> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://build-it-the-right-way.gitbook.io/home/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://build-it-the-right-way.gitbook.io/home/welcome/who-this-is-for.md).

# Who This Is For

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A walkthrough of who the framework serves, the prerequisites for adopting it, and the recommended reading path.
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A framework that is for everyone is a framework that is for no one. Build It the Right Way is written for a specific audience: the people who carry architectural accountability on the Now Platform. This page defines those roles precisely, states what you should bring before you adopt the framework, and lays out the reading path to follow first.

### In this article

* Who the framework serves
* The five roles and their accountability
* Prerequisites for adoption
* The recommended reading path
* Where to go from here

## Who the framework serves

The framework is for whoever influences what gets built on the Now Platform. Not the people who watch from a distance. The people who are accountable for the design, the delivery, and the guardrails.

It applies equally to startups, large enterprises, managed service providers, and public sector teams. It pairs naturally with the Common Service Data Model, Application Portfolio Management, and strategic portfolio planning. Whether you run a single ITSM instance or a multi-workload estate spanning HRSD, ITOM, and SPM, the accountability model below is the same.

## The five roles and their accountability

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**If you influence what gets built on the Now Platform, this framework is written for you.** The five roles below are the primary audience. Each one has a defined point of accountability within the governance control gates.
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**1. The ServiceNow Architect.** Makes design calls every week. Owns how the eight pillars are interpreted and holds the sign-off at the design gate. When a decision must be evaluated against all eight pillars before code is written, the architect is the one holding that line.

**2. The Platform Owner.** Accountable to executives for outcomes, adoption pace, and the delivery of key performance indicators. When leadership asks why the platform is slow, or why the last upgrade took months, the platform owner answers. The framework gives them the language and the metrics to answer with confidence.

**3. The Developer.** Needs reusable patterns instead of relearned lessons. Every problem solved from scratch is architectural debt created in real time. The framework hands developers the pattern library so they stop paying that tax, and asks them to flag pillar conflicts the moment they appear rather than sprints later.

**4. The Delivery Manager.** Brings discipline to the team and enforces the governance gates inside the delivery pipeline. A gate that nobody enforces is only a suggestion. The delivery manager makes it real.

**5. The Compliance and Risk Leader.** Needs to see the guardrails. Consulted at Gate 1, Design Intent, and again at Gate 3, Pre-Production. Compliance is not a quarterly review that happens after the fact. It is a design gate that happens before the build advances.

## Prerequisites for adoption

You are ready to adopt the framework when you have all three of the following:

**1. Platform familiarity.** A working familiarity with the Now Platform, whether that is ITSM, HRSD, ITOM, or SPM.

**2. A live or planned initiative.** A ServiceNow initiative, in flight or on the roadmap, where real design decisions are being made.

**3. Ownership or influence.** Ownership of, or genuine influence over, architecture, delivery, or compliance on that initiative.

If you have those three, you have everything you need to begin.

## The recommended reading path

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**Read in this order. Pillars first.** The most common mistake teams make is jumping straight to the tactical Capability Guides because it feels productive. They configure before they have agreed on the standard, and a quarter later they are drowning in custom code that no one can upgrade.
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**1. Pillars first.** Read the eight pillars. They are the fixed standard that every decision is judged against.

**2. Solution Units.** Apply the pillars to your domain: ITSM, IRM, ITOM, HRSD, or Custom Applications.

**3. Capability Guides.** Get tactical on the features you use, including Flow Designer, ACLs, Update Sets, and CSDM, in a way that respects all eight pillars.

## Where to go from here

Once you have identified your role and confirmed the prerequisites, continue to How to Read the Framework, then begin with the eight pillars.

Related ServiceNow architecture guidance and advisory resources are available through [iLearnTech](https://ilearntech.co.uk/).

***

*Build It the Right Way framework · Authored by Bill Martin · ServiceNow MVP 2026 · Certified Technical Architect*