A Guide to Business Rules Engine Software
If you’ve been in business even a short time, you’ve likely figured out how quickly things can get out of control when you don’t put controls around your processes.
Business rules help you bring order to the workplace. That enables you to enforce consistency in your business, leading to better morale among workers and more satisfied customers. For that reason, many organizations use business rules engine software to guide how their organization functions.
What Are Business Rules?
Business rules outline the relationships between different business entities and help guide everyday decisions made within an organization. For example, a company might have a business rule that ties incoming orders to a specific team member. Think of business rules as individual blueprints of different essential activities within an enterprise.
By organizing a company’s processes into concrete rules, users can use business rules engine software to create automation processes that make the company more efficient. That cuts down on time-consuming manual processes and reduces inconsistencies caused by human errors. Implementing one business rule can increase the ability of companies to streamline work and cut down on employee churn.
When implemented correctly, business rules help organizations introduce consistency in business processes throughout the company. In addition, they provide enterprises with internal controls for conducting work. That way, they can stay in compliance with local, state, and federal regulations.
What Are Different Types of Business Rules?
Business rules typically fall into one of the following classifications. However, how you classify business rules can vary depending on the source of the data that fuels them.
Constraints
A constraint sets conditions that outline restrictions based on specific parameters. For example, you can define business rules that prevent users without permission from accessing information from a particular data source.
Derivation
A derivation business rule outlines specific parameters to look for to determine if a work item meets certain conditions. For example, you may create a business rule that evaluates whether a customer who places an online order through your website lives in a state that requires you to charge taxes. If so, you would apply additional rules that calculate appropriate taxes for the buyer’s state.
These rule groups form the basis for most rule engine software. It allows organizations to create automations that make business decisions that speed up different processes. For example, many companies have business rules set up for functions like processing orders, setting up shipping, and initiating refunds.
You can also define a business rule more specifically as one of the following types:
- Coordination rule — A coordination rule sets up a general requirement that a process must meet to continue moving through a workflow. An example of that might be, “a request must include a department billing code.” Without that information, the rule keeps the item from moving forward.
- Qualification or disqualification rule — These rules determine whether a specific object or piece of information meets the defined parameters defined for a process. It filters out any items that don’t fit, so employees don’t waste time and effort on them.
- Decision rules — Decision rules evaluate a subject and determine what path it should follow. For example, a submitted request could get sent down a workflow for approval, rejection, or one that asks for additional information.
How Do You Use a Business Rules Engine in an Enterprise?
Below are examples of how organizations within different industries use business rules to increase efficiency in business operations while cutting down on overhead.
Compliance
Companies that must adhere to specific guidelines set out by regulatory agencies, like those that work in healthcare or finance, can create compliance rules that ensure that workers adhere to those policies. That way, they’re prepared when any regulatory body conducts a review to ensure they’re meeting all requirements.
Approval processes
Many financial companies use business rules to review applications to determine if they meet their standards for approval. For example, an organization might apply a rule that automatically rejects applicants who don’t meet the minimum credit score standards.
Employee onboarding
Getting employees set up in their new role can take a lot of time and effort. One example of improving efficiency is by creating a business rule that automatically assigns the employee an email address or sets up their system credentials as part of an employee onboarding process.
Purchases and returns
Many retail businesses use business rules engine software to set up workflows around customer purchases and return. For example, a retail owner can set up a process to reject return claims if they fall outside a specific submission period. In addition, business rules can automatically apply discounts to members who sign up for customer loyalty programs once they hit specific purchasing thresholds.
What Are the Benefits of Business Rules Engine Software?
By investing in business rules engine software, organizations can reap benefits like:
- Improved productivity — By setting up business rules that apply to different applications and workflows, companies can cut down on the time it takes for employees to work through critical processes. In addition, organizations can make modifications to keep up with the changing needs of different business areas.
- Transferability — Business rules engine software makes it easier for companies to implement business rules throughout the organization. By documenting business rules within workflows, companies can more easily adapt them to use with other processes. That way, other teams can use those documents to modify the rules for different workstreams.
- More consistency — By implementing business rules, enterprises can ensure that employees execute tasks consistently. In addition, it’s easier for companies to set up templates for working through different processes with automation. That helps cut down on human error and helps companies remain compliant with industry regulations.
Incorporate Business Rules Engine Software Within Your Company
The Integrify platform gives organizations a centralized platform to create automated workflows driven by business rules. Contact us today to set up a demo of how our software could transform how your enterprise conducts business.
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