The AI question no one’s answering. Everyone’s talking about AI adoption. Few are asking how to control it. At the ServiceNow World Forum 2025, one of the best comments came from Nick Tzitzon:
“It’s not about build versus buy anymore. It’s about consumption versus control.”
AI is flooding into businesses through every side door. From consumer chat tools to enterprise-grade models, intelligence is being consumed faster than it’s governed. This is the real test of modern platforms, how to balance user freedom with data control.
What does consumption mean in ServiceNow?
Consumption is how people actually use AI. It’s the day-to-day interactions, requests, and quick fixes that get work done. In ServiceNow, it shows up as:
- Employees turning to generative tools before using the portal.
- Teams creating their own automations.
- Data being shared between unauthorised apps.
When people find value faster elsewhere, adoption collapses. The only fix is design that’s worth staying for.
What is the ServiceNow AI Control Tower?
The AI Control Tower is ServiceNow’s answer to the sprawl problem. It centralises governance, tracking which agents, models, and workflows are used, by whom, and with what data.
It’s an intelligent command centre for AI compliance. But governance alone doesn’t guarantee adoption. If the experience is painful, users will still bypass it.
Where UX meets governance
That’s where Monochrome fits in. We design the ServiceNow experience layer, the part that decides whether people comply or go rogue.
Our UX-led approach does three things:
- Simplifies journeys so users naturally follow the approved path.
- Integrates control invisibly through interface and process design.
- Measures adoption and deflection so you can prove compliance through usage, not policy.
When people prefer the right path, governance stops feeling like a rule and starts becoming a culture.
Frequently asked questions
What is the biggest AI risk for ServiceNow users?
Uncontrolled consumption. When users access unapproved AI tools, data leaks and shadow workflows emerge. UX design and governance frameworks prevent this by providing a single trusted experience.
How can UX improve compliance?
People don’t ignore systems that work. Simplify the journey and you reduce risk by design.
How do I prove ROI on ServiceNow governance?
Track deflection rate, task completion, and search success. These numbers show how much work happens through the approved flow, not outside it.
The takeaway
AI adoption is the easy part. Real value comes from balancing consumption and control, not through restriction, but through intelligent UX. Take a look at our Employee Center examples.
Book a UX accelerator and find out where your users go rogue, and how better design brings them back under control.