Executive Summary
To stay competitive, organizations are under constant pressure to more rapidly release change on ServiceNow — while proving that every release is safe, compliant, and won’t disrupt the business it runs. That balance gets harder as ServiceNow estates grow more customized, more integrated, and more central to operations, with AI now accelerating the pace of change further. In this environment, manual testing and evidence — and the gaps left by ServiceNow’s own Automated Test Framework (ATF) — slow releases down, put governance and compliance under strain, and stop teams getting the full value out of their ServiceNow investment.
AutomatePro provides testing, evidence-generation, and documentation capabilities for organizations using ServiceNow. It is intended to help teams automate parts of regression testing and release validation, as well as maintain documentation used in governance and compliance processes. Where manual testing and ATF leave gaps in coverage, trust, and evidence, AutomatePro closes them, reducing risk of change, cutting the manual burden, and giving regulated, business-critical ServiceNow teams the audit-ready trail they need. As AI accelerates the pace and volume of change on ServiceNow, AutomatePro enables businesses to accelerate digital transformation, scale ServiceNow across the enterprise, and reduce operational risk, without needing to grow the team.
AutomatePro commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential return on investment (ROI) enterprises may realize by deploying AutomatePro.1 The purpose of this study is to provide readers with a framework to evaluate the potential financial impact of AutomatePro on their organizations.
Key Statistics
240%
Return on investment (ROI)
$4.9M
Benefits present value
$3.4M
Net present value (NPV)
To better understand the benefits, costs, and risks associated with this investment, Forrester interviewed two decision-makers within the same organization who have experience using AutomatePro. Forrester used this experience to project a three-year financial analysis.
The interviewees said that prior to using AutomatePro, their highly regulated organization experienced a set of operational challenges and compliance pressure that constrained agility and increased cost. ServiceNow had become a critical enterprise platform supporting a growing portfolio of applications and capabilities, creating ongoing demand for enhancements, releases, and upgrades.
However, prior attempts yielded limited success, leaving the organization with manual, time-intensive testing cycles and heavy compliance and audit burdens. Teams were required to spend significant time creating and maintaining test scripts, compiling validation documentation, collecting testing evidence, preparing traceability records, coordinating reviews with quality management teams, and securing formal approvals and sign-offs required for good manufacturing practice (GMP)/good practice (GxP) compliance. These limitations led to lengthy compliance validation cycles, constrained ServiceNow release velocity, and growing operational overhead for testing, quality assurance, and platform teams. As the organization expanded its ServiceNow footprint and demand for enhancements continued to increase, the effort required to support testing, validation, and compliance at scale placed increasing pressure on the organization’s ability to efficiently deliver changes and meet business goals.
After the investment in AutomatePro, the interviewees’ organization was able to automate ServiceNow regression testing at scale, generate audit-ready documentation in real-time, support stringent GxP/GMP compliance requirements and reduce reliance on manual testing and validation processes. Key results from the investment include increased operational efficiency, improved business value of ServiceNow by accelerating the delivery of new capabilities and enabling the organization to support a substantially larger ServiceNow footprint without increasing resources, a reduction in the number of incidents, and improved time to resolution.
Key Findings
Quantified benefits. Quantified benefits for the interviewees’ organization include:
-
Improved value of ServiceNow worth $2.2 million. By accelerating testing and validation, AutomatePro helped the organization to more frequently release ServiceNow applications and capabilities. The interviewees mentioned that the organization moved from four releases per year to eight and went from supporting eight modules and applications to 30. Faster releases enabled business stakeholders to more quickly benefit from new ServiceNow capabilities, features, and enhancements, increasing the value realized from the organization’s ServiceNow investments while supporting significantly greater scale without additional resources. For the company, faster releases improved the time to value of ServiceNow applications and generated a three-year, risk-adjusted present value of $2.2 million.
-
Testing automation and automated documentation efficiencies worth $1.6 million. AutomatePro reduced the time required for ServiceNow regression testing and validation release cycles. The executive director and ServiceNow platform owner at the pharmaceutical organization reported that testing cycles fell from three weeks to three days and that 75% to 80% of testing activities became automated. Additionally, AutomatePro automated the creation of audit-ready documentation and reduced the time that quality management reviewers spent approving releases. The executive director said quality management approval work fell from three days to 3 to 5 hours per release. For the company, these improvements reduced manual testing effort and generated a three-year, risk-adjusted PV of $1.6 million.
