Strategic Planning release notes

Release version: Brazil
Updated September 10, 2026
15 minutes to read

The ServiceNow® Strategic Planning application helps you accomplish end-to-end planning using a single workspace. See the following sections for release notes by version.

About Strategic Planning

  • Define and manage strategic plans, goals, and targets while aligning planning items across portfolio plans, enterprise agile iterations, and organizational hierarchies to drive business outcomes.
  • Prioritize, roadmap, and score work items using predefined or custom lenses, with support for capacity planning, financial planning, and scenario planning to optimize portfolio decisions.
  • Capture and assess customer feedback and demands through configurable playbooks, using AI to summarize, identify similar items, and accelerate prioritization before converting them into work items.
  • Track risks, issues, decisions, actions, and changes (RIDAC) across planning items, iterations, and goals, and gain actionable insights through dashboards covering strategy, planning, feedback, and execution.

See Strategic Planning for more information.

Activation and other requirements

Activation information
Install Strategic Planning by requesting it from the ServiceNow Store. Visit the ServiceNow Store to view all the available apps, and for information about submitting requests to the store.

Version 4.19.0

The version 4.19.0 release adds capabilities for demand management and Enterprise Agile Planning (EAP). You can partition demand data by department or business unit and define demand experiences that control fields, modules, and layout. Scrum and Kanban teams can plan under the same Agile Release Train in EAP. Goal targets support Maintain types and unique numbers, and target type changes keep recorded actuals.

What's new

Enterprise-wide deployment for demands
Partition demand data by any criteria, such as department or business unit, using Enterprise-Wide Deployment (EWD) partitioning on the Demand table and related entities. Demands are stamped with a matching partition, and users see only the demands, list views, search results, and dashboards for the partitions their role grants them.

EWD for demands includes the following functionalities:

  • Demand experiences: Define the way a particular demand should work including its form view, modules, and dynamic attributes. For example, a particular view or certain functions available on a demand or menu items hidden or visible for different types of demands.
  • Demand partitions: Control the data visible to different users.
  • Demand partitions dashboard: Dedicated dashboard for different demand partitions.
Smart assessments for demands
Smart assessments are now available for demands, which are triggered on moving the demand to screening. These assessments are controlled by the sn_align_ws.enable_smart_assessments system property. After this property is enabled, smart assessments are triggered for the new demands and the ones that aren't yet in the screening state.

The smart assessment form is more intuitive and supports text-based questions. The assessments are available at the individual demand record and in a consolidated Smart Assessments module in the main navigation menu. This module displays all assigned smart assessments across demands.

Resource profiling for demands
Plan and manage resource assignments for a demand from the Resources tab in Next Experience for Demand Management. The resource board shows assignments alongside resource capacity so you can confirm availability before converting a demand to a project. Create, copy, move, split, end, or reassign resource assignments directly from the grid, group by primary group, role, or skill, and use the allocation heatmap to identify over-allocated and available resources. Use the Resource Finder to get fit-scored, ranked resource recommendations with rationale for unassigned work.
Kanban teams in the portfolio structure in EAP
Run Scrum and Kanban teams under the same Agile Release Train (ART). Select a planning methodology when you add a team to an ART, or set the Planning methodology field on an existing team. Kanban teams plan from the team backlog: sprint controls are hidden, planning intervals skip them, and the Home page shows the Kanban Team dashboard. Both team types appear side by side on the ART planning board.
Maintain-type targets

Track targets that must hold steady across every check-in period using the Maintain above, Maintain below, and Maintain constant target types. Each breakdown period's planned target defaults to the final target value, or 0 if no final value is set, and you can edit it for each period. Target progress is the share of periods that met the condition: at or above the target for Maintain above, at or below it for Maintain below, and within a tolerance band around it for Maintain constant. The default tolerance band is ±5%, and administrators can change it with the sn_gf.maintain_constant_tolerance_percent system property. For example, a Maintain above target of 75 with quarterly actuals of 78, 72, 80, and 76 shows 75% progress, because one of the four quarterly actuals didn't meet the target.

