Starting at phase zero

KPMG had previously advised the client on implementing ServiceNow for back-office IT service management. While ServiceNow is widely recognized for its expertise in this area, its ability to integrate with other technology means that it can also be used to transform many other workflows. The IT project helped convince management that ServiceNow could also be used to transform customer service. Because service and support are so central to the company’s value proposition and reputation, KPMG began by conducting extensive pre-project planning sessions. This “phase zero” activity helped set a clear path for the real work to come. Key issues addressed included:

• Defining a Target Operating Model by validating current CSM operations against leading practice
• Prioritizing CSM implementation requirements and prototyping use cases
• Establishing an organizational change management strategy
• Creating a detailed capability roadmap.
  

Building buy-in from engineers and end users

While the client’s chief information officer and customer experience team were strongly committed to transforming CSM, they understood that gaining acceptance from the engineers providing service, and the customers receiving it, would be critical. Despite the lack of ability to scale the existing CSM platform, most internal users were accustomed to it and were justifiably proud of the leading support they consistently delivered. Planning and training sessions helped show them how learning the new ServiceNow system would make their work simpler, more efficient, and scalable to a larger base of customers. At the same time, user experience testing with a trial group of customers was used to gather feedback and prepare the wider user base for the new system’s launch.

Three teams working for a holistic solution

The extensive planning and validation made it clear that upgrading the CSM system to meet the company’s exacting standards would mean much more than just installing new software. To help ensure that training, adoption, and acceptance were achieved smoothly across the organization, KPMG assembled a cross-functional team that combined our experience in three areas:

• The KPMG ServiceNow Practice: Our ServiceNow specialists brought in-depth knowledge of the company’s software and related technologies. KPMG is a Global Elite ServiceNow partner with more than a dozen ServiceNow certified master architects.
  
• Customer Solutions and Operations: KPMG specialists with experience addressing processes and functional issues specifically related to customer service. They worked closely with the client’s own customer service team to set goals, define better processes, establish metrics, and manage and share service data.
• Human Capital Advisory (HCA): After consulting with management, users, and other stakeholders, the KPMG HCA team built an entire communication plan, using company newsletters, blog posts, and other channels to prepare internal users and customers for the changes ahead. They also provided training and managed feedback and questions from both groups.

Together these teams created a program addressing six workstreams: cases; integrations; reporting; knowledge and communities; organizational change management and training; and data/platform security. To save time and maintain flexibility, an Agile methodology was used during the 16-sprint build cycle.

A smooth launch delivers immediate benefits

KPMG conducted extended user acceptance testing (UAT) sessions to confirm that all user feedback was collected and implemented, and that the system met all use cases. After a final round of UAT, the new ServiceNow CSM system was launched in April 2022 to approximately 1,500 customer service professionals and to hundreds of thousands of customers worldwide. Iterative, post go-live releases helped deliver continual improvements. Key benefits included:

• An enhanced user interface, highly intelligent case routing, and a connected solution integrating more than 15 different applications
• A significant reduction in customization and complexity, with the number of fields per case object cut from 500 to 130
• Improved data quality—the ServiceNow platform established a single source of information on customers, contacts, accounts, assets, products, and application service providers
• Better reporting and access to customer service metrics
• An enhanced escalation case notification process in which the average response time improved by nearly 3.5 seconds
• A 6 percent reduction in total cases
• Increased automation and ability to scale.

KPMG provided enhanced HyperCare support immediately after launch, and the ServiceNow platform quickly gained the trust of the client’s sophisticated user base of engineers.

Beyond customer service with ServiceNow

With the new CSM solution up and running, the client is also turning to KPMG for guidance on implementing other ServiceNow solutions as part of a broader ERP implementation. Because ServiceNow integrates well with other technologies and products, the client is planning to use the platform to enable or support a range of other capabilities. ServiceNow products being used include IT Asset Management, Strategic Portfolio Management, Security Operations, and Governance Risk and Compliance.