Triage, prioritize, and assign ServiceNow incidents using impact/urgency matrix and category-based routing. Use when an alert fires, a ticket lands unassigned, an outage is reported, an escalation is needed, severity must be classified, an on-call team must be paged, or an SLA is at risk.

2026-05-2032

name	csm-sidebar-summarization
version	1.0.0
description	Generate sidebar summaries for customer service agents with case context, customer history, and recommended actions to accelerate case handling
author	Happy Technologies LLC
tags	["csm","sidebar","summarization","agent-assist","customer-history","recommendations"]
platforms	["claude-code","claude-desktop","chatgpt","cursor","any"]
tools	{"mcp":["SN-NL-Search","SN-Query-Table","SN-Read-Record"],"rest":["/api/now/table/sn_customerservice_case","/api/now/table/interaction","/api/now/table/csm_consumer","/api/now/table/customer_account","/api/now/table/customer_contact","/api/now/table/sys_journal_field","/api/now/table/kb_knowledge"],"native":["Bash"]}
complexity	intermediate
estimated_time	5-15 minutes

Sidebar Summarization

Overview

This skill generates concise sidebar summaries for customer service agents working in Agent Workspace. When an agent opens or is assigned a case, the sidebar summary provides instant context without requiring the agent to read through the entire case history. It covers:

Generating a compact case overview with priority, status, and age
Pulling customer history including past cases, interactions, and satisfaction scores
Summarizing the consumer profile and account tier for entitlement context
Identifying related or similar cases that may indicate a broader issue
Recommending next-best actions based on case category and resolution patterns
Highlighting SLA status and any escalation risks

When to use: When agents need rapid context upon accepting a case, during live chat or phone interactions, or when reviewing a queue of assigned cases.

Value proposition: Reduces average handle time by providing agents with pre-assembled case context, customer history, and actionable recommendations in a scannable sidebar format. Eliminates the need to manually navigate between multiple records to build context.

Prerequisites

Plugins: Customer Service Management (com.sn_customerservice) must be active
Roles: sn_customerservice_agent, sn_customerservice_manager, or csm_admin
Access: Read access to sn_customerservice_case, interaction, csm_consumer, customer_account, customer_contact, sys_journal_field, and kb_knowledge tables
Knowledge: Familiarity with Agent Workspace sidebar components and CSM case lifecycle

Procedure

Step 1: Retrieve the Active Case Details

Fetch the case currently open in the agent's workspace.

Using MCP (Claude Code/Desktop):

Tool: SN-Read-Record
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_customerservice_case
  sys_id: [case_sys_id]
  fields: sys_id,number,short_description,description,state,priority,urgency,impact,category,subcategory,contact,account,consumer,product,asset,assigned_to,assignment_group,opened_at,sla_due,escalation,contact_type,resolution_code

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sn_customerservice_case/{case_sys_id}?sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,short_description,description,state,priority,urgency,impact,category,subcategory,contact,account,consumer,product,asset,assigned_to,assignment_group,opened_at,sla_due,escalation,contact_type,resolution_code&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 2: Retrieve Consumer Profile

Fetch the consumer record to understand the customer's profile and history summary.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: csm_consumer
  query: sys_id=[consumer_sys_id]
  fields: sys_id,name,email,phone,location,account,customer_tier,notes,preferred_language,time_zone
  limit: 1

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/csm_consumer/{consumer_sys_id}?sysparm_fields=sys_id,name,email,phone,location,account,customer_tier,notes,preferred_language,time_zone&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 3: Pull Customer Account Context

Retrieve account-level details for entitlement and priority context.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: customer_account
  query: sys_id=[account_sys_id]
  fields: sys_id,name,number,customer_tier,industry,notes,phone,street,city,state,country,account_code
  limit: 1

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/customer_account/{account_sys_id}?sysparm_fields=sys_id,name,number,customer_tier,industry,notes,phone,account_code&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 4: Retrieve Customer Case History

Query recent cases for the same consumer or account to identify patterns.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_customerservice_case
  query: consumer=[consumer_sys_id]^sys_id!=[current_case_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at
  fields: sys_id,number,short_description,state,priority,category,opened_at,closed_at,resolution_code
  limit: 10