-
Incident reduction and resolution efficiency worth $1.0 million. AutomatePro helped reduce the number of incidents occurring within the ServiceNow environment, and it also accelerated the resolution time to fix incidents. Faster and more comprehensive regression testing increased confidence in production changes and enabled teams to more quickly identify and address issues, reducing both incident volume and mean time to resolution. For the pharmaceuticals company, this generated a three-year, risk-adjusted PV of $1.0 million.
Unquantified benefits. Benefits that provide value for the interviewees’ organization but are not quantified for this study include:
-
Reduced compliance risk and improved audit readiness. Both interviewees said their organization had not faced prior audit challenges; however, increased demand and growing environmental complexity could put a strain on manual processes, which could open the risk of errors or evidence readiness. The introduction of AutomatePro automated evidence creation and reduced reliance on manual processes.
-
Greater scalability without adding headcount. The interviewees’ organization was able to upgrade to a greater number of ServiceNow family releases annually, as well as expand the modules and applications they supported from eight to 30, without the need to increase headcount.
-
Improved testing rigor and quality. The executive director and ServiceNow platform owner said, “Overall, the quality has increased, the speed has increased, and the level of rigor has increased.”
Quantified costs. Quantified costs for the interviewee’s organization include:
-
Implementation costs of $813,000. These included internal implementation labor from testing and platform operations teams as well as third-party implementation fees. While adopting a new automation practice, these teams were also trained in readiness to deploy.
-
Licensing costs of $617,000. The organization’s AutomatePro licensing investment is based on the composite profile and risk-adjusted upward by 5%
The financial analysis that is based on the interviews found that the decision-makers’ organization experiences benefits of $4.9 million over three years versus costs of $1.4 million, adding up to a net present value (NPV) of $3.4 million and an ROI of 240%.
$2.2 million
Improved value of ServiceNow
8 months
Payback period
Benefits (Three-Year)
The AutomatePro Customer Journey
Drivers leading to the AutomatePro investment
Interviewees’ Organization
Forrester interviewed two decision-makers who have experience using AutomatePro at their organization: the executive director and ServiceNow platform owner and the product manager, platform management. Their pharmaceuticals organization is a global enterprise with $60 billion annual revenue and 60,000 employees. The organization leverages the ServiceNow platform to support enterprise workflows (particularly ITSM) and regulated business processes. Its IT organization comprises 10,000 employees, 1% of whom are on the ServiceNow team.
Key Challenges
The interviewees explained that before deploying AutomatePro, increasing operational demands and high expectations for maintaining testing rigor and quality created challenges for the organization.
The interviewees noted how their organization struggled with challenges prior to investing in AutomatePro, including:
-
Manual testing and validation processes. Before AutomatePro, regression testing and validation processes took approximately three weeks per release cycle. The organization had four annual release cycles, meaning that manual testing and documentation constrained release velocity. Teams were also required to spend significant time creating and maintaining test scripts, compiling validation documentation, collecting testing evidence, preparing traceability records, and coordinating reviews and approvals required for GMP/GxP compliance. The executive director and owner of the ServiceNow platform said, “We used to spend at least three weeks per release cycle because of all of these manual validation steps.”
-
Compliance evidence burden on testing and QA teams. The organization had to coordinate with a separate quality management team to demonstrate compliance, show evidence, and secure explicit signoffs before releases. QA reviewers spent approximately three days per release reviewing documentation and approvals.
-
Limited release velocity. Manual testing and compliance evidence slowed the organization’s ability to release new ServiceNow capabilities. This reduced the speed at which the organization could realize value from its ServiceNow licensing and platform investments.
-
Slower incident resolution. The executive director said that production incidents or functionality disruptions required investigation, mitigation, testing, and regression cycles. Before AutomatePro, a fix that required regression testing could take approximately four days to resolve and deploy.
