I started working at a growing organization (around 500 people) and got stuck with a messy ServiceNow setup. The current SNOW platform is complicated, difficult to manage, and needs a complete overhaul to work properly. We don’t have time or resources for that kind of project.
Current ServiceNow Usage
Right now we use ServiceNow for these main areas:
IT Service Management
IT Operations Management
App Portfolio Management
Identity workflows - SNOW handles employee onboarding, offboarding, access requests, and role updates. All identity processes start here and get tracked for audit requirements.
Replacement Strategy
We started working with a ServiceNow consultant to map our current setup and integrations. But we’re already thinking about replacing it with simpler tools:
Jira Service Management for IT service management
LeanIX for application portfolio stuff
Workato for integrations and workflow automation
Main Concerns
My biggest worry is whether Jira Service Management can handle what we do in ServiceNow now, especially the identity and access workflows. We want to keep centralized control and audit trails without starting a huge IAM project.
Questions for the Community
I’m hoping to connect with people who have:
Made the jump from ServiceNow to Jira Service Management - what worked and what was challenging?
Set up identity processes (employee lifecycle, access approvals) in JSM or other Atlassian products?
Worked with US consultants who know both platforms and can guide this type of migration?
Any advice or lessons learned would be really helpful. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
The Problem: You’re migrating from ServiceNow to Jira Service Management (JSM) and are concerned about replicating ServiceNow’s identity and access workflows, particularly maintaining centralized control and audit trails without undertaking a major Identity and Access Management (IAM) project. You’re also looking for insights from others who have made a similar transition, focusing on challenges and lessons learned.
Understanding the “Why” (The Root Cause):
Migrating from a comprehensive platform like ServiceNow to a more focused ITSM tool like JSM often requires a re-evaluation of existing processes. ServiceNow’s strength lies in its integrated approach, encompassing ITSM, identity management, and other functionalities. JSM, while excellent for ITSM, doesn’t inherently replicate all of ServiceNow’s features, especially its robust identity and access management capabilities. A direct, feature-for-feature replacement isn’t always feasible or efficient. The key is to understand which functionalities are crucial to maintain and which can be simplified or re-architected for a more streamlined approach.
Step-by-Step Guide:
Parallel Run and Gap Analysis: Run ServiceNow and JSM in parallel for at least 6 months. This allows you to identify gaps in functionality early on and adjust your migration strategy accordingly. During this period, focus on migrating the most critical ITSM functions first. Document any discrepancies between ServiceNow and JSM in terms of features, workflows, and reporting capabilities.
Address Identity and Access Management: JSM handles basic access requests, but ServiceNow’s compliance features may not be directly replicated. Consider supplementing JSM with a dedicated IAM solution like Okta Workflows. This allows you to maintain centralized control and robust audit trails without over-burdening JSM. Okta’s integration with JSM simplifies user provisioning and access management while providing comprehensive auditing capabilities.
User Adoption and Training: Thorough user training is critical. The smooth transition depends heavily on user adoption. Prepare a comprehensive training plan that addresses both technical and procedural changes. Focus particularly on training managers on new approval processes, as this is where resistance might arise.
Reporting and Audit Requirements: Map out all your current ServiceNow audit reports before starting the migration. Understand the data required for compliance and plan how to generate equivalent reports in JSM. You may need to create custom fields and automations in JSM to capture all necessary audit information. Prioritize which reports are most critical for compliance and tackle them early.
Leverage Integration Tools: Use Workato or a similar integration platform to connect JSM with other systems and automate workflows previously handled by ServiceNow. This will help bridge any functional gaps and ensure a seamless transition for various processes.
Consider Specialized Consultants: Engage consultants with experience in ITSM migration, particularly those familiar with both ServiceNow and JSM. Their expertise in mapping processes and identifying potential roadblocks will significantly improve the migration’s success.
Common Pitfalls & What to Check Next:
Insufficient Planning: A detailed migration plan is crucial. Inadequate planning can lead to unforeseen delays and complications. Spend sufficient time on the upfront planning phase.
Underestimating Training Needs: Thorough training of all users, especially managers, is vital for successful adoption.
Ignoring Reporting Requirements: Failing to map out and replicate necessary audit reports can lead to non-compliance issues.
Relying Solely on JSM: JSM is excellent for ITSM, but not a complete replacement for ServiceNow’s broader functionality. Use supplementary tools where needed.
Still running into issues? Share your (sanitized) config files, the exact command you ran, and any other relevant details. The community is here to help!
We made this same switch about 18 months ago with around 300 employees. JSM handles most ServiceNow functions really well and feels way cleaner than SNOW. The automation is solid, and pairing it with Workato should cover your workflow needs. The tricky part? Employee lifecycle management. JSM does access requests and approvals fine, but you’ll need extra tools or custom integrations to match ServiceNow’s audit trail detail. What blindsided us was reporting. ServiceNow’s reporting is complex but thorough for compliance stuff. Map out all your current audit reports first - recreating them in JSM took way more work than we expected. The actual migration went better than planned once we stopped trying to copy everything exactly. Some processes just need to be redesigned from scratch.
Been through this twice at different companies. Second migration was way smoother after learning from our mistakes. JSM’s definitely simpler than ServiceNow’s mess, but you’ll hit walls with identity workflows that nobody’s talking about. ServiceNow’s approval matrix blows JSM out of the water - we had to hack together approval chains with automation rules and it gets ugly fast with conditional approvals by role or department. We also got blindsided losing ServiceNow’s change advisory board workflows. JSM’s change management is pretty basic compared to what you’re used to. For audits, document everything upfront - JSM’s reporting won’t give you the same compliance data without major customization. Good news is JSM’s API is solid, so Workato should handle most of the identity system connections.
jsm migration really isn’t bad once you sort out the identity setup. we dropped servicenow 6 months ago and jsm’s way more intuitive for daily tickets. watch out for custom fields tho - snow’s field types don’t map over, so you’ll rebuild forms from scratch. workato integration saved us - does the heavy lifting that snow handled internally. just know jsm’s knowledge base won’t be as solid right away.
Just finished this same migration 8 months ago at a mid-size company. Identity workflows were our biggest pain point too.
JSM handles standard ITSM well, but won’t replace ServiceNow’s identity management out of the box. We kept a lightweight identity tool running alongside JSM rather than cramming everything into Atlassian.
What saved us time: start with audit requirements first. Know exactly what compliance data you need, then work backwards. JSM’s native audit logs are pretty basic compared to ServiceNow. Had to build custom fields and automations just to track approval chains right.
Integration’s actually solid though. Workato connects JSM to almost anything, and you can trigger complex workflows from simple JSM requests. Way cleaner than ServiceNow’s workflow designer.
Something nobody mentions - JSM’s asset management sucks for hardware tracking. We kept that in a separate tool.
For consultants, find someone who’s done compliance-heavy migrations before. Platform expertise matters way less than understanding your audit needs.
Understanding the “Why” (The Root Cause):
Step-by-Step Guide:
Common Pitfalls & What to Check Next:
Still running into issues? Share your (sanitized) config files, the exact command you ran, and any other relevant details. The community is here to help!