ServiceNow IT Service Management vs. UpKeep Maintenance Management

In our organization, we are using ServiceNow extensively. Change Management, Incident Management, Problem Management, Time tracking are few modules which we use extensively. This sort of model will work for any product or service based companies as the product is built on ITIL framework. So this product will be suited for small or large scale companies to better organize and add controls and track SLA's for technology or business process.

For companies that have larger facilities or multiple properties - this software is superb. You can track every maintenance plan - daily/weekly/monthly/annually - so nothing ever goes undone. I'm talking daily cleaning to refreshing the paint in the parking lot each year - you can easily schedule all of this maintenance within the app. Asset tracking - everything from machinery to tools to doors - you can tag and track all. Break/fix over time is huge - you can use the reporting function to see how many times something has broken over time - so now you can assess if it's more cost effective to replace rather than repair.

Incentivized

• When I have a number of requests to make, for example a request to add a dozen or so user accounts to more than one group account in Active Directory , I can put all the needed information into the initial form, add it to my "shopping cart" and all of that information remains on the screen for the next item for which I only need to edit a few items (like the AD group name in this example), and keep adding them to the shopping cart until I have them all. When I "Check Out" each of those items is generated as a separate task under the one request. It simplifies and expedites the creation and tracking of these kinds of requests.
• I can easily and quickly see what tickets are currently assigned to me in order to prioritize them and remain aware of my workload.
• Numerous fields for CIs can be used when trying to find the entry for a particular item. For example, IP Address, server name, raw text, classification, and so on.
• To help with making sense out of related tasks, when a task is assigned to me and I need to open another task for a different team to work in order to complete my task, I can open a sub-task from my ticket so that the relationship between the two can be pulled up later into reports. For example, I may have a task to build a new vm, and need to open tasks for networking, security accounts, software installation and so on. By opening sub-tasks from my assignment, the time spent by all parties concerned is tied together for more meaningful cost accounting.

Incentivized

• Tracking service issues - There's really no more excuses for not knowing when the machine was last serviced. Upkeep allows us to track that.
• Scheduling - Knowing in advance which machines will need maintenance in the future allows us to actively prepare for shut-down periods.
• General knowledge - Users can add their knowledge to the archives of each machine we have, helping to improve the trouble-shooting process.
• Easy to update, easy to make - It's almost too easy to create and update files for locations, assets, parts, and issues.

Incentivized

• It is hard to find areas for improvement, the tool is very powerful. That said, building the CMDB still involves some manual interaction which was not how it was presented in demos.
• The CMDB data is almost too deep and detailed. When you build the relationship map it can be so large that it is overwhelming. You can limit this, but the default maps are massive if you are discovering lots of device classes.
• The product is expensive. Since they are the leader in the industry and the product has tons of features, they definitely charge for it!

Incentivized

• Periodic maintenance needs are still a little tricky keeping in the system without flooding the user with too many work orders.
• It does not immediately update all the time. For example, closing out work orders and the number of total work orders stays the same until it’s rebooted.
• Search functions need improving.

Incentivized

To be completely honest setting up a new ticketing system can be a pain in the ass. Once you have it setup and customized the way you want it, you don't want to switch unless you're unhappy with the product. Unless future releases and updates really muck the system up, I wouldn't change.

We love how organized it has made our processes.

Incentivized

The dashboard is so confusing, [there are] many clicks to open a task and search by a ticket. The Enterprise customisation [we did] has finished to kill the software and creates a really bad experience on a daily basis. [It is] So slow, and so many clicks to process a ticket. Works only on IE so, that [should] make you realize that [it] is a bad idea.

I think the platform is user-friendly but there have been some issues that colleagues have been complaining about. For example, the program tends to run slow from time to time. Reporting could be better. We could use more fields for categories under parts and assets.

We have never had any issues with ServiceNow's availability that I am aware of in the two years I have been using it.

Incentivized

For a massive system, page loads are reasonably quick, including searches.

Incentivized

I would give it this rating because we have had no major issues with the support for ServiceNow after we implemented it at our organization. They seem to respond promptly and efficiently if we ever do need to open a support case with them about an issue we are having.

Incentivized

I cannot say enough great things about their customer service. From the start of the purchase, Upkeep was extremely helpful and informative. They have been ongoingly keeping us informed and available to answer any of our questions as they arise. They ongoing learning portal is also helpful when new features and changes happen with the interface.

Incentivized

To type in what should be a text box, you have to click an empty cell, a tiny text box pop up opens with a check box and an X. You the. Type in the text box and have to click the check mark. If you have a bunch of fields to fill out, doing this is very annoying. Absolutely know thought went in to this. I'm sure somebody in marketing thought it was a good idea. It wasn't.

Without exception, every client I have worked with has been very happy with their resulting product. While this is partly due to my work, I must point out that the platform is the winning decision, not the implementer.

Incentivized

Everything went as planned.

Incentivized

We used to use Jira to handle service tickets but it's way too robust for something this straightforward. Due to the nature of Jira, you needed to already have a lot of documentation and knowledge about who should be assigned the ticket, so the lift of creating a ticket was time consuming.

Incentivized

Previously had MEX, though had not implemented it throughout the business. It was way too difficult for the techs to use on the fly and was just a nightmare to implement. UpKeep, on the other hand, is a walk in the park.

Incentivized

ServiceNow works as an enterprise solution.

Incentivized

• Overall ServiceNow has a positive impact on getting the SLA of tickets down in supporting our customers.
• One negative impact has been the amount of time to get the product to produce an ROI, it's almost too big to fail and too big to replace. You almost become committed to the product. Good or bad.
• Another negative impact would be if you track metrics of employees and time tracking, there is a lot of scenarios where engineers will track time on tickets but not get credit for closing them as the assignee function of tickets can only be tied to one user and credits only the engineer who closes the ticket.
• Another positive impact would be the level of security for permissions and scaling the workloads is robust and you will get out of the system what your team is willing to put in.

Incentivized

• Compared to other task managers, the user cost for Upkeep is very high. But to the degree the staff are willing to work with you, it is completely justified.
• The concern with an organization my size are items slipping through the cracks whether that is internally or by our renter base. Upkeep minimizes this to a great degree.
• You need to get everyone within your organization to buy into upkeep. It can only be as good to the degree that it is utilized.