The Synergy of Business Rules Engines and Workflow Tools

Ever feel like your workflow machine is missing a beat? Like there’s a nagging inconsistency in how decisions are made, or your team is spending too much time on manual tasks that could be automated?

Maybe you’ve noticed your current workflow tools are great at orchestrating tasks but lack the nuance to handle complex decision making logic. Or you’re wasting time and resources trying to adapt your processes to changing market conditions or regulations.

The good news is, there’s a solution that can integrate with your existing workflow tools to solve these problems: Business Rules Engines.

Want to see how BREs can help your business make better decisions, be more efficient and stay ahead of the curve? Read on.

Business Rules Engines vs Workflow Tools

Business Rules Engines (BREs) execute pre-defined rules, so automated and consistent decisions. They manage the decision making process, applying rules for compliance, underwriting and customer eligibility. The result is faster, error free processes like claims approval and loan assessments.

Workflow tools orchestrate the sequence of tasks, so they are done in the right order and timeframe. They automate routine tasks, reduce processing times and give visibility into ongoing processes. This visibility allows management to spot bottlenecks and streamline operations.

Feature	Business Rules Engine (BRE)	Workflow Tool
Primary Function	Executes predefined rules to automate and ensure consistent decision-making processes.	Coordinates and automates the sequence of tasks within a process.
Focus	Decision logic and rule evaluation based on compliance, underwriting, customer eligibility, etc.	Task execution and process flow, ensuring tasks are completed in the correct order and timeframe.
Examples	Claims approval, loan assessments, pricing calculations, risk assessment.	Employee onboarding, order fulfillment, invoice processing, customer service ticket resolution.
Benefits	Faster, error-free processes, improved compliance, consistent decision-making, reduced manual intervention, increased efficiency in complex decision-making scenarios.	Streamlined operations, reduced processing time, improved visibility into process status, identification of bottlenecks, increased efficiency in repetitive tasks.
Key Differences	Primarily focuses on evaluating rules and making decisions based on those rules.	Focuses on executing tasks in a defined sequence and automating the flow of work.

Business processes getting more complex

A survey says 74% of organizations think BPM will be key to their success in the next 3 years. Business is getting more complex.

Insurance and finance have complex processes due to changing regulations, diverse customer needs and multiple technologies.

Regulatory environments change fast. In the first half of 2023 alone there were over 1,700 changes in state insurance regulations. That’s an 8% increase from the same period in 2022.

Most of that is because regulators are catching up on changes that were delayed during the pandemic and proactive approach to emerging issues in the insurance market.

BREs allow for real-time rule updates, no disruption to operations.

Customer expectations drive business requirements for personalized services. BREs adjust decision-making criteria based on individual profiles, better service.

Legacy systems integrated with digital platforms complicate operations. Workflow tools make these systems work together, BREs keep decision-making consistent.

How BREs automate decisions within workflows

Business rules engines processes multiple scenarios at once, decisions are accurate and data-driven. Automation reduces human error and increases reliability allowing to perform business functions smoothly. With real-time rule updates, BREs have the agility to help stay ahead of the market. Even more so with non-technical software users creating workflows and basic rules without an IT dependency.

Benefit	Description
Flexibility & Adaptability	Easily modify rules without changing workflow code, adapting to business needs and regulations.
Improved Decision-Making	Centralized rule repository ensures consistent decisions, complex logic encapsulated in BRE.
Reduced Complexity	Separation of concerns simplifies workflows, promotes reusability, and eases maintenance.
Enhanced Maintainability	Business users can update rules without technical expertise, reducing reliance on IT.
Compliance & Auditing	Track rule changes, ensure adherence to policies and regulations.

Challenges and Pitfalls of Integrating Business Rules Engines with Workflow Engines

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Challenge	Description
Initial Investment	Integrating and configuring BRE and workflow engine requires time and resources.
Learning Curve	Users need to understand both BRE and workflow engine concepts to leverage the integration effectively.
Rule Management Complexity	Managing a large number of rules can become challenging, requiring proper organization and governance.
Performance Overhead	Rule evaluation can introduce additional processing time, impacting overall workflow performance.
Integration Issues	Ensuring seamless communication and data exchange between BRE and workflow engine can be complex.
Vendor Lock-In	Choosing tightly coupled solutions might limit flexibility and future options.

Dynamic Rule Management

BREs let you update rules in real-time without interrupting workflows. Organizations that experience workflow disruption are often out of business for a long time. For example, the average time to fully recover from a data breach is over 100 days and during that time you’re losing business and customers.

You can adapt to regulatory changes quickly, reducing the cost of non-compliance, which is $14.82 million on average.

You can adjust decision-making criteria as the market shifts and stay in business.

Ongoing rule analysis and adjustment means continuous workflow optimization.

Ensuring rules are applied consistently across all processes

Business Rules Engines standardizes decision criteria so all departments are uniform.

Integrated with other systems like workflow software, BREs prevent discrepancies and all decisions reflect the latest rules.

Faster, more accurate service delivery to customers

By defining and managing rules within the engine, you can ensure customer requests and queries are processed according to the latest policies and procedures. Reduces manual intervention, minimizes human errors and delays and ensures consistent accurate service delivery.

The business rules engine being a central repository of business knowledge can also guide workflow automation software to route requests to the right departments or people and speed up the process. By automating repetitive tasks and decision-making the system frees up human employees to focus on complex customer issues and the workflow will work smoothly.

Benefits of dynamic rule management without disrupting workflows

Dynamic rule management powered by a business rules engine lets you modify and update business rules in real-time without interrupting workflows. That’s the agility you need to adapt to market changes, regulations or business needs.

Workflow disruption is expensive.

By putting business knowledge in the business rules engine you can reduce manual processes and the risk of errors and ensure business functions are executed consistently.

Employees get unexpected requests or tasks that disrupt their workflow. A big chunk of employees get interrupted multiple times a day to take on ad-hoc tasks which can cause stress and reduced productivity.

Moreover, seamless integration with workflow automation software means these rule changes are reflected in the automated processes immediately, so business operations are more efficient and accurate. No more workflow changes every time a business rule needs to be updated.

Summary

Want to add dynamic business rules to your workflow software? Look into a seamless integration. Higson as a business rules engine can sit alongside your existing processes and offer flexibility to business changes.

We make it easy and customizable so the transition is smooth and tailored to your needs. Get in touch if you’d like to chat about how Higson can help with your workflow optimization.

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