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sn_customerservice_case?sysparm_query=consumer=[consumer_sys_id]^sys_id!=[current_case_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at&sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,short_description,state,priority,category,opened_at,closed_at,resolution_code&sysparm_limit=10&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 5: Retrieve Recent Interactions

Pull the latest interactions for the case and the consumer.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: interaction
  query: parent=[case_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at
  fields: sys_id,number,type,channel,state,opened_at,closed_at,short_description,assigned_to,direction
  limit: 5

For consumer-level interaction history:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: interaction
  query: opened_for=[consumer_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at
  fields: sys_id,number,channel,state,opened_at,short_description
  limit: 10

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/interaction?sysparm_query=parent=[case_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at&sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,type,channel,state,opened_at,closed_at,short_description,assigned_to,direction&sysparm_limit=5&sysparm_display_value=true

GET /api/now/table/interaction?sysparm_query=opened_for=[consumer_sys_id]^ORDERBYDESCopened_at&sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,channel,state,opened_at,short_description&sysparm_limit=10&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 6: Check for Related Knowledge Articles

Search for knowledge articles matching the case category and product.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-NL-Search
Parameters:
  query: [case_short_description]
  table: kb_knowledge
  limit: 5

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/kb_knowledge?sysparm_query=topic=[case_category]^workflow_state=published^ORDERBYDESCsys_view_count&sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,short_description,kb_knowledge_base,sys_view_count,rating&sysparm_limit=5&sysparm_display_value=true

Step 7: Retrieve Latest Work Notes

Pull the most recent work notes for quick context on current progress.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sys_journal_field
  query: element_id=[case_sys_id]^element=work_notes^ORDERBYDESCsys_created_on
  fields: sys_id,value,sys_created_on,sys_created_by
  limit: 5

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sys_journal_field?sysparm_query=element_id=[case_sys_id]^element=work_notes^ORDERBYDESCsys_created_on&sysparm_fields=sys_id,value,sys_created_on,sys_created_by&sysparm_limit=5

Step 8: Assemble the Sidebar Summary

Compile all gathered data into a compact sidebar format:

=== SIDEBAR SUMMARY ===
CASE: CS0012345 | P2 | In Progress
Issue: Unable to process returns through online portal
Age: 4 days | SLA Due: Mar 21 14:00 (On Track)
Channel: Phone | Escalation: Normal

CUSTOMER SNAPSHOT:
Name: Jane Smith | Account: Acme Corp (Gold Tier)
Preferred Language: English | Timezone: US/Eastern
Contact: jane.smith@acme.com | +1-555-0123

CASE HISTORY (Last 90 days):
- 3 total cases | 2 resolved | 1 open (this case)
- Common categories: Portal Issues (2), Billing (1)
- Avg resolution time: 3.2 days

RECENT ACTIVITY:
- Mar 18: Agent reviewed portal logs, found session timeout
- Mar 17: Customer provided browser details

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS:
1. Review KB0045123: "Portal Session Timeout Troubleshooting"
2. Check related defect DEF0034521 for fix status
3. Consider escalation if not resolved by Mar 20

RELATED KB ARTICLES:
- KB0045123: Portal session management (42 views)
- KB0045089: Browser compatibility guide (28 views)

Tool Usage

MCP Tools Reference

Tool	When to Use
`SN-NL-Search`	Natural language lookup for cases, consumers, or knowledge articles
`SN-Query-Table`	Structured queries across case, interaction, consumer, and KB tables
`SN-Read-Record`	Retrieve a single case or consumer record by sys_id

REST API Reference

Endpoint	Method	Purpose
`/api/now/table/sn_customerservice_case`	GET	Query case records
`/api/now/table/interaction`	GET	Retrieve case and consumer interactions
`/api/now/table/csm_consumer`	GET	Consumer profile details
`/api/now/table/customer_account`	GET	Account tier and entitlement info
`/api/now/table/customer_contact`	GET	Contact preferences and details
`/api/now/table/sys_journal_field`	GET	Work notes and comments
`/api/now/table/kb_knowledge`	GET	Knowledge article recommendations

Best Practices

Keep summaries concise: Sidebar space is limited; aim for scannable bullet points rather than paragraphs
Prioritize actionable information: Lead with status, SLA risk, and recommended next steps
Show customer sentiment: If sentiment analysis data is available, include the latest sentiment score
Highlight repeat contacts: Flag if the customer has contacted support multiple times for the same issue
Include entitlement context: Account tier affects SLA targets and available support channels
Refresh on case update: Sidebar summaries should be regenerated when significant case changes occur
Respect privacy: Only display customer PII appropriate for the agent's role and jurisdiction
Calculate case age dynamically: Display age in human-readable format (hours, days) relative to current time

Troubleshooting

"Consumer record not found"

Cause: The case may not have a consumer linked, or the consumer was created as an anonymous contact. Solution: Fall back to the contact field on the case. Query customer_contact instead of csm_consumer using the contact sys_id.

