Incident Sentiment Analysis

Overview

This skill analyzes the sentiment of incident-related communications -- work notes, additional comments, email correspondence, and activity log entries -- to detect negative trends, predict escalation risk, and track customer satisfaction throughout the incident lifecycle.

• Extract and analyze text from work notes, comments, and email communications
• Classify sentiment as positive, neutral, negative, or critical
• Calculate escalation risk scores based on sentiment trajectory and language signals
• Identify frustrated customers before they formally escalate
• Track sentiment trends across incident lifecycle stages
• Generate sentiment-aware prioritization recommendations

When to use: When monitoring active incidents for escalation risk, analyzing customer satisfaction patterns, or building proactive intervention workflows for at-risk tickets.

Prerequisites

• Roles: itil, incident_manager, or analytics_admin
• Plugins: com.snc.incident (Incident Management)
• Access: Read on incident, sys_journal_field, sn_si_incident, sys_audit, sys_email
• Knowledge: Understanding of your organization's escalation criteria and SLA thresholds
• Data: Incidents with work notes and customer communications for analysis

Procedure

Step 1: Select Incidents for Sentiment Analysis

Query active incidents, prioritizing those with recent activity or approaching SLA breach.

Using MCP (Claude Code/Desktop):

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: incident
  query: active=true^priorityIN1,2^sys_updated_on>=javascript:gs.hoursAgo(24)
  fields: sys_id,number,short_description,priority,state,assigned_to,assignment_group,sla_due,sys_updated_on
  limit: 30

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/incident?sysparm_query=active=true^priorityIN1,2^sys_updated_on>=javascript:gs.hoursAgo(24)&sysparm_fields=sys_id,number,short_description,priority,state,assigned_to,assignment_group,sla_due,sys_updated_on&sysparm_limit=30

Step 2: Retrieve Work Notes and Comments

Extract all journal entries (work notes and additional comments) for each incident.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sys_journal_field
  query: element_id=[incident_sys_id]^elementINwork_notes,comments^ORDERBYsys_created_on
  fields: sys_id,element,value,sys_created_by,sys_created_on
  limit: 50

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sys_journal_field?sysparm_query=element_id=[incident_sys_id]^elementINwork_notes,comments^ORDERBYsys_created_on&sysparm_fields=sys_id,element,value,sys_created_by,sys_created_on&sysparm_limit=50

Step 3: Retrieve Email Communications

Check for email correspondence related to the incident.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sys_email
  query: instance=[incident_sys_id]^type=received
  fields: sys_id,subject,body_text,sender,sys_created_on
  limit: 20

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sys_email?sysparm_query=instance=[incident_sys_id]^type=received&sysparm_fields=sys_id,subject,body_text,sender,sys_created_on&sysparm_limit=20

Step 4: Classify Sentiment of Each Entry

Analyze each text entry and assign a sentiment classification:

Sentiment	Score Range	Indicators
Critical	-1.0 to -0.7	Threats, profanity, executive escalation mentions, legal references
Negative	-0.7 to -0.3	Frustration, repeated complaints, urgency language, ALL CAPS
Neutral	-0.3 to 0.3	Factual updates, status checks, technical information
Positive	0.3 to 0.7	Appreciation, acknowledgment, satisfaction expressed
Very Positive	0.7 to 1.0	Explicit praise, issue resolved to satisfaction

Negative sentiment keywords and phrases:

Category	Keywords / Phrases	Weight
Frustration	"still not working", "again", "how many times", "unacceptable"	-0.4
Urgency	"ASAP", "immediately", "critical", "business impact", "revenue loss"	-0.3
Escalation intent	"manager", "supervisor", "escalate", "executive", "CIO"	-0.5
Dissatisfaction	"disappointed", "poor service", "no response", "ignored"	-0.4
Threats	"legal", "contract", "SLA penalty", "vendor review"	-0.6
Repeat contact	"calling again", "third time", "follow up again"	-0.3

Positive sentiment keywords and phrases:

Category	Keywords / Phrases	Weight
Gratitude	"thank you", "appreciate", "great job", "helpful"	+0.4
Resolution	"fixed", "working now", "resolved", "all good"	+0.5
Acknowledgment	"understand", "makes sense", "will try that"	+0.2

Step 5: Calculate Escalation Risk Score

Compute an overall escalation risk score based on sentiment trajectory:

escalation_risk = (current_sentiment * 0.40)
                + (sentiment_trend * 0.25)
                + (sla_proximity * 0.20)
                + (reassignment_count * 0.15)

Where:

• current_sentiment: Latest sentiment score (inverted: -1.0 critical = 1.0 risk)
• sentiment_trend: Rate of change (worsening = higher risk)
• sla_proximity: How close to SLA breach (0.0 = plenty of time, 1.0 = breached)
• reassignment_count: Normalized count of reassignments (each adds friction)

Risk Level	Score	Recommended Action
Low	0.0-0.3	Continue normal handling
Moderate	0.3-0.5	Monitor more frequently
High	0.5-0.7	Notify team lead, consider proactive outreach
Critical	0.7-1.0	Immediate manager intervention required

Step 6: Check Structured Incident Data

Query the structured incident intelligence table for additional signals.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: sn_si_incident
  query: incident=[incident_sys_id]
  fields: sys_id,incident,sentiment_score,customer_effort_score,escalation_likelihood
  limit: 1

Using REST API:

GET /api/now/table/sn_si_incident?sysparm_query=incident=[incident_sys_id]&sysparm_fields=sys_id,incident,sentiment_score,customer_effort_score,escalation_likelihood&sysparm_limit=1

Step 7: Generate Sentiment Report

Produce a per-incident sentiment analysis report:

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Add-Work-Notes
Parameters:
  sys_id: [incident_sys_id]
  work_notes: |
    === SENTIMENT ANALYSIS REPORT ===
    Incident: [number]
    Analysis Date: [current_date]
    Entries Analyzed: [count]

    SENTIMENT TIMELINE:
    [timestamp] Comment (Customer): NEGATIVE (-0.6)
      "This is the third time I've called about this issue..."
    [timestamp] Work Note (Agent): NEUTRAL (0.1)
      "Reassigned to Network team for further investigation"
    [timestamp] Comment (Customer): CRITICAL (-0.8)
      "I need this escalated to management immediately..."

    CURRENT SENTIMENT: CRITICAL (-0.8)
    SENTIMENT TREND: Worsening (declined -0.4 over 48 hours)
    ESCALATION RISK: HIGH (0.78)

    RISK FACTORS:
    - Customer used escalation language ("management", "escalate")
    - Third contact about same issue (repeat contact indicator)
    - SLA at 85% consumed with no resolution path identified
    - Two reassignments in 48 hours

    RECOMMENDED ACTIONS:
    1. Immediate callback from team lead or manager
    2. Provide clear timeline for resolution
    3. Offer interim workaround if available
    4. Document escalation handling in work notes

Step 8: Batch Sentiment Analysis for Trends

Analyze sentiment across multiple incidents for pattern detection.

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Query-Table
Parameters:
  table_name: incident
  query: active=true^assignment_group=[group_sys_id]
  fields: sys_id,number,priority,state,assignment_group,sys_updated_on
  limit: 100

Aggregate metrics:

Metric	Value	Benchmark
Avg sentiment score	-0.22	-0.10
Incidents with negative sentiment	34%	20%
Critical sentiment incidents	8%	3%
Sentiment-predicted escalations	12	--
Actual escalations (validated)	10	--
Prediction accuracy	83%	--

Step 9: Set Up Proactive Alerts

Define thresholds for automated sentiment-based alerts:

Using MCP:

Tool: SN-Update-Record
Parameters:
  table_name: incident
  sys_id: [incident_sys_id]
  data:
    work_notes: "SENTIMENT ALERT: Escalation risk score exceeded 0.7. Automated notification sent to incident manager. Customer sentiment has declined from neutral to critical over the last 3 interactions."
    urgency: 1

