Setting Up Our ServiceNow Environment

Before we could even begin, we had to build our own mini organization inside ServiceNow. We created five user accounts with specific roles:

• its_user Customer submitting incidents
• its_worker Service Desk Agent (Tier 1)
• its_net Network Specialist
• its_hw Hardware Specialist
• its_sw Software/Application Specialist

Each user was assigned roles (user, itil) and grouped into Network, Hardware, and Software Support Teams. This setup mirrored a real IT department structure. Seeing these accounts interact made me appreciate how ITSM defines not just what people do, but how teams communicate across levels.

Phase 1 - Becoming the Customer

The simulation started with its_user role as the end customer. From the Service Portal, 15 incident tickets were manually submitted based on the selected dataset:

• 5 Network incidents VPN-router connection failure, unstable Wi-Fi, office-wide outage
• 5 Hardware incidents printer driver issue, server overheating, hardware failure in analytics systems
• 5 Software/Application incidents SaaS malfunction, app crash, access failure

Each ticket included a short description, detailed context, and assigned category. After submission, all incidents appeared in My Incidents with the status "New." It felt surprisingly realistic like actually logging real IT problems across a company.

Phase 2 - The Service Desk Perspective

As its_worker (Tier 1 Service Desk Agent), the ITIL process showed its structure. Every new ticket came in waiting for triage. The job was to read the descriptions carefully, confirm categories, assign the right Assignment Group (Network, Hardware, or Software), and add a work note: "Ticket triaged and assigned to specialist."

Each ticket status was changed to In Progress. This highlighted the Service Desk power they do not just fix issues, they organize chaos into process. Every note, every field, and every assignment mattered because it built accountability into the system.

Phase 3 - The Specialists Take Over

Once triaged, the tickets reached our Tier 2 specialists:

• Ananda Donelly (its_net) handled Network incidents.
• Astrid Meilendra (its_hw) focused on Hardware issues.
• Muhammad Razan Parisya Putra (its_sw) resolved Software/Application problems.

The Software Specialist worked on incidents involving SaaS malfunction, application crashes, and software-device incompatibility. The task was to troubleshoot, record detailed work notes about applied patches or configuration fixes, and change each ticket status to Resolved.

Meanwhile, the Network and Hardware specialists documented their own actions replacing parts, diagnosing routers, and ensuring system recovery. What made it feel authentic was the collaboration: each role depended on the other, exactly like in a real IT organization.

Phase 4 - Customer Confirmation

To close the loop, the its_user logged back in through the Service Portal. All 15 tickets had changed their status to Resolved, complete with notes from specialists.

Brief feedback and "thank you" comments were added on several tickets before closing them. This simple gesture demonstrated how important the final confirmation step is it is not just about resolution, but about user satisfaction and trust in IT services.

Reflection

This simulation was the most eye-opening part of the course so far. It transformed ITIL 4 concepts into real, tangible experiences. I finally understood how every role customer, agent, specialist contributes to the end-to-end value stream. From the Service Desk triaging tickets to specialists resolving them, every action builds transparency, accountability, and service reliability.

As a group, we learned that ITSM is not just a technical system it is a human one. The exercise highlighted the importance of documentation, clear communication, and teamwork. It also showed how tools like ServiceNow embody ITIL values of visibility and continual improvement. By the end of Week 7, I no longer saw ITSM as theory it had become something I had lived and experienced firsthand.