Service Portal/Widgets

App launcher

Allows users to quickly access and launch applications directly from the portal.

This widget is only available with the Employee Center Pro application installed from the ServiceNow Store.

Overview

  • Release version
    Australia
  • Available sinceZurich
  • A11Y WCAG 2.1 AA

The App launcher widget's serves as a central launchpad for multiple, distinct applications or services. It presents a curated, visually organized set of branded cards that direct users to 3rd party applications, providing access via Single Sign-On (SSO) to external systems (e.g., ADP, Fidelity). By providing a prominent and efficient way for users to access these integrated applications, the widget enhances the overall user experience. Tile visibility is strictly governed by user or group permissions, ensuring users only see the applications relevant to them.

ServiceNow Docs link
App launcher widget documentation

Additional information about the widget

null

When to use

Use when the portal serves as a front door to an employee's work, and you need a visually prominent, organized way for users to find and access applications that power their day.

When not to use

Avoid using when the portal is a simple, single-focus site self service site. Don’t use it if linking to external systems is unnecessary or if SSO is not supported, as this degrades the user’s experience.

Usage

Consider its placement and application links to ensure it effectively guides users to primary destinations without cluttering the page. Keep the following suggestions in mind:

  • Introduction: The App launcher widget should be strategically placed based on the portal's content hierarchy and user journey priorities.
  • Placement: The widget's placement should reflect the strategic importance of app access. If the portal's primary purpose is to serve as a launchpad, place it near the top. For content-first portals (like the default Employee Center), position it further down the page, after more critical information or calls-to-action (e.g., Search, Announcements) have been displayed.
  • Content: Only include high-priority applications or services that represent the primary user journeys within the portal.

Examples

  • Homepage navigation: Use the widget on the portal’s homepage to serve as the main launchpad, leveraging the 'Featured', 'Favorites', 'Categories', and 'Recently opened' options for better usability and quick navigation.
  • Topic-based filtering: Use the widget to display a curated, filtered set of applications on a specific topic page (e.g., show only apps related to 'Human resources' on the HR topic landing page). This is typically achieved by linking the widget instance to the topic's associated category element.
  • Personalized profile: Embed the App launcher within a user's profile to list personal, high-value applications or tools similar to how you would their assigned hardware or assets list.

Anatomy

The App launcher widget consists of the following components:

App launcher anatomy
  1. Widget header (optional): A title and/or description for the entire app launcher section.
  2. Cards container: The responsive grid that holds the individual application tiles.
  3. View all link: Links to a dedicated page for all applications and services.

Card

  1. Card: An individual clickable component representing a link to an application.
  2. Icon: A visually distinct icon representing the destination (often utilizing the Glyph icon component).
  3. Title: The main, concise label for the destination.
  4. Description: A brief, supporting sentence explaining the tile's purpose.

Empty state

Cards

Cards can be expressed in several ways:

Icon, title, and description

Icon, title, and description

Icon and title

Icon and title

Icon only

Icon only

Icon and description

Icon and description

Title and description

Title and description

Title only

Title only

Instance options

Presentation

Field Description
Title of widget Text that displays in the widget header
Application count Number of the applications you want to display on the widget (up to 6 apps).
Note: Default load shows up to six loaders.
Card display view View preference of the card display. It can be displayed in the follow configurations:
  • Icon, Title, Description
  • Icon, Title
  • Icon, Description
  • Title, Description
  • Icon only
  • Title only
See examples

###Other options

Field Description
Load configuration Order in which the page and widgets data loads. Select one of the following options:
  • Asynchronous: First the page loads, then the widgets data loads. Users see content appear in the widgets as soon as each individual widget loads.
  • Synchronous: Page and widget data loads at the same time. The page remains blank until all the data loads.
Show empty state Determine whether to show the widget when there is no content to display.
Widget behavior during high load Option to show the view from the available options:
  • None
  • Lite view: Select this option to display a message that the portal is experiencing heavy usage.
  • Regular view: Select this option for regular view.

Usability

This widget complies with all internationalization and accessibility requirements.

Internationalization

Internationalization

Accessibility

Learn how to access the actionable elements of the widget through keyboard interactions and screen readers. 

Widget tab order

Tab order

Keyboard interactions

You can access the actionable elements of the App launcher with these keyboard interactions:

  • Tab: Moves focus to the next interactive element within the widget (e.g. the next link in the list)
  • Shift + tab: Moves focus to the previous interactive element within the widget (e.g. the previous link in the list)
  • Enter/spacebar: Activates the focused element
  • Escape (esc): Blur focus of element