When you change the start date, end date, or final target value, the breakdowns and planned values adjust automatically and actuals in the remaining periods are kept. The Target value distribution field is hidden for Maintain types.

Unique numbers and prefixes for goals and targets
Differentiate goals and targets that share a name across teams by using the Number field. Goals use the OBJ prefix and targets use the KR prefix, for example OBJ0004512 and KR0009871. The number appears on goal and target forms, list views, board views, and exports. The GF - Override Goal and Target Number fields with customized prefixes scheduled job updates existing GOAL and TRGT numbers to OBJ and KR and keeps the numeric portion. An administrator can run the scheduled job to override default populated prefixes.

What's changed

Switching a team to Kanban in EAP
Sprints that aren't complete are cancelled when you set a team's Planning methodology to Kanban, including the team's current sprint. Completed and cancelled sprints aren't changed, and work items stay assigned to the sprints that were cancelled. A team connected to Collaborative Work Management (CWM) can't be switched to Kanban while it has active or planned sprints.
Planning methodology on existing teams in EAP
Each existing agile team is assigned a planning methodology when you upgrade: Scrum if the team or its configuration has a business calendar, Kanban if neither has one. Because Kanban teams don't show sprint controls, review any team created without a business calendar and set its Planning methodology to Scrum if that team plans in sprints.
Automatic status for Maintain type targets
Automatic status calculation extends to Maintain type targets. Each breakdown period is set to Green when its actual meets the Maintain condition and Red when it doesn't.
Target type changes
Change a target's type after actuals are recorded, without deleting and recreating the target. Actuals to date are kept and recorded in the latest breakdown period. Planned values are recalculated for the new type, and progress is evaluated under the new type's logic. A confirmation message appears before the change is applied, and selecting Cancel keeps the previous type and data. Type changes are captured in the audit history.
Unit of measure on targets
Select the target type before the unit of measure when you create a target. Milestone sets the unit of measure to Yes/No, and Maximize, Minimize, and Maintain types default to Count. Later type changes keep the unit of measure you selected. If it isn't valid for the new type, you're prompted to pick one. This applies to the target modals in Enterprise Goals and portfolio plan goals, and to inline editing in the target list.
No status label
The None status choice is labeled No status for goals, strategic priorities, targets, target progress, and target breakdowns.
RIDAC by portfolio and program
View decisions alongside other RIDAC items for portfolios and programs when you open RIDAC from the Strategic Planning Workspace RIDAC menu. The Portfolio Risks and Program Risks menus are renamed RIDAC by Portfolio and RIDAC by Program.
Target generation for Maintain-type targets
Generate Maintain above, Maintain below, and Maintain constant targets with ServiceNow Otto target generation skill for goals that sustain a level rather than move toward one, such as platform uptime, a cost ceiling, or team headcount. When a Maintain type is suggested, the target modal shows the threshold value and hides the start value field. Review the suggested type and change it if needed before you save the target.
Goal insights for Maintain-type targets
ServiceNow Otto goal insights include Maintain-type targets (Maintain above, Maintain below, and Maintain constant) when summarizing goal progress.
Resource assignment offsets when converting a demand to a project
When a demand with resource assignments is converted to a project, assignment offsets are recalculated against the project's schedule, which counts only the working days defined in the project schedule, instead of the demand, which has no schedule and counts every calendar day.
Execution URL on planning item demands
Run the Update Demand Planning Item Execution URL scheduled job to update the execution URLs on your existing demands to the latest format.
Roadmap export range
The maximum date range for exporting a roadmap to PowerPoint increased from 1 year to 3 years, within the start and end dates of the portfolio. The exported timescale adjusts to the range you select: months for a range of 1 year or less, and quarters for a range longer than 1 year.
Program portfolio plan enhancements
  • Program details — Select the information icon next to the program name to view the planning item types, program timeline, and program manager.
  • Program value for new items — When you create a demand or project from a program portfolio plan, the Program field is prefilled with that program.
  • Prioritization default layout — The default Prioritization view shows the Rank, Name, Planning state, Planning item type, Status, Cost status, Resource status, Schedule status, Scope status, Percent complete, Primary goal, and Owner columns.
  • Goals tab — Program portfolio plans include the Goals tab, which shows all primary and non-primary goals linked to the planning items in the plan, along with goals assigned directly to the program.
  • Public views — Any user who can access a program portfolio plan can create and update its public views. Previously, only plan editors could create or update public views.