Use Case Description
The organization uses ServiceNow as its enterprise software, particularly for ITSM workflows and regulated business processes, including processes that support the registration of new pharmaceutical product. It also expanded this to security operations, risk management, and custom applications. Due to being in the pharmaceutical industry, it must satisfy compliance requirements and maintain audit-ready testing evidence. It deployed AutomatePro to automate ServiceNow regression testing, evidence creation, and release validation.
For this use case, Forrester has modeled benefits and costs over three years.
KEY ASSUMPTIONS
-
Enterprise-sized organization in pharmaceutical industry
-
Leverages the ServiceNow platform to support enterprise workflows (particularly ITSM, security operations, and risk management), as well as regulated business processes and custom applications
-
100 FTEs in ServiceNow team
-
10 testers in ServiceNow team used per release
Analysis Of Benefits
Quantified benefit data
Total Benefits
| Ref. | Benefit | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atr | Improved value of ServiceNow | $729,000 | $988,402 | $1,010,642 | $2,728,044 | $2,238,899 |
| Btr | Testing automation and automated documentation efficiencies | $434,226 | $764,712 | $764,712 | $1,963,650 | $1,601,284 |
| Ctr | Incident reduction and resolution efficiency | $410,400 | $410,400 | $410,400 | $1,231,200 | $1,020,604 |
| Total benefits (risk-adjusted) | $1,573,626 | $2,163,514 | $2,185,754 | $5,922,894 | $4,860,787 |
Improved Value Of ServiceNow
Evidence and data. The executive director explained that the value of AutomatePro extends beyond test automation and deployment efficiency. By enabling faster, more reliable ServiceNow releases, AutomatePro helped the organization more quickly realize business value from its ServiceNow investment. The organization continuously deployed new ServiceNow capabilities and enhancements. When releases were delayed, so was the business value associated with those capabilities. AutomatePro increased release velocity and strengthened release confidence, allowing the organization to put new capabilities into production more quickly and consistently.
The interviewee highlighted several ways AutomatePro increased the realized value of ServiceNow.
-
AutomatePro helped the organization increase release frequency from one release every three months to one release approximately every six weeks, enabling ServiceNow capabilities to reach users faster.
-
Before AutomatePro, regression testing was primarily limited to major ServiceNow platform upgrades due to tooling and operational constraints. AutomatePro’s ServiceNow-native architecture and automation capabilities enabled the organization to move toward executing regression testing as part of regular functional releases, improving confidence in frequent deployment cycles.
-
The product manager for the platform management of ServiceNow explained that AutomatePro’s library-based approach to test management allowed teams to reuse and maintain test assets across releases. This reduced the effort associated with updating tests and helped support a faster release cadence as ServiceNow environments grew in complexity.
-
Because AutomatePro is built natively on ServiceNow, the organization could more efficiently automate testing, manage evidence capture, and maintain release quality than with its previous nonnative testing solution. The interviewees noted that these capabilities made it increasingly feasible to validate both new functionality and existing functionality during release cycles, reducing barriers to adopting more frequent releases.
-
The executive director described the outcome as a time-to-value improvement: Every reduction in release cycle time accelerates the point at which business stakeholders and internal users can begin benefiting from new ServiceNow capabilities, enhancements, and process improvements.
Forrester research indicates that organizations derive greater value from enterprise platforms when they can rapidly deliver new functionality, reduce release bottlenecks, and accelerate user adoption of technology-enabled process improvements.2 In this case, AutomatePro contributed to those outcomes by helping the interviewees’ organization deploy ServiceNow innovations more frequently and with greater confidence.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews and research data, Forrester assumes the following:
-
The company realizes an annual net benefit of $54 million from its ServiceNow investment.
-
Each additional release increases value by 15%.
-
AutomatePro has a 15% attribution rate to the realization of improved value of ServiceNow.
-
AutomatePro improves time to value by 1.5 months.
-
The company has a baseline of four releases prior to the adoption of AutomatePro, six releases in Year 1, and eight releases in Years 2 and 3.
Risks. The scale of this benefit may vary from organization to organization based on:
-
The existing release cadence before AutomatePro.
-
The extent to which testing and validation constrain release timelines.
-
The business value associated with ServiceNow applications.
-
The portion of business value that depends on release timing.
-
The organization’s ability to adopt faster release governance.
