This webinar was originally recorded as part of our CSDM 3.0 series and reflects the ServiceNow guidance available at the time.
The session focuses on the Walk and Run stages of CSDM 3.0 and explores how organizations could move beyond the initial Crawl foundation toward richer service relationships and more operational use cases.
Although the CSDM model has evolved since this recording, the session still illustrates an important principle: data maturity should increase in line with the outcomes you want ServiceNow to support.
Use the recording as historical and practical context rather than current implementation guidance. For current CSDM recommendations, refer to ServiceNow's latest documentation and your current target model.
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What CSDM Walk and Run still teach us about data maturity
The exact structure of CSDM has changed since this webinar was recorded, but the progression from Crawl to Walk and Run still illustrates a useful implementation principle.
As ServiceNow teams mature their data model, the goal should not simply be to add more records or relationships.
The additional structure should support more valuable use cases.
Move beyond basic visibility toward operational context
An early-stage CSDM implementation can establish the core records and relationships needed to understand applications and services.
As the model matures, teams can add more context around areas such as:
- Service offerings
- Supporting infrastructure
- Ownership and responsibility
- Technical and business service relationships
- Lifecycle information
- Other data needed by operational processes
The purpose of that additional data should be clear.
For example, richer relationships may help teams improve:
- Change impact analysis
- Incident and outage response
- Service reporting
- Portfolio management
- Automation
The model becomes more useful when each new requirement supports a real ServiceNow outcome.
Do not confuse higher maturity with more data
A more mature CSDM implementation does not necessarily mean populating every available field or relationship.
More data creates more maintenance work.
If nobody uses a field or relationship, requiring it may increase complexity without improving the processes that depend on the data.
A better approach is to ask:
What decision, workflow, report, or service-management outcome will this data support?
If there is a clear answer, the additional requirement may be worth introducing.
If not, it may be better to leave it outside the current scope.
Introduce requirements in manageable stages
The move from Crawl toward later maturity stages can still become too large if everything is introduced at once.
A practical sequence is to:
- Stabilize the current data model.
- Identify the next operational use case.
- Determine which additional records or relationships that use case requires.
- Add those requirements to the target model.
- Audit the current data against the new requirements.
- Resolve the most important gaps before expanding again.
This keeps maturity connected to real progress rather than treating CSDM as a checklist.
Use different views of the model for different concerns
As CSDM becomes more detailed, one large model can become difficult to manage.
Breaking the environment into smaller domains or viewpoints helps teams focus on the part they are responsible for.
For example, one view might focus on Business Applications.
Another might focus on Application Services.
Another might address supporting infrastructure or Service Offerings.
Those individual areas can then connect into a broader service model.
This is often easier to govern than trying to maintain one enormous representation of the entire environment.
Keep the current state measurable as the model grows
Every time new requirements are introduced, teams need a way to see whether the live ServiceNow data actually follows the intended model.
That means the maturity process should include:
- Defined requirements
- Regular audits
- Clear ownership
- Visible gaps
- Follow-up and remediation
Without that feedback loop, the target model can become documentation that gradually drifts away from the real environment.
CSDM maturity should follow ServiceNow use cases
The lasting lesson from the Walk and Run stages is that maturity should be driven by what the organization needs ServiceNow to do.
The next step is not necessarily:
“Which CSDM element have we not implemented yet?”
A more useful question is:
“What do we want ServiceNow to support next, and what data does that require?”
That keeps the data model tied to operational value.
For current guidance, see our CSDM in ServiceNow: How to Align and Succeed guide.
You can also view the previous CSDM 3.0 Crawl session or continue to CSDM 3.0: Flying with DCM.
For the latest model and adoption guidance, refer to ServiceNow's current CSDM documentation.
