ServiceNow Interview process-based questions and answers

1. A major incident occurs where a business-critical application goes down during working hours. Describe the steps you would take in ServiceNow to handle this situation, from incident logging to resolution.

      Answer:

1. Incident Logging:
   • Immediately log the incident in the ServiceNow incident module. Assign a priority of P1 (Critical) due to its impact on business operations.
   • Use fields like Category (e.g., Application), Business Impact, and Affected Service to provide detailed information.
2. Incident Categorization and Prioritization:
   • Confirm the correct categorization and prioritization. Set Priority 1 (Urgency: High, Impact: High) based on the scale of the outage.
3. Incident Assignment and Communication:
   • Automatically route the incident to the Major Incident Team or Incident Manager using ServiceNow's workflows.
   • Notify key stakeholders using Notification features in ServiceNow, ensuring the incident is visible to the IT Management and affected business users.
4. Engagement of Resolver Groups:
   • Escalate the incident to the appropriate resolver group (e.g., Application Support Team).
   • Use Assignment Rules to ensure the incident is assigned to the right team quickly.
5. Update Users and Stakeholders:
   • Use Major Incident Communication to keep stakeholders informed of the progress, including frequent updates.
   • Update the Incident Timeline in ServiceNow to provide real-time updates on incident resolution status.
6. Incident Resolution:
   • After the resolver team fixes the issue, update the incident status to Resolved, ensuring all resolution details are documented (e.g., Root Cause, Steps Taken).
7. Incident Closure and Review:
   • After monitoring for stability, close the incident. Conduct a Post-Incident Review using ServiceNow's Problem Management module to document any potential problems and lessons learned.

Question 2: A critical security vulnerability is discovered, and an emergency patch needs to be applied to production servers immediately. Describe how you would use the ServiceNow Change Management process to handle this situation.

Answer:

1. Create an Emergency Change Request:
   • Log an Emergency Change in the Change Management module of ServiceNow.
   • Select the Change Type as Emergency and provide detailed information about the security vulnerability and the patch that needs to be applied.
2. Impact and Risk Assessment:
   • Assess the Impact and Risk of applying the emergency patch. Use the Risk Assessment feature to evaluate the potential risk to production systems.
   • Document any potential service downtime and affected services within the change request.
3. Approval Process:
   • Since it's an emergency change, the approval process is expedited. Automatically route the change for approval to the Change Manager and any CAB (Change Advisory Board) members involved in emergency approvals using Change Workflow.
4. Notify Stakeholders:
   • Use ServiceNow's Notification functionality to inform affected stakeholders, including business owners and IT management, about the upcoming emergency change.
5. Change Implementation:
   • Once the change is approved, schedule the patch deployment immediately.
   • Use Implementation Plans and Back-out Plans in the change record to ensure proper tracking of the deployment process and rollback procedures.
6. Post-Implementation Review:
   • After the patch is successfully applied, conduct a Post-Implementation Review (PIR) using the ServiceNow Change Management module.
   • Document any issues encountered during implementation and ensure the change is properly closed.

Question 3: You need to streamline the process for employees to request new laptops through the Service Catalog. What steps would you take to create and manage this process in ServiceNow?

Answer:

1. Create a Service Catalog Item:
   • In the Service Catalog module, create a new catalog item named "Laptop Request".
   • Define fields such as Requested For, Laptop Model, Specifications, and any other options the user may choose (e.g., operating system, accessories).
2. Approval Workflow:
   • Design an Approval Workflow using Flow Designer or Workflow Editor. Route approvals to the Manager of the requester, and, if necessary, to the IT Asset Management Team for budget confirmation.
3. Define Fulfillment Process:
   • Configure the Fulfillment Process using ServiceNow's Request Fulfillment module. Assign the fulfillment tasks to the IT Asset Team or Procurement Team based on the laptop request.
   • Ensure tasks like Procurement, Setup, and Delivery are tracked and assigned to the appropriate teams.
4. Notifications:
   • Set up Notifications to inform the user of the progress of their request (e.g., "Request Approved," "Laptop Shipped").
5. Automated Inventory Check:
   • Integrate the service request with the Asset Management module to automatically check inventory levels for the requested laptop models. If out of stock, create an automated task for procurement.
6. User Satisfaction:
   • After the laptop is delivered and the service request is closed, send a Satisfaction Survey to gather feedback on the process and improve the service if necessary.

Question 4: The IT team has noticed that duplicate incidents are being created frequently, leading to confusion and inefficiency. How would you address this issue within ServiceNow to ensure that duplicate incidents are minimized?

Answer:
To handle duplicate incidents in ServiceNow, follow these steps:

1. Define Duplicate Detection Rules:
   • Business Rule: Create a Business Rule to run on the "Before Insert" or "Before Update" event. This rule should compare key fields such as the incident description, short description, and caller information to identify potential duplicates.

     var gr = new GlideRecord('incident');
     gr.addQuery('short_description', current.short_description);
     gr.addQuery('caller_id', current.caller_id);
     gr.addQuery('sys_id', '!=', current.sys_id);  // Exclude the current record
     gr.query();
      if (gr.next()) {
         gs.addErrorMessage('A similar incident already exists.');
         current.setAbortAction(true);  // Prevent the new incident from being created
     }

2. Use Data Lookup Rules:
   • Data Lookup: Implement Data Lookup Rules to automatically identify and link duplicate incidents based on predefined criteria.
3. Implement Duplicate Detection in the Incident Form:
   • Client Script: Add a Client Script to check for duplicate incidents when a user is creating a new record. This can prompt the user to review existing incidents before finalizing the new entry.
4. Review and Merge Duplicates:
   • Regularly review incidents for duplicates using reports and dashboards. Merge duplicates using the ServiceNow merge functionality to consolidate incident records and ensure proper tracking.

Question 5: An urgent issue arises that requires an emergency change to be implemented immediately. What steps should be taken to ensure that the emergency change is handled properly within the ServiceNow Change Management process?

Answer:
For handling emergency changes, follow these steps:

1. Create an Emergency Change Request:
   • Record Creation: Navigate to the Change Request module and create a new Change Request with the type set to "Emergency."
   • Field Population: Fill in the required fields, including the description of the emergency, reason for the change, and impact assessment.
2. Follow the Change Process for Emergency Requests:
   • Approval: In ServiceNow, emergency changes usually bypass the normal approval process due to their urgency. Ensure that the appropriate approvals are obtained as quickly as possible, which may include rapid approvals from key stakeholders or managers.
   • Implementation: Implement the change as soon as it is approved. Ensure that the implementation plan is followed, and document any deviations from the plan.
3. Post-Implementation Review:
   • Review: After the change is implemented, conduct a post-implementation review to assess the outcome and document any issues or lessons learned.
   • Closure: Update the Change Request with the details of the implementation and close the request once all activities are complete and the change is verified to be successful.
4. Communicate with Stakeholders:
   • Notification: Inform relevant stakeholders about the emergency change, including any impact or downtime that occurred.
5. Document the Emergency Change:
   • Documentation: Ensure that all relevant details of the emergency change are documented in the Change Request for future reference and compliance purposes.