-
The organization’s strategy and roadmap influencing the operation of ServiceNow
-
The development and testing effort, as well as any change management efforts as a result of releases and upgrades.
-
The extent to which the organization depends on ServiceNow for business-critical operations.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 20%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $2.2 million.
50%
Time-to-value improvement
Improved Value Of ServiceNow
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Annual net benefit of ServiceNow | Research data | $54,000,000 | $54,911,250 | $56,146,753 | |
| A2 | Increased value per release | Assumption | 15% | 15% | 15% | |
| A3 | Attribution rate of AutomatePro | Assumption | 15% | 15% | 15% | |
| A4 | Release lead time pre-AutomatePro (months) | Interviews | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| A5 | Time-to-value improvement (months) | Interviews | 50% | 50% | 50% | |
| A6 | Releases pre-AutomatePro | Interviews | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| A7 | Releases with AutomatePro | Assumption | 6 | 8 | 8 | |
| At | Improved value of ServiceNow | A1/12*A2*A3*A4*A5*A7 | $911,250 | $1,235,503 | $1,263,302 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓20% | |||||
| Atr | Improved value of ServiceNow (risk-adjusted) | $729,000 | $988,402 | $1,010,642 | ||
| Three-year total: $2,728,044 | Three-year present value: $2,238,899 | |||||
Testing Automation And Automated Documentation Efficiencies
Evidence and data. Before AutomatePro, the interviewees’ organization relied on manual regression testing and validation processes for ServiceNow releases and upgrades. The previous testing approach required teams to manage test scripts, evidence, and validation artifacts across multiple tools and repositories, creating additional administrative effort and increasing complexity. Each update required test scripting, evidence gathering, validation documentation, traceability matrices, and coordination with quality assurance reviewers. Teams were also required to compile testing evidence, maintain validation records, and secure formal reviews and approvals required for GMP/GxP compliance. These manual processes created significant effort for testing teams and constrained the organization’s ability to release quickly enough.
-
The executive director said the organization previously spent approximately three weeks per release cycle on testing and validation activities. After implementing AutomatePro, this fell to approximately three days.
-
Through AutomatePro, the organization was able to automate 75% to 80% of the entire testing process, with a small amount of manual effort to validate remaining items. This subsequently not only enabled them to reduce the time taken per release but also enabled them to increase their release velocity by 200%. The executive director shared, “Instead of releasing four times a year, they are now releasing eight times a year.”
-
AutomatePro also transformed the organization’s compliance and quality management approval process by automating the creation of audit-ready documentation. Before AutomatePro, a reviewing team separate from the testers spent approximately three days reviewing documentation and certifying releases. After AutomatePro, this work fell to between 3 and 5 hours.
-
This efficiency also helped the quality management team scale. The executive director said two dedicated quality management employees previously supported about eight capabilities and now support about 30 capabilities, without increasing headcount.
-
The executive director estimated that the organization saved approximately 3,000 to 4,000 hours annually and attributed 70% of the overall efficiency improvement to AutomatePro.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following:
-
In Year 1, AutomatePro reduces time spent per release cycle by 60%, lowering effort to six days. Further reducing, in Years 2 and 3, time spent per release cycle by 80%, lowering effort to three days. This reflects the value curve of AutomatePro post-implementation in the first year, as expressed by the executive director.
-
Ten testers are involved per release.
-
The fully burdened daily salary of a tester is $800.
-
Two quality management employees are involved in each release.
-
The fully burdened hourly salary of a quality management employee is $110.
Risks. The scale of this benefit may vary from organization to organization based on:
-
The number of ServiceNow release cycles and upgrades an organization completes annually.
-
The number of testers and quality management personnel involved in each release.
-
The level of automation achieved with AutomatePro.
-
The complexity of the ServiceNow environment.
-
The breadth of compliance requirements.
-
The extent to which an organization must maintain GMP, GxP, good laboratory practice (GLP), or other validation evidence.
-
The speed with which QA teams adopt automated documentation workflows.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $1.6 million.
200%
Increase in release velocity by Years 2 and 3.
