SmartBuild – Smart Design for Smart Systems

What Is SmartBuild?
SmartBuild1 is the sequence of 14 steps for developing business process management (BPM) solutions
with PegaRULES Process Commander™. Each step describes how to design and build specific components.
You perform these steps and the associated tasks iteratively to deliver a fully functional solution. In short,
SmartBuild is the design and development process for PegaRULES Process Commander™ solutions
(both applications and products).
The foundation of SmartBuild is a philosophy of iterative development, object reuse, and rapid deployment,
which are all key principles of object-oriented design. But the SmartBuild philosophy extends beyond the
technology itself to the holistic concept of the smart system – that is, a system with the ability to drive (not just
record) the work. Smart systems have business-driven flows and rules that impose specialized requirements
on the design and development process. Addressing this need is an integral dimension of SmartBuild.
This combination of process and philosophy is a critical differentiator that makes it possible to deliver solutions
quickly and evolve them easily as the business dictates – in other words, how SmartBuild actively promotes
the ability to Build for ChangeTM.

What SmartBuild Isn’t – the Role of a Project Methodology

A logical design/development process and philosophy aren’t enough. The tasks of designing and building the
application components are only part of delivering a solution. You also need business requirements, project
management, documentation, and testing, as well as a range of other critical efforts. In order to delineate and
coordinate all of these aspects, most software projects employ a project methodology to structure the project
with milestones/deliverables and guide the implementation from start to finish.

SmartBuild is not a project methodology. In keeping with the open architecture of PegaRULES Process
Commander™, SmartBuild is methodology-agnostic. You follow SmartBuild steps iteratively within a project
methodology. SmartBuild neither requires nor promotes the use of a specific project methodology, deferring
the choice to project or organizational standards. It doesn’t impose its own proprietary project structure or
document templates. Instead, its component steps map smoothly to most project structures.

Why an Iterative Project Methodology Is Important

Reuse is a timesaving advantage of object-oriented design and iteration is the key to reuse. Use a project
methodology that supports the SmartBuild philosophy of iterative design/development and rapid deployment.
For maximum benefit and efficiency, the goal is to identify a “quick win” business opportunity, implement an
initial solution quickly, and evolve it incrementally. Popular project methodology options include the Rational
Unified Process® (RUP), Scrum, and Extreme Programming (XP), as well as custom variations2. Look for
guidelines that emphasize active user involvement, iterative design methods, and frequent, smaller
deliverables, rather than an old-fashioned waterfall approach.
An iterative project methodology leverages the object-oriented principle of reuse, delivers incremental and
measurable results faster, and emphasizes small deliverables based on regular managed inspection and
adjustment of requirements. Since the early 1990s, established best practice in IT environments has been to
use an iterative methodology in order to keep pace with business needs.

How SmartBuild Delivers Results Better and Faster

PegaRULES Process Commander™ comes with a purpose-built development environment and hundreds of
standard BPM-appropriate objects and rules that are ready for immediate use – no additional development
required. SmartBuild shows you when and how to best incorporate these tools and components for optimal
results. By following SmartBuild in sequence and iterating over steps where appropriate for your project, you
automatically take advantage of all the built-in design and implementation tools. SmartBuild will save you work,
your solution will be up and running quicker, and the architecture can readily accommodate business-driven
change. As the PegaRULES Process Commander™ platform evolves, your solution will naturally take
advantage of the newest technology.
1
For more information about SmartBuild, refer to the Designing Your Process Commander Application book that ships with PegaRULES
Process Commander™.
2
Pegasystems Global Services uses the Advanced Implementation Methodology (AIM).

Copyright © September 2004 Pegasystems Inc.