Blog: The operational case for AI-led ITSM in policing

Policing organisations operate in one of the most demanding service environments in the public sector. IT services are mission-critical - any disruption, however small, can have a direct impact on frontline effectiveness.

At Infomentum, we’ve seen first-hand how IT Service Management (ITSM) functions within policing are under constant pressure. High volumes of requests - many of them low complexity - create a persistent challenge: how to maintain service quality while enabling IT teams to focus on more strategic priorities.

From my own experience as a senior police leader, the impact of this is very real.

What IT failure looks like on the frontline

This pressure is not abstract. It shows up in very tangible ways across day-to-day policing. When the pressure is on, IT issues are not just inconvenient - they are operational blockers.

• A Major Incident Room stood up at pace, only to find user accounts have expired because the system hasn't been used for months
• Officers locked out of core systems at the start of a shift, waiting for password resets instead of being deployed
• A custody suite where systems access delays slow down booking-in processes, creating backlogs and increasing risk
• Body-worn video systems where upload or access issues delay evidence availability, impacting investigations
• New starters or role changes where device provisioning and access requests take days, forcing teams into workarounds
• A surge in demand during a live incident, where IT service desks become overwhelmed, slowing resolution at the worst possible moment

These are not edge cases. They are routine across large, complex policing environments. Rather than isolated failures, they point to a broader pattern.

At the centre of this is a reactive, queue-based ITSM model that struggles to keep pace with operational demand.

A shift to agent-driven ITSM

Recent advances in Salesforce, particularly through Agentforce, are enabling a new operating model - one where AI agents act as a digital workforce within ITSM. This is known as Agentforce IT Service.

There are two parts to this shift:

• How these capabilities are delivered, and
• What they enable once in place.

Delivering a new ITSM foundation

In a recent UK policing engagement, the team at Infomentum led the implementation of a Salesforce-based ITSM platform, replacing a legacy ITSM solution under a fixed, time-critical delivery window. Within a matter of weeks, we deployed a minimum viable service capability with an embedded generative and agentic AI layer.

The objective was clear: reduce demand on IT teams while improving the experience for end users - particularly in high-pressure, operational scenarios.

The initial focus was on establishing a working service quickly, ensuring officers and staff could access support and services from day one. This included a core incident management capability alongside a structured IT service catalogue, providing a more direct and consistent way for users to request what they need. From the outset, AI agents were embedded into the service experience. Rather than relying solely on tickets progressing through a service desk, these agents can interpret requests, triage them, and in many cases resolve them before escalation is required.

How Agentforce changes day-to-day IT support

With that foundation in place, the impact becomes visible in day-to-day operations. Agentforce allows organisations to move beyond traditional automation and introduce AI agents directly into service workflows.

In this implementation, we designed and delivered:

• AI-driven self-service through a unified ITSM portal, enabling users to resolve common issues without raising tickets.
• Autonomous handling of routine requests, including password resets, access provisioning, and standard service fulfilment.
• Agent augmentation, equipping IT staff with contextual insights, recommendations, and knowledge surfaced in real time.

This is where those real-world pain points start to disappear.

That Major Incident Room scenario? Accounts can be reactivated or reset in minutes - often without IT intervention.

Custody delays due to system access? Resolved through automated identity and access workflows, reducing bottlenecks at critical points in the process.

Body-worn video or device issues? Triaged and resolved faster through intelligent routing, automation, and integrated asset visibility.

High-pressure spikes in demand? Absorbed by AI agents before they ever hit a queue.

Reducing demand instead of managing it

Beyond improving individual interactions, this approach changes the overall demand profile placed on IT teams. One of the most consistent patterns we see in policing ITSM is the disproportionate volume of low-complexity requests.

By leveraging Agentforce IT Service alongside deep integrations including identity management, device platforms, and directory services, we were able to automate resolution - not just response.

The impact has been felt quickly:

• A reduction in tickets reaching service desks
• Faster resolution for end users
• Improved consistency of service delivery

And most importantly: IT teams are freed from repetitive demand and can focus on higher-value, operationally critical work.

Built for the complexity of policing environments

To support this shift at scale, the underlying platform must operate across a wide and complex service landscape.

Policing environments require more than standard ITSM capability. Solutions must operate across a wide and often complex service landscape.

In this case, the platform was designed to support:

• End-to-end incident and request management with AI-led triage and routing
• Knowledge management driving both self-service and agent performance
• Asset and configuration visibility integrated into service workflows
• Security operations use cases, including reporting and managing risk events
• Comprehensive audit and compliance capabilities aligned to public sector requirements
• Future expansion into adjacent service domains

Agentforce acts as a unifying layer across these capabilities - bringing intelligence, consistency, and scalability.

Many of these challenges reflect the wider reality of legacy estates and fragmented platforms, as discussed in our work on modernising policing systems.

Delivering under pressure without compromise

A critical part of this engagement was not just what was delivered, but how it was delivered. With a fixed go-live deadline aligned to legacy system decommissioning, the implementation required:

• Rapid mobilisation
• Close collaboration across partner and client teams
• Iterative delivery through sprint-based execution

This is where the combination of Salesforce and Infomentum’s delivery approach is particularly powerful - enabling complex transformation programmes to be delivered at pace without compromising on quality.

From automation to intelligence

While the initial focus is on automating high-volume demand, the longer-term value lies in the evolution of these AI agents.

Over time, Agentforce IT Service enables organisations to:

• Identify trends and recurring issues across the estate
• Predict and prevent incidents
• Continuously improve service performance through learning systems

This is how ITSM moves from reactive support to proactive, intelligence-led service delivery.

What this means for policing leaders

For policing organisations, the challenge is not simply modernising ITSM platforms - it is removing friction from operational policing. And from a leadership perspective, the value is clear: when officers and staff can access the systems they need - without delay - they can focus on the job they are there to do.

Salesforce, through Agentforce, provides the foundation for this shift:

• A digital workforce to handle routine demand
• Intelligent augmentation of human agents
• A scalable, future-ready service model

At Infomentum, we see this as a defining change in how ITSM operates - not just within policing, but across the public sector.

To learn more about how AI is transforming IT service management, check out our page here. Or better yet, if you're looking to shift to AI-led ITSM but don't know where to start, are experts are here to help.