Case Study: AI Skills for Design Discovery · ServiceNow Workflow Design Studio · 2025–2026
A high-performing team was struggling to scale. Their work was excellent and leadership wanted more.
THE SITUATION
ServiceNow's Workflow Design Studio had a 10-year track record of delivering results for ServiceNow customers. Engagements ran 10–12 weeks, often longer. There was executive pressure to compress timelines so the team could handle more volume without cutting scope or adding headcount.
One sentence. Business-level problem. What would go wrong if this wasn't solved?
MY APPROACH
Prove it before releasing it. Prior to proposing a new workflow or running a training session, I built 8 AI skills and proved the system solo on a live client engagement before sharing anything with the team. Once validated, the team was eager to apply the efficiencies for themselves.
INSIGHTS AND FACTORS
- The bottleneck was the lag between process phases in which the team analyzed outputs and translated them to artifacts or provocations in the next phase.
- The directive to "use AI" was org-wide. Nobody had connected it to the team's actual performance objective: freeing up capacity for strategy and client work, not just checking an "AI adoption" box.
- Synthesis and documentation were costing hours that should go to strategy and client work.
2–3 bullets. What did you understand that wasn't obvious?
My Specific Contribution
I designed and built the AI skill chain from scratch, starting with a self-directed curriculum after a single project shadow. I authored the team introduction deck and ran the first live pilot end-to-end before releasing the system to peers.
| Before |
With AI-Assisted Workflow |
Manual synthesis
hand-built |
Encoded methodology
any strategist, day one |
Knowledge in heads
depends on team |
Repeatable process
consistent across squad |
8
AI skills designed and built from scratch, encoding methodology proven to streamline work, surface themes, and improve traceability and accountability.
5/6
Peer strategists adopted at least one skill within 1 month of release.
80%
Reduction in manual synthesis time, which freed capacity for strategy and client work.
See how these team efficiencies improved outcomes in the
Design Sprints case study.