Tool Usage

Tool	Purpose	When to Use
SN-Natural-Language-Search	Find incidents using natural language criteria	Initial discovery
SN-Query-Table	Retrieve journal entries, emails, incident data	Core data gathering
SN-Update-Record	Flag at-risk incidents, update urgency	Proactive intervention
SN-Add-Work-Notes	Document sentiment analysis findings	Reports and audit trail
SN-Get-Table-Schema	Explore table structures for sentiment data	Setup and discovery

Best Practices

1. Analyze both channels -- work notes reflect agent perspective, comments reflect customer perspective; both matter
2. Weight recent entries higher -- the most recent communication is the strongest signal
3. Account for technical language -- words like "critical" in a technical context (critical server) differ from emotional context (critical of support)
4. Track trajectory, not just snapshots -- a neutral score that was previously positive is more concerning than a stable neutral
5. Combine with structured data -- sentiment alone is insufficient; cross-reference with SLA status, reassignment count, and priority
6. Respect privacy -- sentiment analysis should focus on service quality, not profile individual customers
7. Calibrate thresholds per team -- different support groups may have different baseline sentiment patterns
8. Act on insights -- sentiment analysis without intervention adds no value; ensure alerts trigger real actions

Troubleshooting

"No journal entries found for incident"

Cause: Work notes and comments are stored in sys_journal_field with the incident's sys_id as element_id Solution: Verify the query uses element_id (not sys_id) to match the incident record. Also check that journal entries exist -- new incidents may not have any yet.

"Sentiment scores seem inaccurate"

Cause: Technical jargon, abbreviations, or domain-specific language can confuse sentiment analysis Solution: Build a domain-specific keyword dictionary. Terms like "kill the process" or "terminate the session" are technical actions, not negative sentiment.

"Too many false positive escalation alerts"

Cause: Thresholds are too sensitive or not calibrated to your environment Solution: Analyze historical escalation data. Raise thresholds gradually until false positive rate drops below 15%. Consider requiring multiple consecutive negative entries before alerting.

"Email body_text is HTML formatted"

Cause: Emails are stored with HTML markup in sys_email Solution: Strip HTML tags before sentiment analysis. Focus on body_text rather than body field, or apply HTML-to-text conversion.

Examples

Example 1: Escalation Detected Early

Incident: INC0056789 - "Email server is down for marketing department"

Sentiment Timeline:

• Hour 0: Neutral (0.0) - "Email is not working for our team"
• Hour 4: Negative (-0.4) - "Still no update, this is affecting our campaign launch"
• Hour 8: Critical (-0.8) - "Unacceptable. I need the CIO's office involved immediately"

Escalation Risk: 0.82 (CRITICAL) Action: Incident manager called customer within 15 minutes. Provided timeline and workaround. Prevented formal executive escalation.

Example 2: Positive Resolution Tracking

Incident: INC0056790 - "Cannot access shared drive from VPN"

Sentiment Timeline:

• Hour 0: Neutral (0.0) - "I can't see the shared drive when connected via VPN"
• Hour 2: Neutral (0.1) - "Thanks for looking into this"
• Hour 3: Positive (0.6) - "That fixed it, the drive mapping is working now. Thank you!"

Escalation Risk: 0.05 (LOW) Action: No intervention needed. Incident resolved with positive customer outcome.

Example 3: Subtle Frustration Detection

Incident: INC0056791 - "Printer on 4th floor not printing"

Sentiment Timeline:

• Day 1: Neutral (0.0) - "Printer in room 401 is not printing"
• Day 3: Mild negative (-0.2) - "Just following up on this, still not working"
• Day 5: Negative (-0.5) - "This is the third time I'm following up. Our team has been without a printer for a week."

Escalation Risk: 0.61 (HIGH) Action: Alert sent to team lead. Agent called customer, arranged loaner printer, escalated repair.

Related Skills

• itsm/incident-triage - Triage with sentiment-informed prioritization
• itsm/suggested-steps - Generate resolution steps for at-risk incidents
• csm/sentiment-analysis - Customer service management sentiment analysis
• hrsd/sentiment-analysis - HR case sentiment analysis
• itsm/major-incident - Major incident management with stakeholder communication