01. Project Background: Localizing under Global Standards
1) Client Overview
The China headquarters of a Fortune Global 500 multinational has operated in China for over 30 years.It leverages a resource network spanning more than 100 countries and the professional expertise of tens of thousands of industry experts. Combining these global resources with the practical insights of tens of thousands of local employees, it provides globally competitive and locally adapted solutions to clients across more than 40 industries. Its service network covers core cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Dalian, and Chengdu, deeply participating in the construction of China's business and technology ecosystem.
2) Current Status and Challenges
In early 2025, the enterprise's global headquarters implemented a major adjustment to its IT management architecture: the China IT organization was required to exit the global ServiceNow tenant. The goal was to independently build an IT Service Management (ITSM) system compliant with Chinese market regulations and complete a full business cutover within a strict deadline.
Previously, the enterprise had long relied on ServiceNow's global tenant services for IT service management. The IT system supported over 100 IT operations staff and tens of thousands of general employees for daily office operations—ServiceNow had permeated every link of IT operations. With the domestic localization and the adjustment of enterprise management architecture, independent operation of the China region IT became inevitable. However, achieving a seamless cutover without business disruption became the core challenge facing the team.
The timeline was even more pressing: only six months were allocated for go-live.It is almost considered "impossible" in the industry to replace a system with mature functions and extremely high user dependence in such a short cycle while ensuring the user experience for IT operations staff and ordinary users.After several rounds of rigorous evaluation, CanWay BlueWhale ITSM was selected by the China region team due to its proven experience in large-scale enterprise environments, exceptional product agility, and professionalism in localization requirements.
Upon project initiation, the team's primary task was to migrate all capabilities from the original ServiceNow platform into the new system, spanning IT Service Management, a unified portal, and IT Asset and Configuration Management. During delivery, the team faced several key challenges:
Tight project time: The replacement project took only a few months from initiation to go-live, requiring excellent project management and product delivery capabilities.
Broad business scope: This project covers unified service portal, ITSM, knowledge management and IT asset management, requiring dozens of process builds, large-scale system integration and deep customization.
Complex requirements gathering: The main role of the Chinese team in the past was users; They need to re-baseline global standards based on local needs and move from a "user perspective" to a "management perspective."
Product functionality and UX gap analysis: As a mature global platform, ServiceNow has developed deep-rooted usage habits among users. While meeting complex business scenarios, ensuring the smooth connection of the user experience has become a key consideration.
02. Why CanWay BlueWhale ITSM?
Facing the complex challenge of "smoothly replacing ServiceNow," the selection team launched a rigorous multi-dimensional evaluation system to minimize project risk through objective and comprehensive comparison. Ultimately, CanWay BlueWhale ITSM emerged victorious among multiple IT operations vendors, with advantages primarily in three core dimensions:
Comprehensive product capability alignment: The platform offers high openness and a flexible architecture. CanWay BlueWhale ITSM's core modules implement a comprehensive functional parity with ServiceNow. Furthermore, its highly customizable portal capabilities ensured a smooth transition for user experience.
End-to-end implementation solution: CanWay provided a complete solution ranging from Azure cloud architecture and seamless integration with the Microsoft 365 ecosystem to detailed system cutover strategies, providing a solid guarantee for the project's scheduled smooth go-live.
Proven Cases and Security Endorsement: It has a mature case of serving multinational companies and group customers. It has passed the Microsoft security assessment and China's third-level network security certification, meeting the dual requirements of enterprise-level deployment in terms of experience and security.
03. Construction Goals: Smooth Replacement of ServiceNow ITSM for Tens of Thousands of Habitual Users
On-Time System Cutover: Fully launch the China ITSM system by the deadline, exit the global ServiceNow tenant, and maintain service continuity for a user base in the tens of thousands.
Full Functional Coverage: Deliver an equivalent replacement for ServiceNow’s core ITSM capabilities—covering Incident, Change, Problem, and Service Request Management—while meeting supporting needs for IT Asset Management, CMDB, and Knowledge Management.
System Integration & Adaptation: Build on Microsoft Azure and complete deep integrations with Azure AD, Microsoft 365 (Office 365), Intune, Teams, and other third‑party applications to preserve a seamless IT ecosystem.
Cutover Risk Mitigation: Reduce user adaptation costs from UX differences through personalized portal customization, user training, and phased/gray rollout, ensuring business remains unaffected during cutover.
Compliance and Cost: Meet Microsoft security standards and MLPS Level 3 requirements while reducing software subscription and operating costs to deliver a more cost‑effective ITSM solution.
04. Solution: Customized Architecture + Full Process Support to Solve Four Core Challenges
Addressing the client's four major pain points—broad business scope, difficult requirements gathering, significant product gaps, and a tight timeline—CanWay BlueWhale assembled a dedicated project team and delivered an integrated Platform + Customization + Services solution, resolving issues through an agile architecture and efficient execution.
1) Core architecture positioning
Based on the existing Azure cloud environment, an "Enterprise Portal + IT Service Operations + Data Integration" full-stack architecture was built to achieve associated management of project tasks, processes, and assets:
User Interaction Layer: Customized exclusive entry points including the Enterprise Service Portal, IT Service Portal, and Asset Portal, tailored to the usage habits of different user roles.
IT Service Operations Layer: Deliver standardized IT service capabilities. Defined a Service Catalog to clarify available services, managed SLAs (Service Level Agreements) to stipulate response/resolution timeframes, and synchronized satisfaction surveys and service quality inspections (QA) to ensure service quality.