Testing Automation And Automated Documentation Efficiencies
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1 | Time spent per release cycle pre-AutomatePro (days) | Interviews | 15 | 15 | 15 | |
| B2 | Reduction in time spent per release cycle with AutomatePro | Interviews | 60% | 80% | 80% | |
| B3 | Time spent per release cycle with AutomatePro (days) | B1*(100%-B2) | 6 | 3 | 3 | |
| B4 | Major event release cycles per year | Assumption | 6 | 8 | 8 | |
| B5 | Testers involved per release | Assumption | 10 | 10 | 10 | |
| B6 | Fully burdened daily rate for a tester | Assumption | $800 | $800 | $800 | |
| B7 | Subtotal: Labor cost of release cycles pre-AutomatePro | B1*B4*B5*B6 | $720,000 | $960,000 | $960,000 | |
| B8 | Subtotal: Labor cost of release cycles with AutomatePro | B3*B4*B5*B6 | $288,000 | $192,000 | $192,000 | |
| B9 | Subtotal: Cost savings from improved testing automation | B7-B8 | $432,000 | $768,000 | $768,000 | |
| B10 | Quality management approval time per release pre-AutomatePro (hours) | Interviews | 24 | 24 | 24 | |
| B11 | Quality management approval time per release with AutomatePro (hours) | Interviews | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| B12 | Approval time recaptured per release using AutomatePro (hours) | B10-B11 | 19 | 21 | 21 | |
| B13 | Fully burdened hourly rate for a quality management team member | Assumption | $110 | $110 | $110 | |
| B14 | Quality management employees involved per release | Company | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| B15 | Subtotal: Cost savings from automated documentation | B4*B12*B13*B14 | $25,080 | $36,960 | $36,960 | |
| Bt | Testing automation and automated documentation efficiencies | B9+B15 | $457,080 | $804,960 | $804,960 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Btr | Testing automation and automated documentation efficiencies (risk-adjusted) | $434,226 | $764,712 | $764,712 | ||
| Three-year total: $1,963,650 | Three-year present value: $1,601,284 | |||||
Incident Reduction And Resolution Efficiency
Evidence and data. AutomatePro improved the organization’s ability to respond to production incidents and functionality disruptions. The executive director and ServiceNow platform owner estimated that their organization previously experienced approximately 20 time-sensitive incidents annually. These were not routine service requests or minor defects but production issues and functionality disruptions that required manual investigation, formal remediation, regression testing, and release validation before fixes could be deployed into the ServiceNow production environment.
-
The executive director said both the number of incidents and the time required to deploy fixes declined after AutomatePro.
-
The interviewee also said AutomatePro made incident fixing and regression testing “extremely fast” and cited an 80% reduction in the number of incidents.
-
In addition, they shared that there was a 75% reduction in time to resolution: The length of time to resolve an incident decreased from four days to one.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following:
-
The company experiences 20 incidents annually before deploying AutomatePro.
-
AutomatePro reduces incident volume by 80%
-
Time to resolution before AutomatePro is four days.
-
AutomatePro reduces time to resolution by 75%, lowering resolution time to one day.
-
Ten ServiceNow team members are involved in incident resolution.
-
The fully burdened daily pay rate for an incident-resolution team member is $800.
-
The productivity recapture rate is 75%.
Risks. The scale of this benefit may vary from organization to organization based on:
-
The number of incidents an organization experiences annually.
-
The severity and complexity of incidents.
-
The number of people involved in investigation, testing, and resolution.
-
The organization’s ability to productively redirect time saved.
-
The extent to which faster fixes reduce operational disruption.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $1.0 million.
