Why SBVR?
“Towards a Business Natural Language (BNL) for Financial Services” Panel
“Demystifying Financial Services Semantics” Conference
New York,13 March 2012
Donald Chapin
Chair, OMG SBVR Revision Task Force
Business Semantics Ltd
Donald.Chapin@BusinessSemantics.com
1
Why Do We Need an fBNL?
•
•
•
For the same reason we need an English or French dictionary
•
The financial business natural language already exists in all the communications
in the financial industry
•
… but the meanings can be fuzzy or not shared between authors and all the readers
To minimize ambiguity in contracts, governance documentation & regulations
•
Industry jargon needs definitions that are clear and unambiguous
•
Terms often mean different things in different contexts or communities
To have the meanings of financial industry terms in software tools that can
understand the meanings
•
To be able to extract more structured information from text documents
•
To support semantic integration of business documentation and IT data
•
To define requirements & design IT systems that implement the business meanings
• To reduce business costs of:
•
Misinterpretation of policy, data inconsistency, manual reconciliation & software misfits
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
2
Semantics of Business Vocabulary and Business Rules
• An OMG standard developed to:
• Remove ambiguity from business governance documentation, especially
regulations, policies and rules
• Improve business communication
• Delivers to the business:
• Formal Terminological Dictionary (SBVR vocabulary)
• as a cohesive set of interconnected concepts, not just a list of terms
and definitions
• Rulebook (policy, rules, etc.)
• that governs the actions of the organization.
• In business natural language
• Sufficiently formal to be used in software tools:
• For maintenance as a business asset
• To support transformation to other kinds of model
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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Using SBVR
The Business
define meanings of terms used to describe
validate, interpret,
form compliance
policies
Regulations
Best Practices
SBVR model
validate, adopt,
adapt
Vocabulary
Industry
Standard
Glossaries
Rulebook
provide content
transform into
define subset
views as
Contracts
govern
Terms and Conditions
Product/Service Specs
Internal
Financial Reports
Formal
Compliance Reports
Public
semantic anchors
(URIs of business
definitions)
Processes
Business Policies
Business Document
Specifications
use in
Specialist
Speech Community
Vocabularies
use in
Data
User Interfaces
Data Processing
Specifications
provide data specifications for
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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Speech Communities and Vocabularies
Semantic Community: Shares the meanings of concepts and guidance
French Speech Community: shares French vocabularies for shared meanings
German Speech Community: shares German vocabularies for shared meanings
English Speech Community: shares English vocabularies for shared meanings
Employees
Vocabulary includes
jargon, acronyms,
codes, form numbers ...
Specialists
Lawyers, Accountants, Engineers ...
Product and service specifiers, sales
and purchasing staff, accounts staff,
HR staff, compliance officers ...
Vocabulary is
formal, mandated
and strictly
Customers, Suppliers, Regulators,
policed
Financial Authorities ...
Parties in Legal Relationships
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Vocabulary is
business vocabulary
+ adopted subset of
practice vocabulary
Web site authors, advertising
copywriters, help desk staff. ...
Vocabulary is
informal everyday
language
Prospective customers, interested
members of the general public
Interested Parties
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
5
SBVR Terminological Dictionary entries
interest leg pays interest on notional amount of contract
IR swap
Noun concept
Verb concept
Synonym:
Synonym:
Synonym:
Definition:
interest rate swap
Industry standard definition
IR swap contract
that has been formalized
IR swap agreement
swap that has an interest rate that is exchanged for another
interest rate
Dictionary basis An agreement to exchange interest rate cash flows, based on a
specified notional amount from a fixed rate to a floating rate (or
vice versa) or from one floating rate to another.
Source:
www2.isda.org/functional-areas/research/Glossary/#i
IR swap has interest leg
Necessity:
Necessity:
vanilla IR swap
Definition:
Verb concept
Each IR swap has exactly two interest legs
Each IR swap has at least one floating interest leg
Definitional
business rules
Noun concept
IR swap that has a fixed interest leg that has the currency of the
floating interest leg of the IR swap
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
6
SBVR Rulebook Entries
Regulation
A swap dealer can rely on the written representations of a counterparty to satisfy its due
diligence requirements under the business conduct standards ...
