Qlik partners ServiceNow to embed analytics in workflows

Qlik has partnered with ServiceNow to bring Qlik data and analytics into ServiceNow workflows and AI agents.

Under the agreement, ServiceNow Data Catalog will include Qlik metadata collectors that connect with a range of Qlik products. This is intended to improve data discovery, lineage visibility and governance for shared data assets in ServiceNow environments.

Qlik's analytics engine will also feed insights into ServiceNow workflows and agents. The goal is to support decisions with information drawn from ServiceNow and other business systems, including ERP, CRM, billing, supply chain and support platforms.

The partnership reflects growing demand from large companies to embed AI in day-to-day operational systems rather than treat it as a separate layer. It also points to a wider push to give automated processes and software agents more organisational context before they act.

Data context

ServiceNow's Workflow Data Fabric already provides a data layer for workflows running on its platform. Qlik's role in the partnership is to add broader enterprise context, governed data and analytics so users can identify patterns and relationships across systems and feed those insights back into operational processes.

This approach is designed to address a common issue in enterprise AI projects: systems can execute tasks quickly, but decisions are often limited by the scope of the data available to them. By linking workflow execution with a broader set of enterprise signals, the companies aim to improve how teams and software agents assess business conditions.

The new metadata collectors are a notable part of the arrangement because they focus on the underlying infrastructure behind analytics and AI. Data cataloguing and lineage tools help companies understand where data comes from, how it moves between systems and whether it can be trusted for analysis or automated actions.

For ServiceNow users, the addition of Qlik collectors means metadata from Qlik products can be surfaced within the ServiceNow Data Catalog. That could give data teams and business users better visibility into the structure and movement of information tied to workflow decisions.

Workflow focus

The partnership is framed around the connection between insight and action. Rather than stopping at dashboards or analysis, the integration is intended to push findings directly into the systems where work is assigned, approved or escalated.

That could matter for enterprises trying to make AI more practical in operations such as customer service, finance, IT and supply chain management. In those settings, the value of analytics often depends on whether it can be applied at the point a decision is made rather than after the event.

The arrangement also supports a more governed model for using third-party data inside ServiceNow. Governance has become a key issue for businesses adopting AI tools, particularly when decisions rely on information spread across multiple systems with different ownership and controls.

James Fisher, Chief Strategy Officer at Qlik, described the partnership as a response to the changing role of workflows and software agents in business operations.

"Workflows and AI agents are being asked to do more than route work. They are being asked to interpret business conditions and act with better judgment," Fisher said. "That takes more than system data on its own. It takes the ability to combine ServiceNow signals with broader enterprise context, apply analytics and AI, and feed that intelligence back into the workflow where action happens."

ServiceNow described the tie-up as a way to bring external enterprise data more directly into its workflow layer. It said this extends the reach of Workflow Data Fabric to systems that hold critical business information outside ServiceNow itself.

"The decisions people and agents make every day are only as good as the data behind them," said Pramod Mahadevan, VP, Data & Analytics Product Ecosystem at ServiceNow. "Our partnership with Qlik connects those insights from third-party data directly to action inside ServiceNow, extending the reach of Workflow Data Fabric to the systems where critical data already lives. The result: people and agents that act on trusted, governed intelligence, and decision-ready data in the workflows where work gets done," added Mahadevan.

Qlik is widely used by large enterprises and says its software is used by 75% of the Fortune 500. That installed base may make the partnership relevant for companies that already use Qlik for analytics and want to connect those systems more tightly with operational software.

For both companies, the partnership underlines a broader trend in enterprise technology: linking data governance, analytics and AI outputs more directly with the business processes where decisions are made.