A knowledge base article about ServiceNow Cost Sharing (billing) provided by the UC Berkeley IT Service Hub - Knowledge Portal
How is billing calculated in ServiceNow?
We are billed by ServiceNow for the number of ITSM licenses in use by our system; this billing occurs at the end of each calendar year. These licenses are called fulfiller or ITIL licenses. Fulfiller licenses are granted via a ServiceNow role. Roles in ServiceNow are granted via groups. Roles are used to grant access to various features of the platform, such as Incident and Change management.
Can licenses be shared by multiple users?
Licenses cannot be shared. Nor can licenses be assigned to SPAs.
Some people in my assignment group are not part of my department - who pays for that license - the person’s “home department” or the assignment group’s “home department”?
For simplicity, licenses for all members of an assignment group are billed to the cost center associated with the assignment group. An exception to this is if a user is a member of multiple assignment groups that are not part of the same cost center - in that case, we can manually assign that user’s license to the cost center that is the best fit.
When does billing occur?
We will send out billing in the winter quarter. The cost is recalculated every year, as there are changes to the total number of licenses used in the platform each year.
How are the groups set up and maintained?
Managers are solely responsible for the membership of their groups; either adding or removing staff. This is managed via the service catalog.
These two Knowledge Base articles will guide you through each process:
"How to add a user to ServiceNow"
https://berkeley.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sysparm_article=KB0010929
"How to remove a user from ServiceNow"
https://berkeley.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sysparm_article=KB0010930
Best practice is to manage the group membership throughout the year, but managers will be reminded twice a year - in December and again in the following January - to review their group’s membership in preparation for our annual billing cycle.
Can the service team help manage my groups?
The ServiceNow team will remove expired licensed users - staff who have left the university over 90 days ago - from assignment groups on a monthly basis. That is the only direct management of group membership that the ServiceNow Team can do.
How can I manage my costs for ServiceNow licenses?
If you have concerns about cost, there are two ways that you can reduce costs. You can reduce the total number of staff in your assignment group or groups, or you can ask us to retire the assignment group if it is no longer needed.
Can my bill be adjusted?
Since the license and support rates on calculated based on the counts from our audit report generated after the January 31 due date, the campus unit will need to assume the costs even for those licenses that are no longer accurate. This is one reason what it is essential for managers to upodate their groups when reminded in December and January of each year.