"No case history available"

Cause: This may be the customer's first case, or historical cases are archived. Solution: Expand the search to account-level cases using account=[account_sys_id] instead of filtering by consumer.

"Knowledge articles not relevant"

Cause: The category-based search may return generic articles. Solution: Use SN-NL-Search with the case short_description for semantic matching. Combine category and product filters for more targeted results.

"SLA information missing"

Cause: SLA definitions may not be configured for the case type or priority. Solution: Query task_sla with task=[case_sys_id] to check if SLAs are attached. Consult CSM admin if SLAs are tracked externally.

"Interaction records return empty"

Cause: Interactions may be stored with a different parent reference or the channel integration may not create interaction records. Solution: Check if interactions use document instead of parent as the reference field. Also query sys_journal_field for comments that may capture interaction history.

Examples

Example 1: Live Chat Sidebar Context

Scenario: Agent accepts an incoming chat and needs instant context.

Step 1 - Get case from interaction:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: interaction
  query: sys_id=[interaction_sys_id]
  fields: parent,opened_for,channel
  limit: 1

Step 2 - Build sidebar from parent case:

Tool: SN-Read-Record
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_customerservice_case
  sys_id: [parent_sys_id]
  fields: number,short_description,state,priority,consumer,account,category,opened_at,sla_due

Output:

LIVE CHAT CONTEXT
Case: CS0078901 | P3 | New
Issue: Billing discrepancy on March invoice
Customer: Robert Chen | TechStart Inc (Silver)
Previous cases: 1 (resolved - similar billing issue in Jan)
Suggested KB: KB0067890 - Invoice reconciliation guide

Example 2: Queue Review Sidebar Summaries

Scenario: Agent reviewing their assigned case queue needs summaries for each case.

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_customerservice_case
  query: assigned_to=[agent_sys_id]^stateIN1,2,10^ORDERBYpriority
  fields: sys_id,number,short_description,state,priority,consumer,account,category,opened_at,sla_due,escalation
  limit: 20

Output:

QUEUE SUMMARY (5 cases assigned)

1. CS0078901 | P1 | SLA: 2hrs remaining | Acme Corp (Gold)
   Production outage - API gateway errors
   ACTION: Immediate attention required

2. CS0078905 | P2 | SLA: On Track | Globex (Silver)
   Password reset failing for SSO users
   ACTION: Check KB0045200, likely config issue

3. CS0078910 | P3 | SLA: On Track | Initech (Bronze)
   Feature request - export to CSV
   ACTION: Route to product team for evaluation

Example 3: Escalated Case Sidebar

Scenario: A P1 escalated case requires executive-level summary with full customer context.

Tool: SN-Read-Record
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_customerservice_case
  sys_id: [case_sys_id]
  fields: number,short_description,state,priority,escalation,consumer,account,category,opened_at,sla_due,assigned_to,assignment_group

Output:

ESCALATED CASE SUMMARY
Case: CS0099001 | P1 CRITICAL | Escalated
Issue: Complete service outage affecting all users
Account: MegaCorp Industries (Platinum Tier)
Age: 6 hours | SLA: BREACHED (4hr target)
Escalation Level: 2 | Assigned: Sr. Engineer Team
Customer Impact: 500+ users affected
Previous escalations: 0 in last 12 months
EXEC ALERT: Platinum account - VP notification required

Related Skills

csm/case-summarization - Full case summarization with complete timeline
csm/sentiment-analysis - Customer sentiment analysis across communications
csm/chat-recommendation - Generate chat response recommendations
csm/suggested-steps - AI-generated resolution step recommendations
csm/trending-topics - Trending topic analysis across case portfolio
knowledge/content-recommendation - Knowledge article recommendations