80%
Incident reduction
Incident Reduction And Resolution Efficiency
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | Incidents pre-AutomatePro | Interviews | 20 | 20 | 20 | |
| C2 | Incident reduction with AutomatePro | Interviews | 80% | 80% | 80% | |
| C3 | Incidents with AutomatePro | C1-(C1*C2) | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| C4 | Time to resolution pre-AutomatePro (days) | Interviews | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| C5 | Reduction in resolution time with AutomatePro | Interviews | 75% | 75% | 75% | |
| C6 | Time to resolution with AutomatePro (days) | C4-(C4*C5) | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| C7 | ServiceNow team members involved in incident resolution | Interviews | 10 | 10 | 10 | |
| C8 | Fully burdened daily rate for a team member involved in incident resolution | Assumption | $800 | $800 | $800 | |
| C9 | Productivity recapture rate | TEI methodology | 75% | 75% | 75% | |
| Ct | Total incident reduction and resolution efficiency gains | ((C1*C4*C7*C8)-(C3*C6*C7*C8))*C9 | $456,000 | $456,000 | $456,000 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓10% | |||||
| Ctr | Total incident reduction and resolution efficiency gains (risk-adjusted) | $410,400 | $410,400 | $410,400 | ||
| Three-year total: $1,231,200 | Three-year present value: $1,020,604 | |||||
Unquantified Benefits
Benefits that provide value for the interviewees’ organization but are not quantified for this study include:
-
Reduced compliance risk and improved audit readiness. The interviewees said their organization had not experienced compliance-related challenges before AutomatePro. However, manual evidence creation and manual quality management review placed strain on resources and introduced the possibility that evidence could be missed. AutomatePro automated the creation of documentation and evidence required for compliance, audit, and inspection purposes. The interviewees said AutomatePro generated comprehensive test scripts, execution reports, GxP validation evidence, test results, screenshots, and traceability documentation as tests were executed.
-
Greater scalability without adding headcount. In the organization’s newfound ability to double its release velocity as well as expand the ServiceNow modules and applications it supported from eight to 30, it was also able to do so without needing to increase headcount. Keeping operational overheads consistent but being able to scale meant that the organization realized cost savings by avoiding hiring additional resources. This scalability also supported the organization’s broader objective of expanding the use of ServiceNow across additional business capabilities and applications, enabling the platform to support growing enterprise demand without requiring proportional growth in testing, quality management, and platform support resources.
-
Improved testing rigor and quality. The interviewees said AutomatePro improved the overall quality and rigor of ServiceNow testing while also increasing release speed.
Flexibility
The value of flexibility is unique to each organization. There are some scenarios in which a customer might implement AutomatePro and later realize additional uses and business opportunities, including:
-
Future support for AI-enabled development and release automation. The executive director said their organization expects to use AI to accelerate development cycles and foresees AutomatePro supporting integrated and continuous regression testing. They also highlighted future goals around release automation, continuous integration, and continuous delivery. As AI increases the speed and volume of change across the ServiceNow platform, AutomatePro could provide additional value by helping the organization continuously validate change and prepare the foundations for AI adoption.
Flexibility would also be quantified when evaluated as part of a specific project (described in more detail in Total Economic Impact Approach).
Analysis Of Costs
Quantified cost data
Total Costs
| Ref. | Cost | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dtr | Licensing | $0 | $248,063 | $248,063 | $248,063 | $744,188 | $616,895 |
| Etr | Implementation | $812,768 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $812,768 | $812,768 |
| Total costs (risk-adjusted) | $812,768 | $248,063 | $248,063 | $248,063 | $1,556,956 | $1,429,663 |
Licensing
Evidence and data. The interviewees’ company incurs annual AutomatePro licensing costs. The financial model includes an annual AutomatePro licensing investment of close to $236,000 based on its profile. Pricing may vary. Contact AutomatePro for additional details.
Modeling and assumptions. Forrester assumes the following:
-
Annual AutomatePro licensing investment is $236,250 for the enterprise-level package.
-
The pricing reflects the pharmaceuticals organization’s licensing profile.
Risks. The impact of this cost may vary by organization depending on the following:
-
The size of the ServiceNow environment.
-
The number of users, testers, or modules included in the AutomatePro deployment.
-
The breadth of AutomatePro functionality adopted.
-
Commercial terms and contract structure.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $617,000.
Licensing
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D1 | Total investment | AutomatePro | $0 | $236,250 | $236,250 | $236,250 |
| Dt | Total licensing investment | AutomatePro | $0 | $236,250 | $236,250 | $236,250 |
| Risk adjustment | ↑5% | |||||
| Dtr | Total licensing investment (risk-adjusted) | $0 | $248,063 | $248,063 | $248,063 | |
| Three-year total: $744,188 | Three-year present value: $616,895 | |||||
Implementation
Evidence and data. Implementation included use of internal resources from the interviewees’ organization as well as hiring a consulting firm. The implementation process included enabling AutomatePro on the ServiceNow platform; setting up infrastructure, permissions, and security; training the team; and automating test scripts.
