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Clarity SM vs OpenText Service Management Automation X (SMAX) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Clarity SM
Ranking in IT Service Management (ITSM)
28th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
107
Ranking in other categories
Help Desk Software (26th)
OpenText Service Management...
Ranking in IT Service Management (ITSM)
16th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the IT Service Management (ITSM) category, the mindshare of Clarity SM is 1.1%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenText Service Management Automation X (SMAX) is 2.1%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
IT Service Management (ITSM)
 

Featured Reviews

Türker Kara - PeerSpot reviewer
Quite good back-end architecture for end users but the API is very, very bad
Our company uses the solution for system, program, service request, change, and knowledge-based management.  We perform CMD authorizations and use a lot of integrations for our in-house or third-party applications. We also use Salesforce automations and Microsoft orchestrations.  We have about…
Mourad Ali - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers topic analytics for incident and problem management
The only challenge with Azure customers is when they have a specific requirement that is not available out of the box and is inflexible to adjust. Sometimes, customers have tough requirements that are not flexible enough to be adjusted, even if SMAX can provide a better alternative. They need this specific feature. This challenge is common with SMAX, BMC, ServiceNow, IBM, or other similar tools. When working with enterprise tools that are not developed in-house, I don't have access to the source code and am limited to the features and capabilities provided by the leading vendors. So, this challenge is common across SMAX, BMC, and ServiceNow. The solution could have more customization flexibility.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"As of late, I really like the BI functions."
"It has helped us to organize a lot of our assets, so we have configuration items to attach to our change management. We can have tickets for change management and set them aside for an approval process."
"The most valuable fractures of Clarity SM are its ease of use and security. I have been highly satisfied. We've been able to integrate it with email and an SMS gateway for the purposes of notifications. That works very well."
"The database and the power that is driven behind the database."
"The tool itself is valuable as a result of all its features combined. Therefore, I have found that there is no feature more valuable than another."
"When users have a problem, they report using Service Desk and it is very useful for this."
"Clarity is flexible to implement and integrate. It gives the developer or consultant a broad space to work and customize based on what the customers want."
"We are benefiting by being able to put time to what our technicians are doing."
"The most valuable features of Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX) are that it is user-friendly, easy to configure, and adaptable."
"The product provides an interface for the end users to make requests."
"OpenText Service Management Automation X provides valuable features such as topic analytics for incident and problem management. It also includes natural language processing for analyzing technical descriptions. Additionally, it features a virtual chatbot capable of processing natural language to interact effectively with end users. This service enhances customer support and is not subject to the limitations often found in offerings from other vendors."
"The tool is very easy to use."
"This is a cordless application that can be used throughout any organization."
"It offers a range of tools for sales and configuration. It's like a business process improvement platform, suitable for various lines of business operations."
 

Cons

"The SDM administration and customisation needS deep information about architecture and vendor support continuously."
"They need to improve the High Availability, and the native integration between CA Service Desk Manager, CA Process Automation, CA Service Catalog and CA Unified Self-Service."
"Nowadays every person is used to an interface that is more user-friendly and this one is not so user-friendly maybe due to the fact that, if you need to let people customize everything, sometimes you lose out on a clean user experience."
"I am not able to see tickets on a bigger scale. I can't see the overall bigger picture."
"I would like to see the API cleaned up."
"It doesn't yet have the ability to integrate with other products."
"Right now, you have to create the Scoreboards individually for roles or users. If they could separate that functionality, and create the scoreboards separately, and then just link scoreboards to roles and users - that way you could reuse the same ones - that would be a huge benefit. I know, because they're a nightmare to manage at times."
"The CA products integrate well together but I would like to see better integration with third-party solutions."
"The contract management feature can be improved."
"The product's connectivity with third-party products is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"The initial setup of Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX) is complicated, but once it is set up the configuration is straightforward to adapt to the users' or customers' needs."
"The solution lacks sufficient documentation."
"The tool has negatively impacted our productivity."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Clarity offers a perpetual license. Customers purchase the license once and then pay for maintenance. CA provides a subscription model as well. Both models are available for our customers."
"It is a bit expensive, but you definitely get what you pay for. It is worth it!"
"I don't see anyone other than large companies being able to afford this system."
"Pricing is simple, as it’s per concurrent analysts."
"There is a subscripted needed to use Clarity SM. The price of the solution could be less expensive. ServiceNow is less expensive and BMC Helix is priced similar to Clarity SM."
"The solution is quite reasonable compared to other solutions in the market."
"I think pricing of this model is suitable for growing corporations."
"The pricing is based on a subscription model."
"The solution is somewhat cheaper than the competitors."
"The cost of the license for SMAX varies depending on the configuration, including the number of seats for users and the customer's specific requirements. It's not a fixed cost and can vary."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your primary use case for Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)?
The solution is used for the end-user portal. It is used for incident management, requests, and other informational purposes.
What advice do you have for others considering Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)?
The tool is appropriate if we don't have a complicated use case. It is the right tool for simple use cases. It's a lot cheaper than ServiceNow. It is an appropriate tool for a smaller business or m...
 

Also Known As

CA Service Desk Manager, Clarity Service Management, CA Service Management, Unicenter Service Desk, CA SDM, CA Service Catalog, CA Business Service Insight
OpenText Service Manager, Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Banco G&T Continental City of Perth, FEMSA, Fujitsu, Manpower, Muslim Commercial Bank - MCB, Punjab National Bank, Santa Clara County Social Services, Stefanini
Zurich Airport, Envirosuite, Norsk Helsenett, Achmea, University of Milan, World Vision, Petroleum Development Oman, Court of Justice of the Federal District and Territories (TJDFT).
Find out what your peers are saying about Clarity SM vs. OpenText Service Management Automation X (SMAX) and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.