Step 5 - Business Rules

If you received an implementation from OWIT Global, you will have rules available to open and review. They will likely not be editable because rules in production are finalized OWIT Global plans and bordereaux templates are finalized before use in production implementations. The finalization process closes editing and protects the contents for use in a live environment., but you can review them to learn how they function.

Open the Business Rules tab(Bordereaux > Data Management > Mapping Template Manager > Business Rules to see existing business rules in your system. The image below shows a sample rule.

Open and view existing rules by selecting View. To remove them, click the Delete button. (Be careful when deleting any component in Bordereaux, you may not be able to get it back.)

Below is the Risk Location Check rule workflow, available when you click View on the Business Rule tab, as shown in the image above. The workflow includes instructions the system follows when processing bordereaux records.

 

The Business Rule example above begins by using the Comparison tool.  With it, we instruct the system to look at the RiskStateLocation data from the Plan’s Raw data section of the Input XML and if it represents a location in a certain area, log a warning. The system looks for a particular condition and when found, performs an action.

     

 

In our example above, two possible paths exist:

• When the RiskStateLocation value is equal to Beeville, then the condition of the Rule is met (True) and the action assigned to the rule (in this case, logging a Warning) is executed.

• When the RiskStateLocation is NOT equal to Beeville, then the condition of the is not met (False). In this case, the rule does not apply to the record under review therefore the record passes successfully without issue.

The only action in this rule is the data analysis and review and the resulting condition. The next (and last) action after assigning True or False through the constant is to proceed to the End tool.

In the Data Management tool, all rules and flows eventually come to an end. The End tool is automatically added to a canvas when a workflow is created. Ending a workflow is defined by connecting to the End tools by connecting it using the Equals ( = ) connection option. (Open the preceding tool's menu option and select equals from the Connection options.

The sample below shows two constant tools that are the last steps of two conditional paths. They both connect to the End tool with the Equals connector.

 

To create a new Business Rule, your template must be in draft mode (before it is finalized). See the Finalizing a Bordereaux Template topic to learn not only how and when to finalize a template but also its consequences.

 

1. In the Business Rules tab, select Add Rule button:

2. When the Add Business Rule dialog displays, complete the following fields:
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

3. Two options are available from the Type drop-down list:

   • The default value is Custom. Keep this option when building a new workflow—one not specifically defined by the Data Management tool.

   • Alternatively, select Pre-Defined to identify rules built into the tool.

 

When you select the Pre-Defined option on the Add Business Rule dialog, it changes to accommodate the different settings.

1. Once you have followed the instructions in the Create Business Rule section above and selected Pre-Defined Type option, the following dialog appears.
   
   
   
   
   
   

    

2. Three pre-defined rule options are available. Select one to continue:

   • Check for Duplicate Policy Transaction - Choose this option to use the rule that checks whether a transaction is a duplicate of another transaction for a policy.

   • Check for Valid Transaction Sequence - Choose this option to use a rule that checks or validates whether the transaction sequence is valid for a policy.

   • Check for Valid Policy – Cash or Claims Bordereau - Choose this option to use the rule that checks that a policy exists to support the transaction for Cash or a Claims transactions.

3. Use the Name field to enter a meaningful name for this business rule (required field).

4. In the field drop-down list, select the data element against which the config rule (that you selected in Step 2 above) will be checked against. Below is a sample of the field list options and other completed fields:
   
   
   
   
   
   

5. Click Continue to close the window and return to the Mapping Template Manager screen.
   
   If you click Close, your work will not be saved and the Mapping Template Manager screen returns.

Use the instructions below to create a new, custom business rule.

1. Once you have followed the instructions in the Create Business Rule section above and ensure that the Type field is set to Custom, you can continue to configure the dialog .

2. In the Create As section, select one option to continue:
   

   • Select New Rule to create an new rule by building out a new workflow. Click Continue to proceed to the canvas workflow steps.
     
     
     

   • Select Global Rule when you intend to use an existing rule in your template. When you select Global Rule, the Rule drop-down list displays. Choose a rule then click Continue.The rule you chose will appear in the list of rules on the Business Rule tab.
     