CFTC: Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 33 / Friday, February 17, 2012 / Rules and Regulations [page 9792]
SBVR Vocabulary (of some swap dealer)
Example Business Policy:
Each swap that falls under the new CFTC business conduct rules must be transacted
under an ISDA master agreement that includes all due diligence representations
required to satisfy CFTC.
Example Business Rules that partly implement the policy:
Each swap transaction that is initiated after April 17 2012 must be transacted under an
ISDA master agreement.
Each end user swap transaction that is initiated after April 17 2012 must be transacted
under an ISDA master agreement that has a schedule that includes a representation
of eligibility that is for the end user counterparty of the ISDA master agreement.
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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How we do it today
IS Requirements
Business User
Modeler
Logical Data
model
agree
basis of
basis of
business-friendly
view of
defines
Business
Object Model
is presented to
Data
Processes
User Interfaces
Defining requirements via discussion of
a business-friendly logical data model
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Information System
Specification
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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What goes wrong?
Users thought they were talking about the business
Modelers were talking about the data
IS Requirements
agreed
Modeler
Logical Data
model
defined
basis of
basis of
business-friendly
view of
Business
Object Model
was presented to
Data
Processes
delivered to
User Interfaces
Why do we still see this so often?
Or systems that are not delivered at all?
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Information System
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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Business users should be the drivers
IS Requirements
Business User
Modeler
agree
basis of
owns/defines
transforms
is presented to
SBVR
Vocabulary
is transformed to
Logical Data
Model
basis of
Data
Processes
User Interfaces
URIs as Semantic Anchors
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Information System
Specification
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
10
SBVR Vocabulary and Data Model
SBVR Vocabulary provides definitions
Class
Class1
Class 1
Class 1
Definition:
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Ref Scheme: Attr 1
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Semantic anchor
xxxxxxxxxx
(URI)
Attr 1
Definition:
Property
xxxx that xxxxxxxx
Attr 1
Attr 2
Attr 1
xxxxx xxxxxxxxxx
URI
Attr 1 references Class 1
Attr 2
Definition:
Property
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
URI
Model
Class 1 has
Attr 2elements
require definitions
Class 1A
Definition:
Class1 that xxxx xxxxx
Class
the Class1B xxx ...
Class 1
Necessity:
Each Class1B connects
exactly two Class 2s
0..1
Necessity:
Each Class 2 is
connected by at most one
Class 1B
Etc ...
Class1B
Attr 3
Attr 4
Attr 5
0..1
URI
Definition:
Class 2
connects
2
connects▼
URI
2
Class
xxxx that xxxxxxxxxxxx
Class1A
Class1A
Class 1B connects Class 2
Class 2
Definition:
Attr 2
Class 2
URI
Class 2
Attr 6
Semantic anchors can reference them
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
11
Business Uses of SBVR
•
•
•
•
•
Governance, Risk, and Compliance
Globalization/Localization and Translation
Communication and Documentation
Document and Content Index Creation
Business integration and Performance
Improvement
• Training
• Business Language–centered Requirements for
Information Systems
For a discussion of these Use Cases see “SBVR: What is Now Possible and Why?”:
http://www.businesssemantics.com/BusinessSemanticsLtd/SBVR-WhatIsNowPossibleAndWhy.pdf
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
12
Special thanks to John Hall
for creating most of this presentation
Contact for OMG’s SBVR Specification:
Donald.Chapin@BusinessSemantics.com
Contacts for OMG’s Regulatory Compliance DSIG:
John.Hall@modelsystems.co.uk
Said Tabet (stabet@omg.org)
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
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Why SBVR?
“Towards a Business Natural Language (BNL) for Financial Services” Panel
“Demystifying Financial Services Semantics” Conference
New York,13 March 2012
Additional Slides
14
Terminological Dictionary
Conventional Dictionary
Term-based: each synonymous term has its own definition
Black
Dark
Obscure
Indistinct
Faint
Pale
Light
White
Chain of approximate synonyms
Terminological Dictionary
“black is white” in seven steps ...
