Configuring Recommended Actions for ITSM in Service Operations Workspace

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated April 23, 2025
  • 6 minutes to read
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    Summary of Configuring Recommended Actions for ITSM in Service Operations Workspace

    This guide details how to configure Recommended Actions within the IT Service Management (ITSM) module of Service Operations Workspace. Recommended Actions assist agents by suggesting context-specific actions based on records such as Incident, Problem, Change Request, Interaction, and Request. These suggestions improve agent efficiency by providing relevant guidance, resources, and predictive insights tailored to the record type and conditions.

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    Contexts

    Contexts define the type of record for which recommendations are provided, enabling agents to receive targeted suggestions. The ITSM base system includes contexts such as Incident, Incident Task, Problem, Problem Task, Change Request, Change Task, Interaction, and Request. Notably, a new context for Interaction requires configuration via the Context Sys ID property in the UI Builder to ensure proper recommendations display.

    Rules

    Rules specify conditions under which recommendations appear for agents with specific roles. The ITSM base system includes predefined rules like Active Incident, Active Non-child Non-Major Incident, AI Search, and Major Incident without a linked Problem record—all applicable to the Incident context. These rules ensure recommendations are relevant to the record’s status and agent responsibilities.

    Recommendations

    Recommendations suggest actionable steps and may include guidance and related resources. They are categorized as:

    • Guidance-based Recommendations: Include AI Search, creating Problem records for Major Incidents, and linking similar incidents or knowledge articles.
    • Field-level Recommendations: Powered by Predictive Intelligence and Task Intelligence, these predict values for assignment groups, configuration items, services, and incident field values.

    Note that Predictive Intelligence-based recommendations are inactive by default and require manual activation.

    Resource Generators

    Resource generators produce data used within recommendations, such as AI Search results, classification-based assignment groups, configuration items, and similarity-based incident groupings. These enable dynamic, data-driven suggestions tailored to the agent’s current record.

    Guidances

    Predefined guidances include linking major incidents, proposing major incidents, attaching articles, copying resolutions, and linking related records like problems or change requests. These actions support agent workflows by providing immediate next steps or reference materials.

    Search Result Mappings and Search Application

    Search result mappings define how AI search results relate to different record contexts, covering entities like outages, knowledge articles, change requests, incidents, and catalog items. The [AIS] Recommended Actions for ITSM Search Config application supports AI search functionality across all relevant ITSM records within Service Operations Workspace.

    Advanced Recommended Actions and Integrations

    The Advanced Recommended Actions for ITSM, available with the ITSM Pro subscription, enhances recommendations with Task Intelligence capabilities, including incident field value predictions and similarity-based suggestions for incidents, change requests, problems, and major incidents.

    Predictive Intelligence extends recommendation capabilities further and requires installing specific plugins for Incident, Major Incident Management, and Problem Management. These plugins enable machine learning-powered solutions to generate recommendations such as similar open problems, proposing major incidents, and classification predictions.

    Training solution definitions is necessary to optimize predictive recommendations for incidents.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Enable agents to receive timely, context-aware recommendations for various ITSM record types, improving incident and problem resolution efficiency.
    • Leverage AI and machine learning through Predictive and Task Intelligence to automate assignment and classification, reducing manual effort.
    • Customize rules, recommendations, and guidances to align with organizational workflows and agent roles.
    • Utilize resource generators and search configurations to provide rich, relevant data within recommendations.
    • Extend baseline capabilities with Advanced Recommended Actions for ITSM, included in ITSM Pro, for enhanced predictive insights and agent support.

    IT Service Management (ITSM) includes the following base system components used to configure Recommended Actions for various records in the Service Operations Workspace, including Incident, Incident Tasks, Problem, Problem Tasks, Change Request, Change Request Task, Interaction, and Request.

    Contexts in Recommended Actions for ITSM

     A context enables agents to see recommendations for a specific type of record when certain rules are met. These recommendations can help agents by suggesting actions to take based on the record context.  For more information, see Contexts in Recommended Actions.

