServiceNow instance receives an API call from a third-party system to log incidents on the Incident table. Without prior knowledge of the process or a need for a textual explanation, you can follow the token to grasp the flow logic. This is how documentation can be elevated to the next level!

For better quality, you can download the token simulation in the following link.

Why should I use process models?

Before we delve into BPMN and the token simulation, it's important to address the question: “Why should I use process models?”

1. Process models provide comprehensive insight

Research shows that process models convey subject matter more effectively than any other form of representation, as humans process visual information faster and more efficiently. Process models offer a structured and intuitive way to illustrate workflows, highlighting activities and dependencies that text alone often cannot capture. For example, a visual model of the Incident management process can clearly depict the steps and their sequence, eliminating ambiguities that often arise in poorly written textual descriptions.

2. Process models enhance communication and decision-making

Stakeholders can easily modify the graphical elements of a process model - such as adding, removing, or rearranging steps - and immediately see how these changes affect the flow logic. This capability allows them to run "what-if" scenarios and explore various outcomes dynamically. As a result, communication and decision-making become more flexible, adaptive, and effective compared to relying solely on theoretical discussions or text descriptions, where the effects of process interventions are not as easily demonstrated.

3. Process models facilitate knowledge retention

As business processes evolve, visual process models are generally easier to update and modify than textual documents. This ensures that knowledge is accurately preserved and kept up to date as processes change. Additionally, visual models capture the experience and knowledge of employees, ensuring continuity when employees leave or transition. Unlike textual descriptions, which can be abstract and harder to interpret, visual models facilitate more effective knowledge transfer by providing a clear, intuitive representation of processes, that is easier for new team members to understand and apply.

4. Process models support effective implementation

When looking for success in a ServiceNow initiative, this is often more a matter of good design. In other words, achieving effective implementation often comes down to a sound process model. A well-designed process typically leads to a more robust implementation, as process models serve as blueprints for development, ensuring alignment among stakeholders before implementation begins. This minimizes miscommunication and reduces the risk of costly rework later in the project.

BPMN and token simulation

There are several techniques for graphically representing business processes, but BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation) is the de facto standard in both academia and industry. BPMN is widely chosen due to its comprehensive set of elements, which are designed to model business processes as accurately as possible.

Using BPMN to model ServiceNow processes is particularly effective because ServiceNow operates as a workflow engine, inherently centered around processes. BPMN serves as an ideal, universal notation to capture key components such as process triggers and outcomes, steps and their sequence, stakeholders, and various events.

While modeling a business process with BPMN offers numerous benefits, there is a way to enhance this even further! ServiceNow processes depicted in BPMN (or any other modeling technique) are static representations, and their interpretation depends heavily on the reader's familiarity with the notation. This is where token simulations come into play!

A token represents how an individual process instance is executed. A process instance is a single occurrence or execution of a business process. For example, every time a user raises an incident, it creates one "instance" of the incident management process (e.g., INC0010020). The process itself (logging, assigning, investigating, resolving, and closing the incident) stays the same, but each incident is a separate instance of that process (e.g., INC0010020, INC0010021, etc.).

The token simulation helps visualize how a process instance moves through the workflow. It is like tracking an incident record as it progresses through each step - first, the incident is logged, then assigned to an agent, then is investigated, and finally resolved and closed. The token shows how the process flows step by step. In other words, the token "travels" through the diagram, allowing us to see how the process behaves under different scenarios. This approach provides a more dynamic, practical, and comprehensive understanding of how the process operates end-to-end.

To make it more clear, let's see the following model. Three tokens represent three distinct process instances of the request management process (with one approval and one fulfillment task for simplicity). The green token represents REQ0010020, the light purple token represents REQ0010021, and the red token represents REQ0010022. In other words, each token represents a distinct execution (i.e., process instance) of the request management process. By using token simulations, we can observe how these instances behave through the process.

Several tools are available for this purpose. In this article, Camunda Modeler was used and is highly recommended as an intuitive, easy-to-use, and collaborative tool that supports both BPMN process modeling and token simulations.

Real-world examples: Documenting ServiceNow processes with BPMN process models and token simulations

Let’s explore two practical examples* of documenting the functionality of a scheduled job and a request management process in ServiceNow using BPMN models and token simulations.

Example 1: Documenting the functionality of a Scheduled Job

Textual Description: Daily at 00:00, a scheduled job called "Autoclosure of Problems" is triggered to automatically close Problem records that have been in the "Resolved" state for more than 30 days. A GlideRecord query is used to identify these records, and their state is updated to "Close".

BPMN Representation: This process can be represented visually using BPMN. The model would include the scheduled trigger (Daily at 00:00), the filtering of resolved problem records (GlideRecord query initiation), and the automatic update of their status (update state to "Closed").

Let's take it now to the next level!

Token simulation: To make the BPMN model more dynamic and easier to understand, we can incorporate token simulations. Below, two tokens are presented:

• The green token represents one execution of the scheduled job. It shows the job first initiating a GlideRecord query to find Problem records that had been in the "Resolved" state for more than 30 days. Since records were found, the scheduled job updated their state to "Closed".
• The pink token represents a subsequent execution of the same scheduled job. In this case, the GlideRecord query ran again, but no Problem records matching the criteria were found. As a result, the scheduled job completed without making any updates.

Example 2: Documenting a request fulfillment process

In this example, instead of providing a textual description, I challenge you to explore the BPMN model and the token simulations on your own.

For better readability, the BPMN model is available online, and two token simulations are presented below.

For better quality, you can download the token simulations in the following link.

*While these examples are relatively simple and could be explained with a basic textual description, they still demonstrate how you can enhance your ServiceNow documentation to better capture (complex) real-world processes. Even in these simple examples, the advantages of using a BPMN model with token simulations are clear, providing a more dynamic and interactive way to convey process logic.

Conclusion

When documenting business processes, relying solely on textual descriptions is often inadequate. It’s essential to present information in a way that enhances understanding, improves decision-making, and fosters better communication. By incorporating BPMN process models and features like token simulations, ServiceNow documentation can become more dynamic and actionable. This approach benefits developers, who can implement features based on clearly defined models, and empowers business stakeholders to make informed decisions - leading to successful implementations, a more robust system, and effective knowledge retention.

As mentioned earlier, BPMN was chosen because it constitutes the de facto standard for process modeling in both academia and industry, offering a comprehensive set of graphical elements. While the learning curve for mastering BPMN modeling may appear steep, the investment of time and effort is well worth it.

In conclusion, adopting BPMN process models and token simulations is more than just a best practice - it’s a game changer for creating dynamic documentation, ensuring knowledge retention, and achieving robust implementation in your ServiceNow initiatives!