Business Rules Applied: Building Better Systems Using the Business Rules Approach [Paperback]

Barbara von Halle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 17, 2001

From a bestselling author and expert--a soon-to-be classic on application development
Representing a significant change of focus in software engineering, the business rule approach to application development benefits all decision makers. Managers looking to take advantage of new opportunities will turn to business rules to implement change. IT has already learned the benefits of separating data by processing and managing data as an independent component of systems. A rules-extended development approach does exactly the same thing for business rules: by reducing the amount of code that needs to be written, it shortens the time necessary to implement change. Bestselling author Barbara von Halle (The Handbook of Relational Database Design from Addison Wesley) presents the first book to show in practical, real-world terms how to build applications using business rule concepts and techniques. This authoritative guide will give readers:
o Complete guidance for system designers and database managers
o The motivation for using the business rule approach
o Techniques for discovering and managing rules
o Guidance on how to conduct rule analysis
o Steps for designing the implementation options of the rules, as well as designing workflow and database components

Editorial Reviews

Review

"From a best selling author and expert-a soon-to-be classic on application development, representing a significant change of focus in software engineering, the business rule approach to application development benefits all decision makers." (Compbookreview.com, 11/01)

From the Back Cover

A step-by-step tutorial on how to execute the business rules approach-from planning through implementation

The business rules approach to application development represents a major evolution in software engineering and promises to be the most practical and desirable way to build systems. As a result, developers are in need of a how-to guide for implementing business rules in practice. Barbara von Halle fills this niche in the literature by providing a pragmatic introduction to the techniques and guidelines necessary for assembling systems using a business rules approach. Building on familiar methodologies such as structured systems analysis, information engineering, and object orientation, you will be able to easily add a business rules approach to existing practices.

Offering you the steps and techniques to fit your specific needs, this innovative book discusses:
* Business rule basics, concepts, and methodologies
* Getting started on and planning a business rule project
* Initial requirements, rules, and data
* Analyzing data, rules, and processes to guarantee that they are all of high quality
* Implementing business rules systems using commercial-service-oriented and data-change-oriented rules products
* Introducing a Rule Track into a systems development methodology

The companion Web site at

www.wiley.com/compbooks/vonhalle/ includes:
* White papers on related topics
* Case study descriptions and vendor solutions
* Updates on business rule concepts and tools
* Links to other resources

Wiley Computer Publishing
Timely. Practical. Reliable.

Visit our Web site at www.wiley.com/compbooks/
Visit the companion Web site at www.wiley.com/compbooks/vonhalle/

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 592 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (October 17, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471412937
• ISBN-13: 978-0471412939
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,158,373 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Barbara von Halle is Managing Partner of Knowledge Partners International, LLC (KPI). She is co-inventor of the Decision Model and co-author of The Decision Model: A Business Logic Framework Linking Business and Technology published by Auerbach Publications/Taylor and Francis LLC 2009. The book reveals ground breaking theory Groundbreaking theory, an early reviewer states "This book can become one of the classic books of a new era in computing that will have much traction in the next few years" - Opher Etzion, Ph.D., IBM Master Inventor. Barb writes a regular column in TDAN on the Decision Model.

As the fifth recipient of the Outstanding Individual Achievement Award from International DAMA, Barb inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1995. Known as a data architecture and business rules pioneer, she has consulted for over 25 years. She is an invited keynote speaker at conferences in the US and Europe. She was a very popular columnist in Database Programming and Design magazine for many years.

Her first book, Handbook of Relational Database Design published by Addison-Wesley since Published in 1989 has over 21 printings and been cited in 28 books. A recent review on amazon.com "Still the best working reference... The only reference book I recommend to anyone needing to understand relational database design" - M.C. Kettelhut, Ph.D."

Other book publications include Business Rules Applied and The Business Rule Revolution. Her recent article in Intelligent Enterprise magazine was voted one of the top articles of the year and features case studies from Oregon State, Freddie Mac, Dell Financial Systems, and Pershing LLC.

