Universal Request versus Interaction Records (New Call record)

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Universal Request versus Interaction Records (New Call record)

    Universal Request and Interaction Records (also known as New Call records) are tools used by agents across departments to manage employee or customer interactions. They serve different purposes in handling requests and recording interactions during live chats or phone calls.

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    Interaction Record

    An Interaction Record is a temporary note-taking record used by agents during live conversations. It helps capture the initial interaction details and determine the next steps. From an Interaction Record, agents can:

    • Attach the interaction to an existing request (e.g., IT incident, HR case, or Universal Request)
    • Create a new department-specific ticket (e.g., IT incident or HR case)
    • Create a Universal Request and assign it to a Tier 1 agent or assignment group in a specific department

    This record is internal to agents and not visible to the requester.

    Universal Request

    A Universal Request is created from an Interaction Record when a new task needs to be escalated or transferred to another department’s Tier 1 assignment group. It acts as a requester-facing task record and serves as a parent record for child tickets like incidents (INC), HR cases (HRC), and custom tasks.

    For example, if an employee cannot find relevant information on the self-service portal and selects "Request help," a Universal Request is created to track and resolve the issue across departments.

    Key Differences

    • Purpose: Interaction Records capture initial interactions; Universal Requests manage task resolution and escalation.
    • Visibility: Universal Requests are visible to requesters on their ticket list; Interaction Records are not requester-facing.
    • Functionality: Universal Requests enable cross-departmental transfers and unified ticket experiences; Interaction Records do not.
    • Reporting: Universal Requests support cross-departmental SLA and reporting; Interaction Records do not.
    • Task Type: Universal Request is a task type and parent record; Interaction Record is not a task type.

    What This Enables for ServiceNow Customers

    Understanding the distinction between Interaction Records and Universal Requests allows agents to efficiently manage and escalate requests, ensuring smooth handoffs between departments while providing requesters with transparency on their issues. This setup supports cross-department collaboration and comprehensive reporting, improving service delivery and employee satisfaction.

    Universal request and interaction records are created and used by agents of various departments. However, they differ in the way they are handled. The following information provides an overview of both the records and how they differ from each other.

    Interaction Record

    An Interaction Record or a New Call record is used by an agent to take notes and determine the next steps during a live chat or a phone call. From an Interaction Record, an agent can perform one of the following actions:
    • Attach the interaction to an existing request, such as an IT incident, an HR case, or a Universal Request.
    • Create a new department ticket, such as an IT incident or an HR case.
    • Create a Universal Request and assign it to a Tier 1 agent or assignment group in a specific department.
    Let's say an agent gets a live chat from a customer who is experiencing a technical problem. The agent documents the conversation in an interaction record and determines that the issue needs expertise of IT department. To ensure a seamless hand off, the agent creates an IT incident.

    Universal Request

    A Universal Request is created from an Interaction Record or New Call record when an agent determines that a new task record must be transferred to a different department by assigning it to a Tier 1 assignment group.

    Let's say an employee wants to find specific information about medical benefits on the company's self-service portal. The employee searches for information about medical benefits and finds no relevant catalog items. In this case, the employee can select Request help on the portal to create a universal request.

    The following table lists the high-level differences between an Interaction Record and a Universal Request.

    Table 1. Differences between Universal Request and Interaction Record
    Universal Request Interaction Record
    Universal Requests are task records used by Tier 1 agents to either resolve or escalate an employee issue through any channel. Interaction records are temporary records used by agents to capture initial interactions with an employee from a chat or phone call. The agent determines whether to create a new task record or add it to an existing record.
    Universal Requests are requester-facing records. The universal requests are listed on the requester's ticket list page. They can view the individual tickets in the standard ticket page. Interaction records are not requester-facing records.
    Universal Request is a task type that agents work on. Universal Request supports cross-departmental ticket transfers and a unified ticket page experience for the requester. Interaction record is not a task type.
    Universal Request is a task type that serves as a parent record for other records that are created as child records, such as INC, HRC, and custom task types. It is also used for all cross-departmental reporting. Interaction records cannot be used for cross-departmental SLA reporting.