Concepts-based: synonyms share the same definition
IR swap
Interest rate swap
IR swap agreement
IR swap contract
swap that has an interest rate that is
exchanged for another interest rate
Different shades of meaning, if they are important, each have their own concept definition
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
15
SBVR: Formal Terminological Dictionary
SBVR is an ISO TC 37 Terminological Dictionary –
Plus:
• Communities as context for sharing meanings and terms
• Term in a given context has exactly one meaning
• Unambiguous understanding of definitions
• Richer terminological semantics
• Multidimensional Classification
• Roles and Perspectives
• Reference Schemes
• Enriched concept relations
• Unambiguous understanding of rules
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
16
How SBVR Relates to Existing Language Resources
SBVR Business Vocabulary + Rules
=
Formal Terminological Dictionary
Business Glossary:
•
Noun Concepts, Definitions & Primary Terms
+ Taxonomy:
•
General/Specific + Whole/Part Hierarchical Concept Relationships
+ Thesaurus:
•
•
•
Synonyms, Acronyms, Abbreviations, etc. + Multilingual Terms
Verb Concepts --. Relations among Concepts around Verbs that are patterns in sentences
Individual Concepts e.g. Business Events & Business Entities
+ Additional SBVR Semantic Features:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business Communities as a context for sharing meanings and terms
Term is a given content has exactly one meaning -- shared across languages
Unambiguous Concepts -- definitions composed of adjectival phrases
Definitions, Relationships & Rules specified in formal logic
Enriched Concept Relations -- multidimensional classification, roles & perspectives
Reference Schemes for Individual Concepts
Rulebook
+ Behavioural Business Guidance:
•
Business Policies, Rules and other kinds of Guidance governing Business Actions
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
17
“Why Isn’t an Ordinary Business Glossary Enough?”
1. No “good practice” used for creating business glossaries
• Need definitions that are clear and unambiguous
• Definitions need to reflect the meanings business people use when they
write governance documentation
2. No ability to ensure each meaning is entered only once
• or to support semantic integration of multiple terminological dictionaries
3. No ability to define the same word/phrase differently in different
context
• while still ensuring that each term has only one meaning in a given
context
4. No basis for cohesion between definitions
• or conceptual integrity of the glossary as a whole
5. Does not include defined sentence patterns that have specific
meanings
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
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SBVR: business owners/authors
SBVR Vocabulary (Terminological Dictionary)
• Defines what the business is, using:
•
•
•
Noun concepts: concepts of things in or relevant to the business
Verb concepts: relationships between things
Definitional business rules: constraints on relationships and roles of things
• Enterprise-wide view:
•
Concepts have to be consistently understood across the entire business (especially if
different terms are used)
• Business owners/authors:
•
Lawyers, product/service owners, HR, accountants, marketers ...
SBVR Rulebook
•
Governs what the business does, using:
•
•
•
•
Business policies: broad intent for governance of business processes
Behavioral business rules: directly actionable, to realize policies
Defined using the business’s SBVR Vocabulary
Focused on functional areas,
•
•
E.g. product/service development, marketing, production, sales, distribution, HR, accounts
Business owners/authors:
•
Owners/managers of functional areas
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
19
Vocabularies and Data Models
• A terminological dictionary (SBVR vocabulary) is
not a logical data model:
• It provides business concepts in natural language that
are the basis of data model constructs
• Semantic anchors (URIs of SBVR vocabulary elements) can
provide traceability from business definitions to IS models
• It is the basis for design transformations to create
logical data models
• What is the concern?
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
20
The Great Leap Forward
Bachman Diagram
Interest Rate
Swap Contract
OTC Interest
Rate Option
Chen Entity-Relationship Model
Interest Rate
Swap Contract
has
has
M
N
is underlying
Interest Rate
Observable
In the 1960s, Charles Bachman introduced logical
data structure diagrams to aid database design
OTC Interest
Rate Option
1
Interest Rate
Observable
Rate Treatment
Index Tenor
By 1976, Peter Chen had developed methodology
for entity-relationship logical data modeling
Data modelers started to use business terms on their
diagrams and to discuss requirements in those terms
I can
understand
him!
IT people and business users began to
understand each other a whole lot better
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
21
The problem?
• A logical data model isn’t a model of the business:
• It’s a model of the data needed to support the business
• Its vocabulary (although it uses familiar business terms) isn’t a
business vocabulary:
• It’s the vocabulary of the data
• The model and the vocabulary are controlled by the modeler,
whose focus is often on getting an IS specification that:
• Complies with the standards (UML, XML, Xpath ...) built into the
modeling tools
• Will be implementable with available technology
• As the data specification becomes more detailed:
• Business users understand less of the “nuts and bolts” ...