Barb can be found at www.TheDecisionModel.com where new announcements and materials on the Decision Model appear.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blueprint for Success, October 3, 2002

By 

Alan T. Demmin (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Business Rules Applied: Building Better Systems Using the Business Rules Approach (Paperback)

I purchased Barbara von Halle's book after the 2001 Business Rules Forum in New Orleans. This forum is an annual meeting of experts, vendors, and participants in the business rules "evolution" and is used to share ideas and information among colleagues in the field. Barbara's book was introduced in many of the forum presentations, which prompted me to make the purchase. This action was perhaps the most significant step I have taken to fully understand the business rules methodology and has saved my current project from almost certain failure.

I have now implemented many of the ideas and techniques from the book and placed my business rules project on a road to success. My project has endured many obstacles, not the least of which is understanding the differences that are imposed on the project team from traditional re-engineering efforts. If I hadn't come across Barbara's excellent documentation on project scoping, rules discovery, and designing for the business rules approach, I would have seriously doubted our ability to implement the project successfully. My project team was able to read and comprehend the most important concepts from the book and we have been able to modify our project plan to incorporate her ideas and techniques.

I believe it is our responsibility as IT professionals to recognize the importance of the business rules movement and to follow a strict methodology when implementing any rules engine initiative. I must personally thank Barbara for sharing some of the most important concepts with this methodology. I honestly consider it my blueprint for success.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Facts about an exceptional book, May 13, 2002

By 

Linda Zarate "IT Ops Consultant" (Azusa, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Business Rules Applied: Building Better Systems Using the Business Rules Approach (Paperback)

The fact is that this book covers business rules from an implementation approach, and does so in great detail. If you are new to business rules you should first read Business Rules and Information Systems: Aligning IT with Business Goals by Tony Morgan, which is better for beginners. That book introduces business rules at a basic level.

This book expands Morgan's work by drilling down into details and exposing the nuances that a seasoned practitioner will appreciate. However, the main value of this book is the way Ms. von Halle steps you through the complexities of implementing business rules as an organizational methodology. This is not an easy task, but she manages to provide a complete and comprehensive approach that will guarantee success if carefully followed. I think the work breakdown structure alone that is provided in the book makes it essential to anyone who is tasked with implementing business rules.

In addition, the tables, checklists and documents and information from the book's web site add even more value. This is an important book about an important topic. It's not easy to read, but the diligent reader (assuming prior experience) will find everything he or she needs to know about business rules, the value proposition for using them, and how to implement them. It's the most authoritative book on the subject, and will probably remain so for years to come.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Some good material, poorly edited, July 15, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Business Rules Applied: Building Better Systems Using the Business Rules Approach (Paperback)

The business rules approach offers a solid advancement in systems development and Barbara's book expounds concrete steps that you may take to implement the method in your organization.

My principle criticism of the text is that the first half of the book has been poorly edited and is almost impossible to read. There are many sloppy sentences, grammar errors and redundant constructions. Because this topic is important to me I took several weeks slogging through the book to adsorb the materials I needed. This should have taken much less time.

The book takes a very strong relational database approach to the mapping of terms constraints and facts. If fact, a substantial portion of the book is devoted to recycled relational data modeling and for some reason this part of the book is more flowing and eloquent. The text's arguments are weakest when the author presents a poor understanding of current object technology. For instance, there is no discussion of patterns and many of the declarations of the limitation of Object Technology are uninformed. I would suggest that those with OOSE orientation overlook this bias. There is some good material for OO practitioners.

There are two competing views in the business rules camps. One view is that business rules presents and solid requirements gathering technique. The next view is that business rules are all about application generation. The first technique has spawned software product that 'listen' to the data in the database in a 'rules engine'. Barbara Van Halle describes these tools. Eloquent presents the second view.

In summary, if you are seriously considering the addition of business rules methods to your project or organization then buy and read this book otherwise wait for a second edition.