Business process automation is imperative for companies to meet rising customer demands. Yet manual approvals and complex policy decisions can severely bottleneck operations. This frustrates customers and inhibits business growth.
Business rules engines (BRE) provide the breakthrough solution. BREs automate intricate decisions to smooth workflows and supercharge productivity. When leveraged effectively, they enable new heights of efficiency, agility and scale.
This comprehensive guide will cover everything you need to know about deploying BREs successfully including:
- The urgent importance of automation for competitive business survival
- A simplified explanation of exactly what business rules engines are
- The multitude of bottom line boosting BRE benefits
- BRE real-world use cases making processes seamless
- Selecting the optimal BRE platform for your needs
- 5 must-read expert BRE books that further expand expertise
By the end of this deep dive analysis, heads of organizations across all industries will understand why business rules engines are mission-critical technologies in the digital age. More importantly, you‘ll know precisely how to unleash BREs within your company for maximum impact.
So let‘s get started on demystifying these vital drivers of operational excellence and outsized business returns.
Why Business Process Automation Has Become Indispensable
A 2020 study by EY found that 97% of business leaders consider process automation integral for organizations now and in the future. The reasons why are multifaceted:
Financial Impact
Companies utilizing automation fare far better across the board financially with:
15-25%higher profit margins20-40%reduction in operating costs30-50%superior return on assets
Data Source: Boston Consulting Group
Process automation also drives faster revenue expansion compared to peers:
Data Source: McKinsey & Company
Productivity Surge
Automating repetitive manual work frees up human employees to focus on higher value strategic tasks. This amplifies total productivity:
65%of financial services firms saw workflow productivity rocket upwards after employing automation.
Enhanced CX
Streamlining processes through automation means customers:
- Wait
37%less time for service responses - Experience
33%faster resolutions for inquiries & requests - Perceive brands as
29%more responsive
Data Source: Dimensional Research
The data decisively shows that automation done right confers organizational advantages that cascade across departments. But exactly how do automation solutions produce these incredible efficiency and experience upgrades?
An Inside Look At Business Rules Engines
While process automation encompasses various tools and technologies, business rules engines form the core engines that enable complex decision workflow automation.
What Are Business Rules Engines?
Business rules engines (BRE) are software programs that emulate real-world decision making within systems. BREs achieve this by:
-
Ingesting relevant input data (applicant details, order information etc.)
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Processing inputs per codified decision logic rules
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Executing decisions or taking actions as outputs (approve, deny, route ticket)
By encoding intricate policies, regulations, calculations and heuristics as configurable rules, BREs automate determinations that previously bogged down human operators.
For example, a financial services BRE may input customer credit data and automatically decide approval amounts or denials per internal lending rules.
Benefits of Leveraging BREs
Transitioning policy decisions from people to BREs that apply rules flawlessly every time offers tremendous upside:
90%less time required for rules-based choices18%reduction in policy operation costs97%improved consistency in decision outcomes- Bolstered capacity to handle decision volume surges
- Faster adaptation when business rules or compliance demands change
In short, BREs radically upgrade efficiency, scale and compliance across organizations.
While use cases vary widely, common examples include:
Insurance
- Determine coverage amounts permitted by policies
- Detect likely fraudulent claims needing review
Finance
- Instantly approve or deny applicant loans per set credit models
- Dynamically personalize customer offers based on purchase history
E-Commerce
- Qualify orders for free shipping when cart totals hit set thresholds
- Recommend complementary products based on past shopping behavior
Now that we‘ve clarified exactly what BREs are and the immense advantages they impart, let‘s explore how these wonders of automation actually work under the hood.
Demystifying The Anatomy Of Business Rules Engines
Business rules engines structurally comprise three key working components:
1. Inputs
This includes all of the raw data feeds that get pulled into the platform. Common input data elements include:
- Customer details like name, age, location
- Transaction specifics such as purchase totals or claims amounts
- Past buying history or risk modeling metrics
- Inventory availability data
Inputs may come from sources like:
- CRM databases
- Financial reporting systems
- ERP platforms
- Data warehouses
- Payment processors
2. Decision Logic
This encompasses the brains of the platform — the rules, calculations, algorithms and conditions programmed to emulate decision making.
Logic formulation starts by mapping out all real-world policies currently followed by domain experts. These get translated into codified rules structured like:
If X conditions, then take Y action
Additional logic elements can include risk scoring models, predictive analytics, and more.
For instance, an e-commerce BRE‘s logic may state:
If user‘s cart total exceeds $75 AND they are a loyalty member, provide free 3-day shipping
3. Outputs
With inputs analyzed per the decision logic specifications, the BRE finalizes a determination and executes actions.
Common output types include:
- Application approvals or denials
- Routing choices like assigning tasks to staffers
- Quotes and pricing calculations
- Next best action recommendations
In our example, the e-commerce BRE would output a discounted total order cost with 3-day shipping selected based on the input data evaluated through the promotion rule.
Understanding the input-to-output mechanics provides clarity on how BREs upgrade efficiency. But choosing the right BRE platform for your needs depends on recognizing key BRE architecture differences.
Architectural BRE Models: Strengths vs Weaknesses
While all BREs function through the same fundamental input-logic-output sequence, architectural variations significantly impact capabilities. Let‘s compare options:
| BRE Type | Description | Pros | Cons | Use Cases |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scripting | Basic tools for defining streamlined yes/no rules flows | Simple setup. Low/no coding expertise needed. | Lacks advanced functions. Can‘t handle multifaceted decisions. | Basic email routing, surveys. |
| Declarative | Pre-built templates for common decisions like rates calculations. Customizable through GUI tools. | Handles complexity without intensive coding. Rapid to build and change. | Some constraints compared to full customization freedom. | Insurance pricing, campaign targeting, fraud analysis. |
| Coding Focused | BRE tightly coupled or embedded within custom coded apps. Maximum flexibility to specify application logic. | Complete control for ultimate custom decision complexity. | Requires skilled developers. Rules changes take longer. | Dynamic real-time offer generation, sensor-driven decisions. |
Take stock of current processes and requirements before investing. Opt for the least intricate system that satisfies your automation goals. Declarative BREs strike an ideal balance for many.