Version 4.18.0

The version 4.18.0 delivers dedicated RIDAC pages within portfolio plans to consolidate portfolio governance (risks, issues, decisions, actions, requested changes) in one interface. Programs enhanced experience provides automatic dedicated planning views for every program with zero setup required. Additional enhancements include automated cost recalculation, scenario approval notifications, automatic target status calculation, and Scrum configuration options in Enterprise Agile Planning.

What's new

RIDAC for portfolio plans
Access portfolio risks, issues, decisions, actions, and requested changes (RIDAC) directly from the portfolio plan using the dedicated RIDAC page within the portfolio plan. View all portfolio governance items in a single, integrated interface without navigating to the separate RIDAC menu. The RIDAC page reduces context-switching and improves portfolio visibility by consolidating governance data. The portfolio plan RIDAC displays the RIDAC items that match the portfolio plan's criteria or belong to the planning items of that portfolio plan.
Show or hide RIDAC page of a portfolio plan
As a portfolio manager, show or hide the RIDAC page of your portfolio plan. This capability helps you share only the portfolio plan data that matters to your stakeholders and restrict access to the other data.
Programs enhanced experience
Access dedicated program planning views automatically created with zero setup. Navigate to the new Programs menu and click any program to open its dedicated plan with Prioritization, Roadmap, Kanban, and Financials views. New programs get plans instantly; existing programs receive them through an automatic one-time backfill (500 at a time, newest first). Role-based access ensures users with the sn_align_core.ap_read_only role can read, users with the sn_align_core.apw_user role can manage items, and program managers are automatic plan owners.
Program-scoped data with fiscal calendar support
View and manage program-scoped planning data in a focused, streamlined interface. Program plans display only that program's planning items. The Financials tab defaults to your fiscal calendar; if the fiscal calendar doesn't span the program dates, the system gracefully falls back to Gregorian with an explanatory message. Making the portfolio plan public and scenario planning for these program portfolio plans are hidden.
Automated email notification for scenario approval
Receive email notification when a scenario is approved. The system sends the notification to the scenario approver and portfolio owner. During the approval process, the portfolio plan becomes read-only to prevent unintended modifications and maintain data integrity.
Automatic status calculation for targets

Automatically determine target status based on actual achievement percentages. When you enter actual values for a target period, the system compares the achievement percentage against predefined thresholds and automatically assigns a status (Green, Yellow, or Red). This eliminates manual status selection, reducing data entry errors and improving organizational governance.

Status is calculated and updated when you enter actual values using the formula: ((Actual Value - Start Value) / (Planned Target - Start Value)) x 100. Target owners can override automatically calculated status values at any time. If you update the actual value after a manual override, the system recalculates the status automatically.

Configure automatic status calculation thresholds

Enable administrators to customize automatic status calculation thresholds and enable or disable the feature based on organizational requirements. By default, automatic status calculation is enabled with system-defined thresholds of Green (≥90%), Yellow (75-89%), and Red (<75%).

Administrators can adjust threshold percentages using the system property sn_gfa.target.auto_status.thresholds. To disable automatic status calculation and revert to manual status selection, set the system property to false.

