Decision Tables represent Business Rules
What Do Business Rules Define?
Business rules define the specific conditions and actions that govern business processes and decisions. They encapsulate the logic that dictates how business operations should be conducted, ensuring consistency and compliance with organizational policies.
What is Business Rules-Based Modeling?
Business rules-based modeling involves creating models that represent the rules and logic of business processes. This approach helps in visualizing, analyzing, and automating business decisions by explicitly defining the rules that guide these processes.
Example of Business Rules Contemplating Business Logic
Consider an e-commerce platform where a business rule states: "If a customer's total purchase amount exceeds 100 dollars, apply a 10% discount." This rule guides the decision-making process by defining the conditions (purchase amount > $100) and the corresponding action (apply 10% discount).
Lowering the Number of Time-Consuming Tasks
When a business rule management system (BRMS) works together with business automation tools, it can eliminate several time-consuming tasks, such as:
Manual data entry and validation
Repetitive decision-making processes
Approval workflows
Compliance checks
Policy enforcement
What is a Business Rule Management System (BRMS)?
A BRMS is a software system that manages and executes business rules. It allows organizations to define, deploy, monitor, and maintain the rules that govern their business processes.
Use Case: Approval Workflows
In an approval workflow, a BRMS can be used to define the rules for approving or rejecting requests. For example, in a loan approval process, the BRMS can evaluate the applicant's credit score, income, and other criteria to determine whether the loan should be approved. Business automation tools can then automatically route the application to the appropriate approver or notify the applicant of the decision.
Best Practices for Representing Complex Business Rules
When representing complex business rules, consider the following best practices:
Use Clear and Concise Language: Ensure that the rules are easy to understand.
Visualize Rules: Use diagrams or tables to represent rules visually.
Modularize Rules: Break down complex rules into smaller, manageable components.
Document Rules: Maintain thorough documentation for each rule.
Test Rules: Regularly test rules to ensure they work as intended.
Review and Update: Periodically review and update rules to reflect changes in business processes[1].
Comparing Camunda, Temporal, and Kogito
Camunda:
Focus: Process automation using BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation).
User Interface: Provides a visual design tool for workflow modeling.
Integration: Integrates with several enterprise systems out of the box.
Developer Skillset: Suitable for business analysts with BPMN knowledge.
Use Cases: Excellent for traditional business process automation[2].
Temporal:
Focus: Building reliable and scalable workflows through code.
User Interface: Lacks a visual design tool, relies on code-based definitions.
Integration: Often requires custom integrations for specific use cases.
Developer Skillset: Designed for software developers comfortable with coding.
Use Cases: Ideal for developing scalable, reliable microservices workflows[2].
Kogito:
Focus: Cloud-native business automation using BPMN, DMN (Decision Model and Notation), and CMMN (Case Management Model and Notation).
User Interface: Provides tools for modeling and deploying business processes.
Integration: Integrates well with Kubernetes and other cloud-native technologies.
Developer Skillset: Suitable for developers familiar with cloud-native environments.
Use Cases: Great for cloud-native business process automation[3].
What are Decision Tables?
Decision tables are a type of business rule that represent complex decision logic in a tabular format. They map conditions to actions, making it easier to understand and manage the rules.
Defining a Decision Table
When creating a decision table, you must define:
The conditions to be evaluated
The possible actions or outcomes
The rules that map conditions to actions
Use Case: Decision Table Based on Credit Score
Consider a decision table for determining loan interest rates based on credit scores:
Conditions: Credit Score
Actions: Interest Rate
Rules:
If Credit Score > 750, Interest Rate = 5%
If Credit Score between 650 and 750, Interest Rate = 7%
If Credit Score < 650, Interest Rate = 10%
Implementing a Decision Table with Camunda
Visual Representation of Decision Table
Here is a visual representation of the decision table for determining loan interest rates based on credit scores:
Credit Score | Interest Rate |
> 750 | 5% |
650 - 750 | 7% |
< 650 | 10% |
User Interface Implementation:
Create the Decision Table: Use Camunda Modeler to create a DMN (Decision Model and Notation) decision table.
Deploy the Decision Table: Deploy the DMN file to the Camunda engine.
Configure the Workflow: In Camunda, configure the workflow to use the decision table for evaluating credit scores.
Java Code Implementation:
Read the DMN XML File:
InputStream inputStream = getClass().getResourceAsStream("/path/to/decision-table.dmn");
DmnDecision decision = dmnEngine.parseDecision("decisionId", inputStream); Create a VariableMap of Input Variables:
VariableMap variables = Variables.createVariables()
.putValue("creditScore", 720); Evaluate the Decision Table:
DmnDecisionTableResult result = dmnEngine.evaluateDecisionTable(decision, variables);
String interestRate = result.getSingleResult().getEntry("interestRate");
System.out.println("Interest Rate: " + interestRate);
References
[4] Silva, Mauro Henrique, and Fabiano Leal. "Modeling of processes, decisions and failures: an application in the context of services of the National Student Assistance Policy." Gestão & Regionalidade 39 (2023): 1-24.
[5] Kortesoja, Henri. "Creating a product process–business case for company X." (2024).
[6] Häußler, Marco. Development of methods for model-based quality assurance in railway infrastructure design. Diss. Technische Universität München, 2021.
