Decision Modeling Essentials

Introduction

The Decision Model provides an efficient new method of eliciting, organizing, managing and testing business rules and logic. It brings a well-defined structure with the rigor of integrity and normalization principles to the world of business rules and logic.

The model supports business rule analysis and decision analysis techniques as defined in the BABOK®. It is similar in concept to what the relational model brings to the world of data and it provides business analysts with a new way to succeed by ensuring that critical business rules are not missed. The Decision Model provides for unambiguous creation and sustainable maintenance of business logic, often with minimal IT intervention.

This course introduces business analysts to The Decision Model and provides a practical step- by-step approach for creating them as a new standard business analysis deliverable. It is based on the book, The Decision Model: A Business Logic Framework Linking Business and Technology by Barbara von Halle and Larry Goldberg (Taylor & Francis, LLC, 2009).

This course provides ways to improve and simplify business process models as well as an approach to decomposing business policies, rules, and related statements into reusable pieces of business logic. This model is also an important artifact for improving data quality and supports compliance with regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley.

Objectives

• Create The Decision Model which provides a simplistic business friendly view of complex business rules
• Understand when and how to utilize The Decision Model
• Show how The Decision Model simplifies Business Processes Models
• Prioritize business decisions based on business impact
• Explain to business and technical audiences the benefits and concepts of The Decision Model as a new kind of deliverable
• Discuss the important differences between The Decision Model and previous techniques
• Build skeletal and detailed decision models
• Conduct validation of decision models against integrity principles
• Encourage business creativity in discovering optimum decision model content
• Conduct decision modeling sessions in an iterative fashion

Student Profile

This course is designed for business analysts, business stakeholders, business stewards, project managers, system enterprise architects involved with the elicitation, management and/or automation of business rules and logic.

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites to attend this course, but we recommend that students understand the concepts of workflow modeling.

Course Materials

Each student will receive a copy of the course documentation prepared by Netmind.

Methodology

Engaging and interactive course. Our instructors teach all course materials using the demonstrative method; the participants learn new concepts through exercises and real application practices.

Exercises and workshops can be done with paper and pencil. Students will have access to downloadable decision modeling templates for use after class.

Certification

This course is included in our Business Analysis Certification Program. By attending this course, students earn credit towards the BA Associate and BA Certified certifications, as well as credit towards the Business Rules Badge.

Additionally, students will earn 14 credit hours for their attendance.

Accreditation

A certificate of attendance will be issued to students who attend the course for at least 75% of the duration.

Course Outline