-
The executive director said implementation was a journey that took about a year to fully mature. During this time, those involved in implementation were trained in readiness to deploy with AutomatePro. Although training was a light lift, it also happened on an ongoing basis as reflected in the value curve across Year 1 to realize the full benefit.
-
The organization rolled out AutomatePro to production in about six months and expanded from initial modules to broader platform coverage over the remainder of the year.
-
The organization initially focused on IT service management applications, then expanded to security operations, risk management, and custom applications — a sequence that was tied to the organization’s transformation roadmap.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following:
-
Implementation and deployment require six months.
-
Testing team utilization during implementation is 70%.
-
Platform operations utilization during implementation is 30%.
-
Initial training occurs in readiness for deployment and continues on an ongoing basis across the first year as the team works to gain the full benefit of the solution.
-
Third-party implementation fees total $300,000.
Risks. The impact of this cost may vary by organization depending on the following:
-
The complexity of the ServiceNow environment.
-
The number of ServiceNow modules and custom applications included in the initial AutomatePro deployment.
-
The degree of compliance customization required.
-
The level of internal testing and platform operations resources required.
-
The use and cost of third-party implementation support.
-
Internal readiness and prior test automation maturity.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $813,000.
Implementation
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E1 | Time to implement, train and deploy (hours) | Interviews | 1,040 | |||
| E2 | FTEs in testing team involved in implementation | Interviews | 5 | |||
| E3 | Utilization rate of testing team on implementation | Interviews | 70% | |||
| E4 | Fully burdened hourly rate for a ServiceNow tester | Assumption | $100 | |||
| E5 | FTEs in platform operations team involved in implementation | Interviews | 3 | |||
| E6 | Utilization rate of platform operations team on implementation | Interviews | 30% | |||
| E7 | Fully burdened hourly rate for a platform operations team member | Assumption | $80 | |||
| E8 | Third-party implementation fees | Assumption | $300,000 | |||
| Et | Implementation costs | (E1*E2*E3*E4)+(E1*E5*E6*E7)+E8 | $738,880 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Risk adjustment | ↑10% | |||||
| Etr | Implementation costs (risk-adjusted) | $812,768 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
| Three-year total: $812,768 | Three-year present value: $812,768 | |||||
Financial Summary
Consolidated Three-Year, Risk-Adjusted Metrics
Cash Flow Chart (Risk-Adjusted)
Cash Flow Analysis (Risk-Adjusted)
| Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total costs | ($812,768) | ($248,063) | ($248,063) | ($248,063) | ($1,556,956) | ($1,429,663) |
| Total benefits | $0 | $1,573,626 | $2,163,514 | $2,185,754 | $5,922,894 | $4,860,787 |
| Net benefits | ($812,768) | $1,325,564 | $1,915,452 | $1,937,692 | $4,365,939 | $3,431,124 |
| ROI | 240% | |||||
| Payback | 8 months |
Please Note
The financial results calculated in the Benefits and Costs sections can be used to determine the ROI, NPV, and payback period for the organization’s investment. Forrester assumes a yearly discount rate of 10% for this analysis.
These risk-adjusted ROI, NPV, and payback period values are determined by applying risk-adjustment factors to the unadjusted results in each Benefit and Cost section.
The initial investment column contains costs incurred at “time 0” or at the beginning of Year 1 that are not discounted. All other cash flows are discounted using the discount rate at the end of the year. PV calculations are calculated for each total cost and benefit estimate. NPV calculations in the summary tables are the sum of the initial investment and the discounted cash flows in each year. Sums and present value calculations of the Total Benefits, Total Costs, and Cash Flow tables may not exactly add up, as some rounding may occur.
From the information provided in the interviews, Forrester constructed a Total Economic Impact™ framework for those organizations considering an investment in AutomatePro.
The objective of the framework is to identify the cost, benefit, flexibility, and risk factors that affect the investment decision. Forrester took a multistep approach to evaluate the impact that AutomatePro can have on an organization.
Due Diligence
Interviewed AutomatePro stakeholders and Forrester analysts to gather data relative to AutomatePro.
Interviews
Interviewed two decision-makers with experience using AutomatePro at their organization to obtain data about costs, benefits, and risks.