Now that we‘ve covered core BRE basics, let‘s shine light on leading examples demonstrating BRE power.
Powerful BRE Use Cases Driving Digital Transformation
While each company‘s needs and rules differ, common patterns arise around impactful BRE adoption driving outsized benefits:
Compliance Assurance
Regulation has intensified severely across banking, insurance, healthcare and more. Just some of the major bodies include SEC, FINRA, HIPAA, SOX, GDPR and CCPA.
Non-compliance risks steep fines upwards of 4% of total revenue. But manually tracking changing legal nuances across regions proves near impossible at scale.
BREs enable encoding evolving regulation into system rules to guarantee conformity. When requirements shift, updates propagate across the rules base rapidly. This permits managing compliance proactively rather than reactively.
Sample compliance use case:
- GDPR necessitates erasing customer data upon request. BRE sets logic to automate data deletion workflows upon triggered requests.
360 Customer Intelligence
Savvy companies no longer treat all customers equally. Tailoring interactions based on past behaviors and lifecycle stage boosts satisfaction and loyalty.
But compiling insight through manual analysis severely limits scale. BREs ingest granular customer signals across enterprise systems to execute personalized engagements.
Sample personalization use case:
- Specialty retailer BRE qualifies big spenders for VIP discounts automatically
Scalable Adjudication
Insurance, loans, benefits programs and more rely upon adjudication to determine approvals, payouts or resource assignments. But mushrooming claim volumes overwhelm manual review.
BREs intake case specifics and approve or deny per predefined rules at machine speed and accuracy. For trickier scenarios, BREs fast-track to appropriate reviewers based on heuristics.
Sample adjudication use case:
- Healthcare payer BRE certifies eligibility for experimental treatment based on medical records against policy guidelines
Predictive Guidance
Beyond present decisions, BREs also drive breakthrough efficiency through predictive prescriptions fine tuned over time. Rather than rigid scripts, predictive guidance employs machine learning to sharpen suggestions accuracy as patterns emerge in data.
Sample predictive guidance use case:
- E-commerce BRE recommends complementary accessories to shoppers based on cart contents and purchase history
The use cases highlighted merely skim the vast potential. Virtually any workflow involving voluminous rules-intensive decisions becomes a candidate for BRE optimization.
Now we‘ll switch gears to provide recommendations on identifying and selecting BRE platforms to catalyze your automation initiatives.
Finding The Right BRE Partner: Vetting Critical Platform Capabilities
The BRE market brims with providers pitching solutions. Avoid buyer‘s remorse by asking vendors tough questions during evaluations:
What Is Your Platform Architecture?
Assess if the system design aligns with use case complexity. Custom coding excels for intricate decisions but overshoots basic needs.
How Are Rules Created & Updated?
Seek low code platforms enabling business users to manage logic without dependency delays.
How Do You Ensure Accuracy?
Inquire about testing, simulations, model governance and accuracy measurement standards.
How Is Transparency & Reporting Handled?
Visibility into rule performance history, tendencies and impacts safeguards quality.
What Integration & API Options Exist?
BREs must interface with surrounding systems to ingest data and cascade actions so evaluate connectivity.
How Does The System Scale?
Growing transaction volumes should pose no issue so probe about expansion options.
What Services & Training Help Adoption?
Change management proves pivotal so support and education services ease onboarding pains.
Solid vendors will happily clarify capabilities around these vital points. Once situated with a tailored BRE provider, gaining supplementary perspective from experts accelerates maximizing business rule automation.
Top 5 Business Rules Engine Books For Accelerating Expertise
While firsthand implementation breeds know-how fastest, absorbing books authored by industry veterans provides high ROI. Here are 5 must-reads:
The definitive primer on BRE theory providing foundational concepts for new practitioners.
#2 | The Business Rules Revolution
An inspirational narrative chronicling the epic ascendance of business rules engines across industries.
#3 | Building Business Rules Expert Systems
A hands-on walkthrough of constructing and deploying masterful BREs to automate intricate decisions.
#4 | The Decision Model: A Business Logic Framework Linking Business and Technology
THE definitive guidebook for modeling decisions visually to translate business contexts into executable logic.
#5 | Real-World Decision Modeling with DMN
Cutting edge techniques around augmenting BREs with decision modeling standards for maximizing returns.
Absorb insights from the experts above to complement extracting lessons from internal initiative advances and stumbles. This compounds knowledge into mastery faster through multidimensional understanding.
Key Takeaways: Prepare For Automated Efficiency With BREs
The data confirms that business rules engine adoption separates high performance businesses from average in the digital era. REF
By codifying policies, regulations and heuristics into logic, BREs transfer human determinations into automated systems executing decisions consistently and at machine velocity.
Deploying BREs reduce costs, accelerate processes, and increase accuracy across organizations. But culture challenges can encumber realizing full value.
In closing, focus first on augmenting workers through automation rather than replacing them. Communicate productivity ambitions not headcount reduction goals. And phase in automation responsibly by starting with the most repetitive tasks before advancing across processes.
Now is the time for leaders to prioritize exploring how driving BREs into the heart of operations can propel their organization into new realms of responsiveness, resilience and results. Harness the emergence of intelligent automation with urgency to write the next soaring chapter of enterprise success.
