Structured workflows for crisis events

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 4 minutes to read
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    Summary of Structured workflows for crisis events

    Structured workflows in the Business Continuity Management (BCM) Configurable Workspace (Yokohama release) enable BCM program managers to effectively respond to crisis events by managing tasks, assets, plans, and approvals in a centralized environment. These workflows streamline crisis response activities, ensuring timely and coordinated actions to mitigate business disruptions.

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    Key Features

    • Create and manage crisis events: Initiate crisis records, classify severity, assign priorities, designate response teams, and document initial actions within the BCM Configurable Workspace.
    • Track impacted assets and plans: Monitor affected assets and link related recovery plans to the crisis event for efficient asset recovery during planning stages.
    • Add and manage event tasks: Assign tasks related to crisis response, which can be edited in bulk from the Event tasks list by users with appropriate permissions, enhancing task management efficiency.
    • Bulk editing and state management for event tasks: Users with edit access can update multiple task fields simultaneously, including state, assigned personnel, actual start/end dates, and assigned groups. State transitions are controlled with specific permitted paths to maintain process integrity.
    • Recovery task member updates: Members can update task statuses via "My Recovery Tasks," though they have limited editing rights and cannot reopen tasks once closed.
    • Automated task import and execution: Import automated tasks from business continuity plans to accelerate response during actual events.
    • Nested plans and dependencies: Configure system properties to automate nested plan creation and define dependencies between plans to optimize event response.
    • Create action items on the fly: Crisis managers can generate ad-hoc action tasks during open events or exercises without linking them to assets or recovery plans, allowing flexibility in response activities.
    • Group similar tasks: Use the Similar tasks groups feature to identify and consolidate duplicate or related tasks, reducing redundancy and improving task management.
    • Request and approve crisis events: Facilitate approval workflows within the workspace to validate and authorize crisis response plans and actions.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Enables a structured and repeatable approach to crisis event management, improving response speed and coordination.
    • Reduces manual effort by automating task creation, nested plans, and dependency tracking, enhancing operational efficiency.
    • Enhances collaboration by allowing multiple users with appropriate roles to update tasks in bulk and track recovery progress.
    • Improves visibility and control over crisis response activities through status tracking, approval workflows, and consolidated task grouping.
    • Supports recovery team members with tailored access to update task progress without exposing full event details, maintaining security and role separation.

    Perform the structured workflows to manage a crisis event in Business Continuity Workspace (also known as BCM Configurable Workspace).

    Typically, the BCM program manager performs the following tasks to respond to a crisis event:

    Additional information on Crisis events

    • For information on the Crisis events tab in the Home page, see Home page view.
    • For information on the threats, feeds, and alerts in the Crisis map interface, see Crisis map interface.
    • For information on the administrative tasks in the Crisis map interface, see Setup for Crisis map.
    • For information on the crisis events, see Crisis events.

    Bulk editing of tasks from the Event tasks related list

    Starting with version 6.1.x of the Business Continuity Management application, users who have editing access to the event record can now perform bulk edits on tasks directly from the Event tasks related list. This feature is beneficial for users who manage multiple event tasks simultaneously.

    In the recovery tasks list, users with the necessary edit permissions can modify the following fields simultaneously:
    • State
    • Assigned to
    • Actual start
    • Actual end
    • Assigned group

    Once an event is initiated, these users can also modify the state of an event task either from the list view or the form view. The process for updating the state of an event task from the list view is demonstrated in the following example. If a state transition is not allowed, an error message is displayed to indicate that the update is invalid.

    Bulk edits.
    The following table details the permitted state transitions for an event task.
    Table 1. Permitted state transitions for an event task
    Transition from state Pending state Open state Work In Progress state Closed Complete state Closed Incomplete state Closed Skipped state Closed Failed state
    Pending No Yes No No No Yes No
    Open No No Yes No No Yes No
    Work In Progress No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes
    Closed Complete No Yes No No No No No
    Closed Incomplete No Yes No No No No No
    Closed Skipped No Yes No No No No No
    Closed failed No Yes No No No No No
    Note:
    All changes to state transitions and updates to the start or end dates are listed in the Task activity log.

    Consider the following key details about the state transitions of an event task.

    1. The event task can only be opened from the Closed complete state.
    2. Once the event task moves to the Open state, users of the event task can edit it further.
    3. The task can then be moved from the Open state to the Closed Skipped state.
    4. Only users with access to the event can reopen the event task. While recovery task members can change the status of the event task, they cannot reopen it.
    The following table summarizes the UI actions available for an event task and their corresponding states:
    Table 2. UI actions and the associated states of the event tasks
    UI action State of the event task Notes
    Trigger Pending This condition is applicable only when an event has been started.
    Skip task Pending, Open, Work in progress -
    Work in progress Open -
    Closed complete Work in progress -
    Closed incomplete Work in progress -
    Closed failed Work in progress -
    Re-trigger as a manual task Closed -
    Re-trigger automation Work in progress, Closed This condition is applicable for an automated task only.

    If a task is mistakenly closed, users of the event task can reopen it to make the required edits, ensuring the recovery process remains accurate and complete.

    Updating the event task as a recovery task member

    Generally, recovery task members update the status of event tasks. Although they do not have access to the event page or workspace, they can navigate to My Recovery Tasks in the instance to access the recovery task. By modifying the UI action, they can change the status of the event task, as demonstrated in the example.

    Update the state of the event task.

    For instance, when members of the recovery task mark the task as Closed complete, all fields on the form become locked. This implies that while members of the recovery task cannot modify the fields, they are still able to add activity notes. Only users who have access to the event task can edit the fields on the form.

    For information on importing the automated task in an event, see Import automated tasks and start an event.