Financial Model Framework
Constructed a financial model representative of the interviews using the TEI methodology and risk-adjusted the financial model based on issues and concerns of the interviewees.
Case Study
Employed four fundamental elements of TEI in modeling the investment impact: benefits, costs, flexibility, and risks. Given the increasing sophistication of ROI analyses related to IT investments, Forrester’s TEI methodology provides a complete picture of the total economic impact of purchase decisions. Please see Appendix A for additional information on the TEI methodology.
Total Economic Impact Approach
Benefits
Benefits represent the value the solution delivers to the business. The TEI methodology places equal weight on the measure of benefits and costs, allowing for a full examination of the solution’s effect on the entire organization.
Costs
Costs comprise all expenses necessary to deliver the proposed value, or benefits, of the solution. The methodology captures implementation and ongoing costs associated with the solution.
Flexibility
Flexibility represents the strategic value that can be obtained for some future additional investment building on top of the initial investment already made. The ability to capture that benefit has a PV that can be estimated.
Risks
Risks measure the uncertainty of benefit and cost estimates given: 1) the likelihood that estimates will meet original projections and 2) the likelihood that estimates will be tracked over time. TEI risk factors are based on “triangular distribution.”
Financial Terminology
Present value (PV)
The present or current value of (discounted) cost and benefit estimates given at an interest rate (the discount rate). The PVs of costs and benefits feed into the total NPV of cash flows.
Net present value (NPV)
The present or current value of (discounted) future net cash flows given an interest rate (the discount rate). A positive project NPV normally indicates that the investment should be made unless other projects have higher NPVs.
Return on investment (ROI)
A project’s expected return in percentage terms. ROI is calculated by dividing net benefits (benefits less costs) by costs.
Discount rate
The interest rate used in cash flow analysis to take into account the time value of money. Organizations typically use discount rates between 8% and 16%.
Payback
The breakeven point for an investment. This is the point in time at which net benefits (benefits minus costs) equal initial investment or cost.
Appendix A
Total Economic Impact
Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-making processes and assists solution providers in communicating their value proposition to clients. The TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of business and technology initiatives to both senior management and other key stakeholders.
Appendix B
Supplemental Material
Related Forrester Research
The Total Economic Impact™ Of ServiceNow ITSM, a commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of ServiceNow, April 2017
The Infrastructure Automation Platforms Landscape, Q2 2026, Forrester Research, Inc., June 24, 2026
Quantifying The Business Value Of SaaS ERP, Forrester Research, Inc., October 10, 2025
Appendix C
Endnotes
1 Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-making processes and assists solution providers in communicating their value proposition to clients. The TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of business and technology initiatives to both senior management and other key stakeholders.
2 Source: The Infrastructure Automation Platforms Landscape, Q2 2026, Forrester Research, Inc., June 24, 2026; Quantifying The Business Value Of SaaS ERP, Forrester Research, Inc., October 10, 2025.
Disclosures
Readers should be aware of the following:
This study is commissioned by AutomatePro and delivered by Forrester Consulting. It is not meant to be used as a competitive analysis.
Forrester makes no assumptions as to the potential ROI that other organizations will receive. Forrester strongly advises that readers use their own estimates within the framework provided in the study to determine the appropriateness of an investment in AutomatePro. For any interactive functionality, the intent is for the questions to solicit inputs specific to a prospect’s business. Forrester believes that this analysis is representative of what companies may achieve with AutomatePro based on the inputs provided and any assumptions made. Forrester does not endorse AutomatePro or its offerings. Although great care has been taken to ensure the accuracy and completeness of this model, AutomatePro and Forrester Research are unable to accept any legal responsibility for any actions taken on the basis of the information contained herein. The interactive tool is provided ‘AS IS,’ and Forrester and AutomatePro make no warranties of any kind.
AutomatePro reviewed and provided feedback to Forrester, but Forrester maintains editorial control over the study and its findings and does not accept changes to the study that contradict Forrester’s findings or obscure the meaning of the study.
AutomatePro provided the customer name for the interviews but did not participate in the interviews.
Consulting Team:
Ashleigh Cohen
Elina Bauwens
Sanny Mok
Published
October 2026
PDF