    The ITSM base system ships the following contexts:
    • Incident
    • Incident task
    • Problem
    • Problem task
    • Change request
    • Change task
    • Interaction
    • Request
    For more information about the field description of this context, see Contexts in Recommended Actions for ITSM.
    Note:
    Recommended Actions have now introduced a context for the Interaction table.

    To get the correct Recommended Actions context, you must set up the Context Sys ID property in the Recommended Actions record page of UI Builder in Service Operations Workspace.

    To configure the Context ID, see Configuring a context record for Recommended Actions component section in Create a context in Recommended Actions.

    Rules in Recommended Actions for ITSM

    A rule is a set of conditions that applies to a context. A rule shows recommendations to agents with certain roles for records that meet certain conditions. For more information, see Rules in Recommended Actions.

    The ITSM base system includes the following rules:
    • Active incident
    • Active non-child non-MI Incident
    • AI Search
    • Major Incident with no Problem record
    Note:
    These rules are available only for the Incident context.

    For more information about the field descriptions of these rules, see Rules in Recommended Actions for ITSM.

    Note:
    To create a rule, see Create a rule in Recommended Actions.

    Recommendations in Recommended Actions for ITSM

    A recommendation is a way to suggest a helpful action to an agent. A recommendation includes the action and any relevant resources and inputs. For more information, see Recommendations in Recommended Actions.

    For more information about recommendation types, see Recommendations in Recommended Actions.
    Note:
    To create a recommendation, see Create a recommendation in Recommended Actions.

    The ITSM base system includes Guidance-based recommendations and Field-level recommendation types.

    Guidance-based recommendations

    The ITSM base system includes these guidance-based recommendations:

    • AI Search Recommendation
    • Create Problem Record for a Major Incident
    • Open incidents (CI & Service)
    • Open PRBs (CI & Service)
    • Similar Incidents (TI)
    • Similar KB Articles (Similarity)
    • Propose major incident (Trend)
    • Similar major incidents (Trend)
    • Similar open Incidents (Similarity)
    • Similar open PRBs (Similarity)
    • Similar resolved incidents (CI & Service)
    • Similar resolved incidents (Similarity)

    For more information about the field descriptions of the guidance-based recommendations, see Guidance based recommendations in Recommended Actions for ITSM.

    Field-level recommendations

    The ITSM base system includes the following field-level recommendations:

    • Predictive Intelligence -based recommendations:
      • Assignment Group (Classification)
      • Configuration Item (Classification)
      • Service (Classification)
    • Task Intelligence for ITSM -based recommendation: Incident Fields value prediction (TI)
      Note:
      All Predictive Intelligence -based recommendations included in the ITSM base system are inactive by default. To activate them, navigate to the Recommendations screen, edit the corresponding Active column to the required recommendation of true, and select Update.

    For more information about the field-level recommendations field descriptions, see Field level recommendations in Recommended Actions for ITSM.

    Note:
    To create a guidance and field recommendations, see Creating guidance and field recommendation in Recommended Actions.

    Resource generators in Recommended Actions for ITSM

    The ITSM base system includes the following resource generators:

    • AI Search Resource Generator
    • Assignment group using Classification.
    • Configuration item using Classification
    • Incident Fields predictions TI
    • Similar Open Incidents with same CI & Service
    • Open PRBs using CI & Service
    • Propose major incident using trend
    • Service using Classification
    • Similar KBs using similarity
    • Similar major incident using trend
    • Similar open incidents using Similarity
    • Similar open incidents with same CI & Service
    • Similar incidents using TI similarity
    • Similar PRBs using similarity
    • Resolved Incidents with same CI & Service
    • Similar resolved incidents using similarity.

    For more information about the field descriptions of resource generators, see Resource generators in Recommended Actions for ITSM.

    For more information about the types of resource generator, see Resource generators in Recommended Actions.

    Note:
    To create a resource generator, see Create a resource generator in Recommended Actions.

