In this interview at the ServiceNow Knowledge25 event, Tom Smith talks with Praveen Challa, AVP, Practice Management, Cognizant, and Martin Palacios, Associate Director, Practice Management, Cognizant ServiceNow Business Group (SNBG), about the deepening partnership between Cognizant and ServiceNow, the integration of Thirdera, and how AI-driven automation is transforming enterprise workflows across industries.
Highlights
Cognizant and ServiceNow Partnership Overview (00:24)
Challa explains the long-standing partnership between Cognizant and ServiceNow, focusing on AI-driven automation across various industries. The partnership aims to create transformation offerings by leveraging Cognizant’s industry expertise and AI-led technologies integrated on the ServiceNow platform. Key highlights include the strategic acquisition of Thirdera, which brought over 1,000 employees and expanded Cognizant’s global presence.
Cognizant’s Edge in the ServiceNow Ecosystem (01:40)
What differentiates Cognizant among ServiceNow’s robust partner ecosystem? The combination of Cognizant’s industry expertise and Thirdera’s ServiceNow platform expertise creates new generative AI use cases. Cognizant’s comprehensive advisory and consulting solutions, including implementation and optimization, are a central part of the offering.
Customer Perspective on Generative AI (03:18)
Challa discusses quick wins and potential quick ROI for customers, such as AI support for customer service management and IT operations. Cognizant and ServiceNow have partnered to create a new offering on Workflow Data Fabric supported by generative AI use cases. The goal is to help customers achieve their transformation goals through AI-driven automation.
Workflow Data Fabric and Multi-Vendor Agents (04:32)
Palacios explains the importance of Workflow Data Fabric in generative AI scenarios. Workflow Data Fabric provides tools to get data into the platform, ensuring AI agents have the necessary data for decision-making. Cognizant is working closely with ServiceNow to implement Workflow Data Fabric both internally and for customers. The focus on multi-vendor agents aims to help customers embrace agents from multiple vendors, integrating them into their software stack.
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Accelerators and Managed Services (06:41)
Palacios describes how Thrive managed services brings in a dedicated team to build and support AI agents throughout their lifecycle. Neuro AI agents function as orchestrators, enabling coordination across platforms and systems. This orchestration helps prevent siloed operations and supports smooth, integrated communication between agents.
Challenges and Solutions in Generative AI (07:41)
Challa outlines key challenges customers face with generative AI, including talent, integrations, and training. The need for a platform that connects all AI agents, whether integrating with SAP, Workday, or other systems, is highlighted. Cognizant helps customers address these challenges by providing the necessary training and integrations. They cover why it’s necessary to trust data and start with a high level of supervision for AI agents.
Future Outlook for Generative AI (09:25)
Smith asks about the outlook for generative AI through 2025. Challa predicts that by 2025, Cognizant will automate IT, HR, and customer service operations using ServiceNow and other AI agents. The goal is to bring siloed operations into a centralized platform, solving complex workflows and integrating with other systems. Palacios adds that there is a reprioritization of backlogs, focusing on enabling AI agents to achieve full autonomy.
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