If you’re becoming a ServiceNow specialist or if you are a headhunter looking for new candidates, you’ll benefit from familiarising yourself with the jungle of titles used for ServiceNow technical roles.
In this article, I will describe the job titles used for technical roles, but also off a few optional attributes to specify experience and scope.
Some companies use alternate naming convention, but the ones used by ServiceNow influenced the market enough to ensure that most stay very close to the lists below.
Job titles
It’s important to understand that each position is expected to master most of the skills required in the previous roles… so it can be visualised as a pyramid.
| Job Title | Role Description | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| Administrator | Can do platform maintenance and minor cosmetic changes | CSA |
| Developer | Can add new features or create custom applications for new processes, usually under guidance. Can also define someone who specialise high-code implementations (where large quantities of JavaScript code are required) | CAD |
| Implementation Specialist | Can implement one of ServiceNow dedicated domain solutions from scratch | CIS |
| Architect | Can lead teams of Developers or Implementation Specialists to implement or maintain small/medium ServiceNow instances | CTA |
| Master Architect | Can lead teams of Architects to design ServiceNow instances for the largest companies under the most complex environments | CMA |
The list of roles is expanding as the market matures. When I started in 2011, the list was shorter and more chaotic. The title Technical Consultant was sometimes used as an alternative to Developer. Solution Consultant was used to define everything above Developer… until the Solution Architect role was created. The Master Architect role only appeared in 2020.
Solution Consultant was a truism with both “Solution” and “Consultant” describing a process and solution oriented specialist with more than just pure technical skills. Its usage have shifted toward sales roles. It is used specifically by ServiceNow, the company, to describe a pre-sales specialist: Someone with excellent sales skills, but can act as a technical and business advisor. The Solution Consultant leaves the project before its implementation.
As you go lower in that table, the skill requirements increase steeply. This limits the availability of specialists. To illustrate this, there is currently less than 100 ServiceNow Certified Master Architects (CMA) in the word.
Outsiders
Other positions navigate outside this grid, like Business Analysts specialised in ServiceNow, also called Business Process Consultant. Testing Specialists, also known as Quality & Assurance Specialists, Scrum Masters, Project Managers and Process/Product/Platform Owners can also be major contributors to the implementation of ServiceNow projects, yet they are not layers of that pyramid of implementation specialisations.
Experience Attributes
From Junior to Principal… Experience and soft-skills are often translated in role or job description. They affect the salary of the specialist, and should modify the expected outcomes.
| Experience Attribute | Explanation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Junior […] | Lack business experience, need to work under supervision | Junior Developer |
| Senior […] | Proven track record and experience, better soft-skills. Usually able to work without supervision | Senior Implementation Specialist |
| Lead […] | Proven track record and good team leader, excellent soft-skills, good business acumen | Lead Architect |
| Principal* […] | Domain leader with great soft-skills and business acumen | Principal Architect |
* Principle is sometimes used instead of Principal. The Merriam-Webster dictionary describe this as a grammatical mistake that can lead to some confusion.
Scoping Attributes
A few additional attributes that appear now and then, to better define the scope of the required skills.
| Scoping Attribute | Explanation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Technical […] | Business acumen and soft-skills NOT expected | Technical Consultant |
| Solution […] | Additional consulting mindset and business analyst skills required. Typically process and solution oriented | Solution Consultant |
| Platform […] | Good generalist, no specialisation in specific product required | Platform Architect |
| [Domain] […] | Specialized in a specific product or domain | HR Implementation Specialist |
| Certified […] | Requires certification to prove your value | Certified Master Architect |
| Global […] | Used by large companies to describe that a role applies worldwide, regardless of geographical silos | Global Principal Architect |
Bonus Tip for Headhunters
Please consider this list of roles as a hierarchy of ServiceNow positions to use when you contact candidates…
“Administrator” < “Developer” < “Implementation Specialist” < “Architect” < “Master Architect”.
Each position needs to master most of the skills required by previous roles. It’s overkill to contact a ServiceNow Master Architect for a Senior Developer role, or a Developer for an Administrator role.