ServiceNow's Flow brings service desk to Slack and Teams

ServiceNow is positioning Flow as a way into accounts that have historically stayed away from service desk software, and as a tool for departments, remote offices, and newly acquired business units inside existing accounts. The company says the product runs on an entirely new technology stack, handles recurring requests such as password resets, account unlocks, access provisioning, policy questions and basic troubleshooting, and lets an IT manager turn a resolved issue into an automated workflow with a single click. A demonstration showed an employee asking about company holidays in Slack and getting an answer linked to a source document, then later reporting trouble accessing a human resources system and being offered a ServiceNow incident.

ServiceNow also plans to extend the conversational model beyond IT into customer support and procurement, and the announcement included customer and partner comments about using shared Slack channels to support clients and reducing repeated internal questions. Mitch Stutler, co-founder and chief executive of ServiceNow partner VividCharts Inc., described escalating new questions and having Flow automate them the next time. IDC's Stephen Elliot, quoted in a ServiceNow press release, said the real value comes when solutions can be easily automated and repeated at scale.

The near-term test looks likely to be how the consumption-based pricing at general availability is received, since ServiceNow has not disclosed specific consumption rates, and whether the Oct. 6 target for current North American customers holds. For existing ServiceNow customers with AI entitlements, the appeal may hinge on drawing from their current pool of assists rather than buying an additional product license, while new customers without an existing ServiceNow relationship will be able to purchase Flow with a credit card.