    Guidances

    The ITSM base system includes the following guidance:

    • Link to major incident
    • Propose Major Incident
    • Review and attach article for incident
    • Show Change request [No Action]
    • Show genius result [No Action]
    • Show Problem [No Action]
    • [Incident] Attach KB
    • [Incident] Copy resolution
    • [Incident] Link open incident
    • [Incident] Link open problem
    • [Interaction] Review and attach article
    • [ Non-ML] Copy resolution
    • [ Non-ML] Create Problem
    • [ Non-ML] Link open incident
    • [ Non-ML] Link open problem
    • [Task] Link change request
    • [Task] Link incident
    • [Task] Link outage
    • [Task] Link problem
    • [Task] Order item

    For more information about the field descriptions of the guidance, see Guidances in Recommended Actions for ITSM.

    Note:
    To create guidance, see Create a guidance in Recommended Actions.

    Search result mappings

    The search result mappings appear in AI search results for various records in the Service Operations Workspace, including Incident, Incident Tasks, Problem, Problem Tasks, Change Request, Change Request Task, Interaction, and Request.

    The IT Service Management base system includes the following search result mappings based on context type:
    • Incident: Outage [cmdb_ci_outage], Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Change Request [change_request], Incident [incident], Catalog item [sc_cat_item], Incident [incident]- Genius result for Pro plus users, Problem [problem]
    • Incident task: Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Incident [incident], Catalog item [sc_cat_item], Problem [problem]
    • Problem: Outage [cmdb_ci_outage], Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Change Request [change_request], Incident [incident], Catalog item [sc_cat_item], Problem [problem]
    • Problem task: Knowledge [kb_knowledge]
    • Change request: Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Change Request [change_request], Incident [incident], Catalog item [sc_cat_item], Problem [problem]
    • Change task: Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Change Request [change_request], Incident [incident], Catalog item [sc_cat_item], Problem [problem]
    • Interaction: Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Catalog item [sc_cat_item]
    • Request: Knowledge [kb_knowledge], Catalog item [sc_cat_item]

    Search Application Configuration

    The IT Service Management base system includes the [AIS] Recommended Actions for ITSM Search Config. This application supports the AI search for various records in the Service Operations Workspace, including Incident, Incident Tasks, Problem, Problem Tasks, Change Request, Change Request Task, Interaction, and Request.

    Advanced Recommended actions for ITSM

    The standard version of Recommended Actions for ITSM is provided as a part of the Service Operations Workspace application.

    The Advanced Recommended actions for ITSM (sn_sow_itsm_ra_adv) plugin is included with the ITSM Pro package subscription.

    With Advanced Recommended actions for ITSM, your agents can use recommendations powered by Task Intelligence, including:
    • Incident fields value prediction
    • Similar incidents
    • Similar open change requests
    • Similar open problems
    • Similar major incidents
    • Propose major incident
    For more information, see Task Intelligence for ITSM.
    Note:
    The Advanced Recommended actions for ITSM (sn_sow_itsm_ra_adv) and Task Intelligence Admin Console (com.sn_ti_admin) plugins are installed as dependencies of the ITSM Pro package subscription.

    Predictive Intelligence

    To use recommendations powered by Predictive Intelligence, install the following plugins:
    • Install the Predictive Intelligence for Incident (com.snc.incident.ml) plugin to install the Relevant problems solution definition-Similar open PRBs (Similarity). For information about this plugin installation, see Request Predictive Intelligence for Incident.
    • Install the Problem Management for Service Operations Workspace (com.snc.uib.sow_problem) plugin to install the solution definition-Create Problem for Major incident.
    • Install the Predictive Intelligence for Major Incident Management (com.snc.incident.mim.ml_solution) plugin to install the following IT Service Management solution definitions.
      • Propose major incident (Trend)
      • Similar major incident (Trend)

      For information about this plugin installation, see Request Predictive Intelligence for Major Incident Management.

    • Install the Predictive Intelligence for Incident Management (com.snc.incident.ml_solution) plugin to install the following IT Service Management solution definitions.
      • Assignment group (Classification)
      • Configuration item (Classification)
      • Service (Classification)
      • Similar open incidents (Similarity)
      • Similar KB articles (Similarity)
      • Similar resolved incidents (Similarity)
      • Similar Incidents (TI)
        Note:
        Similar Incidents (TI) recommendation is available only from Service Operations Workspace version 6.0.

      For more information, see Request Predictive Intelligence for Incident Management.

    Train solution definitions to predict recommendations for an incident. For information about training solution definitions, see Predictive Intelligence for Incident Management