Scrum Configuration in Enterprise Agile Planning
Set up teams that run Sprints without a Planning Interval above them by using the Scrum Configuration in Enterprise Agile Planning. It defines a single team level of the type Agile Team and allows the Epic and Story work item types. Story is the default work item type for that level and is mapped to the new Scrum Sprint planning calendar. The Epic methodology field is set to Scrum. Like the other default configurations, the Scrum Configuration is inactive until you activate it.
Unique iteration cadence for each team in Enterprise Agile Planning
Let each team set its own iteration dates by selecting Allow unique cadence for each team on an Enterprise Agile Planning configuration. If the configuration has planning calendars at more than one team level, each top-level team receives its own calendar. If the configuration has a single level of iterations, such as Sprints only, the iterations carry their own start and end dates instead of following a planning calendar entry. Teams that you add after you select this option receive a unique calendar, and teams that already exist continue to use the default calendar of the configuration.
Spillover and New scope fields on iterations in Enterprise Agile Planning
See how the scope of a Sprint moved during its run by using the Spillover and New scope fields on the Enterprise agile iteration [sn_apw_advanced_eap_iteration] record. Spillover is the sum of the story points of the committed stories that are no longer in the iteration when it completes. New scope is the sum of the story points of the stories that were added after the iteration started. Both fields are read-only and are calculated when you complete the iteration. Select a value to open the stories that it counts.
Copy and customize the demand summarization skill
Tailor demand summaries to your organization's process by copying the base demand summarization skill and customizing it with your own input fields, related entities, and prompt. When you activate a copy of the demand summarization skill, the previously active skill, either the base skill or an earlier copy, is automatically deactivated. Only one version of the skill can be active at a time.
Work with demands in Employee Slate
Create and track demands without leaving the conversation-first Employee Slate workspace. Describe the demand in a conversation to have matching catalog items identified and relevant fields prepopulated from your message, then track its status, activity, and progress using the new My Demands widget on your canvas or the standard Requests widget. Demands appear in Employee Slate only when both Project Workspace and Employee Slate Core apps are installed.

What's changed

Financials
Added in-context help (hover info icons) on the Financials page widgets, explaining how the key fields like Budget, EAC, Planned Cost, Actuals, Return, ROI, and NPV are calculated.
Enterprise Agile Planning configuration options
  • The Have unique calendars option is renamed to Allow unique cadence for each team.
  • An EAP admin can now clear the Allow unique cadence for each team option after selecting it. Selecting the option doesn't change the calendars or the iterations that already exist.
  • The Scrum Sprint planning calendar type is available by default, alongside Planning Interval and Sprint.
Iteration dates in Enterprise Agile Planning
  • The Enterprise agile calendar entry field on the Enterprise agile iteration [sn_apw_advanced_eap_iteration] table is no longer mandatory, which supports iterations that carry their own start and end dates. A fix script makes the field optional when you upgrade.
  • Users with the sn_apw_advanced.eap_user role can set the start date and the end date while they create an iteration. They can change those dates afterward on an iteration that doesn't follow a planning calendar entry. However, changing the dates on an iteration that follows a planning calendar entry still requires the sn_apw_advanced.eap_scrum_master role.
Sprint sync with Agile Development 2.0
  • Sprints that don't follow a planning calendar entry now sync to Agile Development 2.0 by using the start date and the end date on the iteration.
  • Changing the start date or the end date of an iteration now updates the dates on the corresponding Sprint in Agile Development 2.0.
Program planning updates and enhancements
  • Programs menu addition — A new Programs menu has been added to the workspace as L2 menu, positioned below Portfolio Plan. This menu lists every program in your portfolio and provides single-click navigation to each program's enhanced planning view.
  • Role-based access for program planning — Users with the sn_align_core.ap_read_only role have read access to program plans (where they already have program-level read access). Users with the sn_align_core.apw_admin and program manager roles receive full access to create, update, and manage planning items within program plans
Summarize demands with the demand summarization skill
The default trigger is not set to Automatic for demands in any state. You can select how you want the skill to be triggered for any state.

What's deprecated or removed

Now LLM Service
Starting with the September 2026 release, Gemma 4 joins our growing portfolio of open-weight models available through Now LLM Service. The latest industry advancements are available alongside sovereignty-focused options. All models are hosted and governed by ServiceNow with the same infrastructure and data protections. Older models will remain available for existing published AI skills, agents, and agentic workflows, but will no longer be available for new development or configuration. For details, see the KB3066214: ServiceNow Otto Model Upgrades article in the Now Support Knowledge Base.
Process Mining
Starting Brazil release, Process Mining Content Pack for SPM (com.snc.itbm_po) will be migrated to Process Mining Content Pack store application. Upgrade your instance to Brazil or higher releases. For more information, see Process Mining documentation.