Business Rules Engine Vendor Evaluations Reports Published by Celent

Celent projects that insurers will spend US$350 million on new business rules engine (BRE) projects in 2004.

Today insurers are increasingly meeting pricing, underwriting and claims challenges through the deployment of a business rules engine (BRE). Established BRE vendors are actively upgrading the power and usability of their offerings. New vendors are entering the field. And it is becoming common to see "built-in" business rules functionality within rating, policy administration and claims packages.

Celent痴 latest report evaluates seven leading BRE vendors, and selects three that should be on every insurer痴 short list. The vendors evaluated in the report are AMS, Computer Associates, Corticon, Fair Isaac, ILOG, Pegasystems, and Sapiens. This report is a follow-up to Celent痴 recent strategic overview of the business process management and business rules engine space, and its business process management vendor evaluations report.

"In general, insurers should deploy a business rules engine to make decisions that are complex and/or can have a significant financial impact," commented Donald Light, senior analyst in Celent痴 insurance group and author of the report. "A BRE is also useful in many situations where rules may have to change frequently (e.g., underwriting), or where there is a high compliance risk (e.g. renewals, claims processing)"

Light continued, "The potential benefits of a business rules engine are substantial. It can create consistency. It provides a way to quickly change how decisions are made擁n response to shifting internal priorities or external competitive pressure. It can ensure compliance with increasing regulatory mandates. It provides a common language to bring operating and technology staff together. And by working with analytic and data mastery applications, a business rules engine can increase revenue (e.g., through cross-sells and upsells) and reduce expenses (e.g., by identifying fraudulent claims and making better underwriting decisions)."

For each vendor, Celent evaluates how its BRE solution fits into its product portfolio -- its compatibility and ability to integrate with various platforms, databases and legacy application; time and cost to implement; references; and a summation of value and issues. The report concludes with comparative analysis of the profiled vendors, Celent痴 picks for the vendors that should be on most insurer痴 short lists, and some concluding thoughts for insurers and vendors.

The report also includes a summary of the business value that a BRE can provide; the elements of a complete BRE solution; and projected spending levels.

The 38 page report contains 14 tables and figures. A

of Celent Communications' Property/Casualty Insurance and Life/Health Insurance research services can download the report electronically by clicking on the icon to the left. Non-members should contact info@celent.com for more information.