     
     

   • Choose the Copy From Global Rule option to bring an existing global rule into your template except in this case, you can edit the copy as needed. In this scenario, you would be selecting a Global Rule from the drop-down list provided as your basis and then proceeding to the Create Workflow section below. The copied workflow displays.
     
     
     
     

   • Give your copied rule a new name in the Name field (required field).
     
     

3. If you have chosen either to create a New Rule or Copy From Global Rule, when you click Continue, the Workflow Canvas appears. Learning how to create workflows can look daunting at first, but once you build a few, you can copy and edit existing workflow elements.

 

Once you set up a rule by establishing its name and type as described in the Create a Custom Business Rule section above, the next step is to create a workflow. Workflows include graphic representations of programming actions. The actions are represented by tools that you can select and drop onto the canvas. The tools and actions work with field nodes chosen from the Input XML panel on the right side of the screen.

The Toolbox on the left is composed of tools that fit into categories according to their function:

• Data

• Flow

• Convert

Use these in conjunction with the Input XML on the right to build your business rules.

Click the image below to change its size.

Following are a few potential rule scenarios and how they might be built on the canvas:

 

Comparing Field Values

In this example, assume there is a limit to the value a Bond can be. Our limit for purposes of explanation is:

The Bond Amount cannot be higher than $500,000.

On the canvas, we will bring the BondAmount data element over from the Input XML and drop it on the canvas by clicking the node in the Input XML. This element will be the Comparison tool item in our sample flow.

When you click the Comparison tool in the toolbox, the tool drops onto the canvas.

Click the tool once and select Properties to display the Comparison Properties dialog:

In the Comparison Properties, the left side will be the data element that will be the point of Comparison—in this case, the BondAmount. The drop-down list in the center of the two sides is the compare setting. For our purposes, we'll choose the greater than option. The right side identifies the expected value 500000 in this example. How this is actually entered will depend on how the value is actually stored in the XML. For the purposes of this example, it is assumed $500,00.00 is stored as a flat integer of 500000. The resulting comparison would like as shown below:

Once satisfied with the settings, we click OK and return to the canvas.

Now use the Constant tool item and set the True and False conditions that will trigger a warning or error or is ignored.

The condition should be such that being TRUE will trigger the Warning, Error, or Ignore action. In this example, because Bond Amounts over $500,000 should trigger an error, we set the comparison as such, where the BondAmount is greater than 500000. This way you end up with a clear true or false answer.

Once completed, the entire flow will look as below:

When satisfied with the Rule, click on the Save button in the upper left-hand area of the canvas. Do not skip this step or click Close before saving or your work will be lost!

When saved, the Plan Saved Successfully! Message box appears in the upper right of the canvas. Once this message box appears, then it's safe to click Close and return to the Template Mapping Manager.

On return to the Mapping Template Manager, ensure you select an option from the Status drop-down list:

OWIT recommends that you click Save Plan to ensure your rules are incorporated and saved into the plan.

 

Prevent Expiration Dates from preceding Effective Dates

A typical rule in insurance circles is to make sure policy expiration dates do not precede their effective dates.

In this scenario, comparing two Input XML elements. Instead of selecting a Compare Type of Value, select Tool Item. To use XML elements in comparisons, they must be present physically on the canvas.

OWIT recommends that you click Save Plan to ensure your rules are incorporated and saved into the plan.

The completed comparison would look like the one shown below:

As defined above, the Expiration Date being greater than the Effective Date would become the True” condition, which would then trigger the data Error on validation.

 

TIP: “T”RUE = “T”RIGGER; “F”ALSE = “F”INE

 

At the bottom of the Configure Rule tab, there is an option asking “Do you want to convert this to a global rule?” If checked, the Rule as defined would apply globally to all Templates in the installation. A Convert to Global button will appear. Click that button to complete the conversion to a Global Rule:

OWIT recommends that you click Save Plan to ensure your rules are incorporated and saved into the plan.

 

In the Mapping Template Manager, you can return to View any Rule or to Delete any Rule, again, remembering that the ability to Delete is only an option on Templates in DRAFT.