IT Operations Process Layer: Standardized and optimized IT transaction handling. Implemented the four major processes of Incident, Problem, Change, and Request. Improved process efficiency through continuous data analysis and link optimization.
Data Integration Layer: Eliminated data silos by integrating with internal systems such as Azure, achieving Real-time data synchronization of user, asset, and process data to ensure information consistency.
External Operations System Layer: Linked professional tools to expand capabilities, associating security and monitoring systems to achieve collaborative scenarios such as "Monitoring Alerts automatically triggering Incident Workflows," thereby improving response speed.
2) Core Module Construction
Foundation Platform & Portals: Built a foundational PaaS platform and completed the custom development of multiple exclusive portals (Enterprise Service Portal, IT Service Portal, IT Asset Portal, Application Information Management Portal) to adapt to the enterprise's personalized usage scenarios.
Cross-System Integration: Completed third-party system integration to ensure data interoperability and functional linkage.
ITSM Core Functions: Delivered Request Management workflows and implemented Incident Management, Change Management, Problem Management, and Knowledge Management (including a Knowledge Base and a Knowledge Base Catalog).
CMDB Construction: Established management of hardware devices; automated discovery and collection of network devices via SNMP; and enabled the management and automatic synchronization of Microsoft Azure cloud resources, building a comprehensive Configuration Item (CI) management system.
Low-code workflow and visual reporting capabilities: Relied on a low-code workflow engine to quickly build and adjust business processes, supporting form design and script editing. Developed supporting reports covering core ServiceNow service scenarios.
IT Asset Management (ITAM):Implemented a software and hardware asset management system to enable full lifecycle management of hardware devices and software licenses, with data linkage to the CMDB.
Multi-channel service support: Established multi-channel service support (Email, Mobile, Enterprise Service Portal, etc.) to meet service needs in different scenarios, enabling service initiation and feedback reception anytime, anywhere.
05. Construction Results: Quantifiable and Perceptible Value Enhancement
The CanWay BlueWhale ITSM project received formal approval for go-live on schedule, successfully completing the full volume cutover. It earned recognition from the global ServiceNow construction lead and internal users, ultimately delivering a result that exceeded expectations.
1) Core Construction Achievements
Foundation Support: Built the foundational PaaS platform and launched four dedicated portals—Enterprise Service, IT Service, IT Asset, and Application Information Management—to support personalized enterprise use cases.
Cross-System Integration: Based on the Action Management module, achieved 10+ third-party system integrations, covering auto-collection of cloud resources, automatic VM creation, synchronization of terminal devices and compliance data, and automatic monitoring and alarm transfer orders, realizing cross-system data flow and automated collaboration.
ITIL Operations Processes:
Completed cutover of 70+ request workflows and end-to-end Incident, Change, Problem, and Knowledge Management processes；Built comprehensive ITIL-aligned operational processes supporting custom forms and multi-node approvals.
SLA Management allows precise protocol settings by priority and region.
Knowledge Management module realizes the full process of article creation, approval, and publishing, building a structured knowledge base.
CMDB: Implemented hardware device management, automated discovery/collection of network devices via SNMP, and Azure cloud resource management with auto-synchronization, providing accurate data to support end-to-end IT operations.
IT Asset Management : Completed full cutover for software/hardware asset management, meeting full lifecycle control requirements such as asset registration, enrollment, and compliance checks.
Low-code workflow and visual reporting capabilities: Leveraged the process engine to achieve Zero-Code/Low-Code process building, supporting visual process design (drag-and-drop nodes, configuration of routing rules), form customization (new fields, validation logic settings), and script editing. Delivered 80+ customized reports and completed configuration training for multiple teams, supporting analysis by product category, owner, and time trends, with export and custom configuration capabilities.
Multi-channel service support: Established multi-channel support—including email, mobile, and the Enterprise Service Portal—enabling users to initiate requests and receive feedback anytime, anywhere, and improving responsiveness across service scenarios.
2) Project Value & ROI
Risk reduction: Met localization and domestic substitution requirements, eliminating reliance on overseas cloud deployments; reduced geopolitical operational risks while complying with Microsoft security inspections and MLPS Level 3 standards.
Cost Optimization: Significantly lowered tool‑level operating costs versus ServiceNow’s high annual subscription fees, freeing up enterprise IT budget.
User experience enhancement: System deployment on domestic Azure nodes significantly improved user access performance. Personalized portals and interaction designs tailored to local habits reduced user adaptation costs.
Operational efficiency improvement: Achieved end-to-end integration of "Process & Automation" and "Process & Monitoring Alerts," further enhancing IT service response speed and processing efficiency.
06. Future Outlook: Benchmarking Industry Leaders and Pursuing Continuous Improvement
Through this collaboration, CanWay BlueWhale successfully replaced ServiceNow for a Global Fortune 500 enterprise with tens of thousands of users and,through practical delivery, developed a domestic substitution solution characterized by High adaptability, high efficiency, and high security. Domestic substitution is not a passive response, but a strategic opportunity to actively embrace digital capabilities that are more agile and better aligned with local business characteristics.
Looking ahead, CanWay BlueWhale will continue to deepen technical innovation and scenario refinement, strengthening capabilities in AI, Machine Learning, and Continuous Improvement Management. We aim to deliver IT service management solutions with better business fit and higher cost‑performance for multinational and group enterprises. In the wave of domestic substitution, CanWay BlueWhale is willing to be a reliable partner for enterprise digital transformation, leveraging the philosophy of "Simplicity in R&D and Ops, Infinite Innovation" to help enterprises unlock the full potential of IT assets and services.
