Milestones

  • Release version: Xanadu
  • Updated August 1, 2024
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    Summarized using AI
    This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.

    Summary of Milestones

    Milestones in ServiceNow represent formal acknowledgments that specific deliverables for a service have been achieved. They are created against purchase lines or purchase order lines for service product types when the acknowledgment type is set to Milestones. This functionality helps track and manage key service delivery checkpoints tied to procurement.

    Show full answer Show less

    Key Features

    • Core Fields: Each milestone includes fields such as Deliverable Name, a unique Number, Assigned to (user responsible for confirmation), Primary Contact (procurement team member), Purchase Line, Purchase Order Line, State (status), Due Date, Summary, Completion Date, Payout Type (Percentage or Amount), Payout Amount or Percentage, Cancellation Reason, and Deferral Reason.
    • Assignment and Actions: Milestones are assigned to the purchase line recipient who can Confirm Completion, Cancel, or Defer the milestone. Confirming sets the milestone state to Closed Complete, canceling requires a reason, and deferring needs a new completion date with the state changed to Pending Completion Date.
    • Receipt Creation and Updates: Closing a milestone automatically creates a receipt and updates the Amount or Percentage received on the receipt. This action triggers updates to the purchase order line and purchase order states, following a goods receipt workflow.
    • Automated Monitoring: The [PSM] Monitor Milestone Tasks scheduled job runs daily to monitor active milestones. On the completion date, it changes the milestone state from Pending Completion Date to Confirmation Required, prompting users to confirm or defer completion via UI actions.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Enables precise tracking and acknowledgment of service deliverables tied to procurement activities.
    • Facilitates clear responsibility by assigning milestones to specific users and procurement contacts.
    • Supports flexible milestone management through confirmation, cancellation with reasons, or deferral with updated dates.
    • Integrates milestone completions with receipt creation and purchase order updates, streamlining financial and procurement workflows.
    • Automates milestone monitoring and status updates to ensure timely acknowledgment and follow-up.

    Milestones represent an acknowledgment that a certain deliverable is achieved for a service. You can create a milestone against the purchase line and purchase order line for a service product type, when the acknowledgment type is set to Milestones.

    The key fields of a milestone are:

    Table 1. Milestone fields
    Field Description
    Deliverable Name Name of the milestone
    Number System-generated unique identifier of the milestone.
    Assigned to User primarily responsible for confirming the completion of this milestone.
    Primary contact Person within the procurement team who can be contacted with questions about receipts, milestones, invoices, or other activities related to acknowledgment. This field is populated or updated with the same user in the Assigned to field of the parent task record, as follows: For a milestone or acknowledgment task, from the referenced purchase order.
    Purchase line Purchase line associated with the milestone.
    Purchase order line Purchase order line associated with the milestone.
    State Status of the milestone.
    Due date Expected completion date from the user this milestone is assigned to.
    Summary Details
    Completion date Scheduled completion date for the milestone.
    Payout type The type of the payout associated with this milestone. For example, Percentage or Amount.
    Payout amount Amount associated with this milestone.

    This field is displayed if the payout type is set to Amount.

    Sum of the amount across all milestones can’t exceed the total amount on the purchase requisition.
    Payout percentage Percentage of the payout amount associated with this milestone.

    This field is displayed if the payout type is set to Percentage.

    Sum of the percentages across all milestones can’t exceed 100%.
    Cancellation reason Reason for the cancellation of the milestone.

    This field is required when the recipient cancels the milestone.
    Deferral reason Reason for the deferral of the delivery date of the milestone.

    Milestones are assigned to the recipient of the purchase line. A recipient can either confirm, cancel, or defer milestones using Confirm completion, Cancel, or Defer Completion options.

    • Confirming a milestone updates the state to Closed Complete.
    • Canceling a milestone requires a cancellation reason.
    • Deferring the completion of a milestone requires a completion date and the state is updated to Pending Completion Date.

    When the status of a milestone task is Closed Complete, a receipt is created and the Amount received or Percentage received fields are populated accordingly on the receipt. The receipt triggers the update of the states on the purchase order line and purchase order similar to the workflow of a good receipt.

    The [PSM] Monitor Milestone Tasks scheduled job monitors the completion date of each active milestone on a daily basis. On the specified date of completion, the job updates the state of the milestone from Pending Completion Date to Confirmation Required.

    The UI action to confirm or defer the milestone is displayed when the state of the milestone is Confirmation Required.