4 Best Practices to Improve IT Service Visibility with ServiceNow CMDB

Many organizations continue to struggle with data siloes and spreadsheets, hindering their ability to deliver IT services successfully, adapt to changing needs, and smoothly operate their business. Eliminating these siloes and improving service visibility with a modern CMDB (configuration management database) framework lies at the core of efficient IT operations. Available in ServiceNow’s enterprise cloud-based platform, ServiceNow CMDB transforms an IT department’s ability to manage infrastructure efficiently, providing critical visibility into incident management, problem resolution, and maintaining service continuity. 

As organizations migrate more business processes and workflows to the cloud and transform with ServiceNow, having a CMDB has never been more important. It serves as a single record of truth, helping you map and understand the relationships and dependencies between assets, systems, and data supporting business-critical services.

What Is ServiceNow CMDB?

ServiceNow CMDB is a central database repository for configuration items (CIs)—which are all the hardware and software components (servers, applications, networks, data, etc.) that you need to gain visibility over your environment and provide support. As this ServiceNow eBook outlines, it “contains all relevant information about your system components, how they work together, and how they map to business services.” It’s an organized way to store information about the operational environment and is pivotal in managing changes, understanding the impact of incidents, and ensuring the environment is compliant with set standards.

Why is CMDB so important? Imagine trying to conduct a complex enterprise cloud migration or understand the root cause of an incident that led to system downtime (frustrating users and customers). You need the capability to quickly understand related CI or system components at play and assess their role or impact. A consolidated CMBD gives you that visibility, enabling IT leaders to be more strategic in their planning and better respond to and mitigate future issues. 

Best Practices to Optimize ServiceNow CMDB

Without a strong CMDB strategy and solution in place, it can be difficult to prioritize and manage incidents. Additionally, while the CMDB itself may not directly support customers and growth in the sense of sales, its role in optimizing IT operations can have a significant impact on overall business success and customer satisfaction.

As you look to get started or improve your use of CMDB, consider the following four tips to ensure your ServiceNow platform is optimizing efficient CMDB:

• Start with the essentials: Begin by focusing on critical CIs first and then gradually expand. This approach helps in managing the scope and complexity of the CMDB implementation. For example, start with key servers, network devices, and critical applications before moving on to less critical items like peripherals or non-essential software. This will give you a true-north starting place from which to effectively manage IT operations and improve service quality.

• Focus on data quality: Implement processes to check and maintain the accuracy and completeness of the CI data. For instance, establish automated checks to verify that CI information is up-to-date and accurate, reducing the risk of errors impacting operations. Running health scans prior to upgrades will document a baseline and allow IT leadership to view and monitor the data quality journey. A Gartner survey found poor data quality to be responsible for an average of $15 million a year in losses at organizations. So, taking the time to ensure the accuracy of CI data will significantly improve decision-making and operational efficiency, lower risk, and deliver an overall better user experience.

• Conduct regular audits and reviews: Periodic reviews and audits ensure that the CMDB reflects the current state of your IT infrastructure and aligns with business needs. Given the rate of technology change, IT assets are constantly evolving. This can lead to redundant assets or new hardware or software that aren’t updated in the CMDB. These audits help identify discrepancies and areas for improvement, ensuring the CMDB remains a reliable source of truth. Ultimately, maintaining oversight through audits ensures you can adhere to internal policies and standards regarding asset management and data handling—which are critical to maintaining compliance with many industry-specific regulations.  

• Leverage automated discovery: Take advantage of ServiceNow’s automated discovery capabilities to identify and map all IT components in your environment. The key benefit here is that it ensures your CMBD stays up to date without having to rely on highly manual data entry—making the process a lot faster and reducing the risk of human error. For this reason, automated discovery within ServiceNow is not only valuable in setting up the CMBD and building that initial baseline of your IT infrastructure, but also for ongoing audits and reviews. Start by scheduling regular discoveries for critical components and gradually expand to cover the entire infrastructure.

Getting Started with CMDB

A well-integrated CMDB, when combined with robust configuration and operations management practices, can transform an IT department’s ability to manage infrastructure efficiently. Despite its challenges, the value of a CMDB in achieving greater transparency and control over IT processes cannot be overstated. As IT environments continue to grow in complexity, the role of the CMDB is likely to become even more critical, making it essential for organizations to invest in these tools and processes effectively.

To learn how Navisite, part of Accenture, can help you implement, support, and achieve optimal service visibility with ServiceNow CMDB, contact us today.