Best Business Rules Management Systems (BRMS) 2022

What is Business Rules Management Systems (BRMS)?

A business rules management system (BRMS) is used to develop, store, edit, and execute business rules. Business rules are logical statements that define the behavior and operation of a business. For example,“if a user cancels their subscription, send them an e-mail.” These rules may be written in process documents or embedded in applications. However, this implementation is prone to errors when rules are updated, scaled, or cloned.

A BRMS, powered by the business rules engine, acts as a central repository and automation function for business rules. Decision owners and IT employees can collaborate to develop, version, and edit rules in a single-sourced environment. A BRMS helps businesses automate tasks, improve consistency, and shorten turnaround on policy changes.

BRMS vendors provide tools for developing, tracking, and editing business rules. Often, these tools support both programmers and non-programmers. Vendors also provide an engine to simulate and validate business rules before they are implemented. When business rules are completed, the BRMS deploys the rules to other platforms, allowing users to single-source their rules across disparate systems and applications.

Business Rules Management vs. Business Process Management

Business rules management and business process management are often conflated, but they are not identical functions or products. Business rules are logical statements that apply across business processes, workflows, and functions, and BRMS’s emphasize managing those overarching rules. In contrast, business process management emphasizes highly customizable workflow management across business functions, departments, and systems. In other words, business rules management controls the dictates on the state of business operations and functions, while business process management controls how those operations and functions are conducted.

An important functional difference between BPM and BRM is that the specific rules themselves are often subject to change, while business processes tend to be more stable in terms of the structure and flow of processes. This means that embedding business rules logic within BPM systems makes both structures more difficult to maintain and subject to errors if not carefully curated. For organizations that need products to organize and automate both its rules and its processes, using products that specifically serve each distinct use case is recommended.

BRMS Features & Capabilities

Most vendors offering BRMS software include:

• Custom development environments for creating business rules with code

• Business rules engine for executing rules workflows and processes

• Tools to develop business rules without writing code

• Tools to validate business rules

• Simulation environments to test new or changed business rules

• Deployment of business rules to other platforms

• Lifecycle and ownership management for business rules

• Flexible hosting options for the platform itself

BRMS Comparison

When comparing different business rules management systems, consider these factors:

• Integrations: How many prebuilt and supported integrations with the business’s preexisting systems does each product offer? Prebuilt integrations can save lots of time and effort in the deployment process.

• Ease of Use: Consider how easy each product is to use my different user bases. The BRMS should be accessible for IT admins and business users alike, with features like low-code and no-code rules development and user permissions management.

Start a business rules management system comparison here

Pricing Information

Pricing for a BRMS varies and depends heavily on the number of users. Multiple free, open-source BRMS options exist. However, users of these systems rely on community support and are responsible for their own hosting.

Other vendors may offer free trial periods followed by a monthly or yearly subscription. Subscription prices range from $50 per user per month to over $180 per user per month. The subscriptions often include hosting, technical support, training, and software updates.