IT Service Desk · training guide · draft

How to provision software and access requests

Give a requester the software or access they asked for by adding them to the right security group, assigning a license for paid apps, and recording and closing the ServiceNow item.

Typical time: about 9 min · Use this when a requested item (RITM) lands in the ServiceNow access queue, normally from the service portal after the requester's manager has approved it.

Steps

1. 1
   Open the requested item in the ServiceNow access queue. · ServiceNow

   Decide first: manager approval must be recorded on the item before you start. If it is missing, wait. About 1 in 4 cases pause here, typically around 2.7 hours.
2. 2
   Check the item for special cases before touching any access. · ServiceNow

   Privileged admin or finance groups need security sign-off. Contractors also need their sponsor's approval on top of the usual one.
3. 3
   Open Groups and add the requester as a member of the group for that item. · Microsoft Entra admin center

   Decide: the group follows the item (Visio: SG-Visio-Users, Project: SG-Project-Users, Adobe: SG-Adobe-Users, VPN: SG-VPN-Users). If unsure, check the KB article group list.
4. 4
   Enter the user's email and the item name carefully when adding the member. · Microsoft Entra admin center

   These details are retyped by hand in about 42% of cases. Copy and paste from the ticket instead to avoid typos.
5. 5
   If the item is a paid app, open Licenses and check licenses remaining. · Microsoft 365 admin center

   Decide: free apps and access like VPN need only the group. If no licenses are left, raise a purchase request and set the item to Pending.
6. 6
   Assign the license that matches the group. · Microsoft 365 admin center

   Visio Plan 2 for SG-Visio-Users, Project Plan 3 for SG-Project-Users, Adobe Acrobat Pro for SG-Adobe-Users.
7. 7
   Go back to the requested item and write a work note. · ServiceNow

   Record that the group was added and the license assigned, if one applied. No standard wording has been set by the team.
8. 8
   Set the State to Closed Complete. · ServiceNow

   Decide: close only when group, license (if paid) and work note are done. Use Pending if you are waiting on licenses.

Watch out for

• Starting before approval is recorded: about 26% of cases pause for an approval, typically around 2.7 hours, and the rule is that work does not start without it.
• Retyping details from ServiceNow into Entra: this happens in about 42% of cases, and about 1% of transfers end up mismatched.
• Skipping the license check on paid apps: licenses were assigned in roughly 68% of cases, so know which items need one and confirm stock first.
• Closing without a work note: every ticket needs a resolution note before it is closed.

Faster ways

• Copy the user's email and the item name from the ticket and paste them into Entra instead of retyping them.
• Keep the KB group list open so you don't have to look it up when you are unsure which group an item needs.
• A Power Automate flow with a Copilot Studio agent for unclear cases could prepare the group and license change for one-step analyst approval, then update the ticket and write the note. This could save about 35-55% of the time.

Written by AI from how the team actually did this work (2026-10-19 to 2026-10-23): the most common path, the steps people add or redo, and where errors happen. Review and edit before sharing.