... but the familiar-seeming vocabulary lulls them into expectations
... that turn out not to be satisfied by the systems delivered
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
22
SBVR Vocabulary and Data Model (1)
Class
Data model
(in UML Class Model notation)
Data modeling tools can support the
model diagram with definitions of
each element (class, property,
association, etc.
These definitions are usually
developed element by element in
informal text with hyperlinks between
named elements.
If you start out by defining a data
model, you can create these
definitions
But if you have already developed
a business vocabulary in SBVR ...
Class1
Class 1
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
Property
Attr 1
Attr 2
Attr 1
xxxxx xxxxxxxxxx
Property
Attr 2
xxxxxxxxxx
Class
Class1A
Class1B
Attr 3
Attr 4
Class1A
Attr 5
0..1
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Class 1
0..1
Class 2
connects
2
connects▼
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
2
Class
Class 2
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
Class 2
Attr 6
23
SBVR Vocabulary and Data Model (2)
SBVR Vocabulary already provides definitions
Class
Class1
Class 1
Class 1
Definition:
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Ref Scheme: Attr 1
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
Attr 1
Definition:
Property
xxxx that xxxxxxxx
Attr 1
Attr 2
Attr 1
xxxxx xxxxxxxxxx
Attr 1 references Class 1
Attr 2
Definition:
Property
Attr 2
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Class1A
Class 1 has Attr 2
Class 1A
Definition:
Class1 that xxxx xxxxx
Class
Class1B
Attr 3
Attr 4
Class1A
Attr 5
0..1
Class 1B connects Class 2
Definition:
the Class1B xxx ...
Class 1
Necessity:
Each Class1B connects
exactly two Class 2s
0..1
Necessity:
Each Class 2 is
connected by at most one
Class 1B
Class 2
Definition:
Class 2
connects
2
connects▼
2
Class
Class 2
xxxx that xxxxxxxxxxxx
Class 2
Attr 6
Etc ...
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
24
SBVR Vocabulary and Data Model (4)
• A business’s SBVR vocabulary provides definitions that are:
• More formal than those typically developed in data modeling tools
• In the business language of the users
• The SBVR definitions are elements of a coherent business
model – the SBVR vocabulary:
• They are not written piecemeal to support data model elements
• The SBVR vocabulary drives development:
• First, the users write what they mean
• Then, the IS modelers transform it into IS models
(in practice there is to-and-fro development – but business intent
should drive the process)
• The transformation is usually straightforward, but requires
decisions on how business concepts will be modeled in data.
• SBVR concepts might be modeled (in a data model) as classes,
attributes, values, states ...
• Some will probably belong in documentation model
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
25
A self-defeating optimization
• There is an approach that avoids a transformation
from SBVR vocabulary to data model:
• constrain the business vocabulary to be only what will be in
a data model:
i.e. develop a logical data model but document it in SBVR
Structured English.
• Why is this not a good idea?
• It simply perpetuates (with a different notation) what we
have been doing for the past 40 years – and getting wrong
with depressing frequency
• There are standards much better than SBVR for data
modeling – more mature, with immeasurably more
practitioner experience and a much wider range of tools –
in UML, XML and Xpath
• SBVR is best used for its intended purpose: defining
businesses by means of vocabulary and rules.
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
26
SBVR Formal Terminological Dictionaries
Provide Semantic Anchors for Data
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
27
IT Uses of SBVR Terminologies & Behavioral Guidance
• Document Browse and Search and Text Analytics
• Business Intelligence and Data Analytics
• Data Architecture, Management and Quality
• Message-Based Middleware Architecture
• Business Process Management Systems
• Advanced Intelligence Capabilities
• Rule-based Application Software Development, Generation
and Configuration
• Software Localization
• Reverse Engineering Software to Business Requirements
• Software Assurance
For a discussion of these Use Cases see “SBVR: What is Now Possible and Why?”:
http://www.businesssemantics.com/BusinessSemanticsLtd/SBVR-WhatIsNowPossibleAndWhy.pdf
© Business Semantics / Model Systems
Demystifying Financial Services Semantics, 13 March 2012
28