Coupling and Decoupling

veryard projects > sebpc > coupling

we offer

coupling and decoupling

on this page

on other pages

index pages

education, training and skills transfer

model reviews

information and advice on methods and tools

supporting materials - including patterns

Coupling is a measure of the linkages between entities: the extent and rapidity with which changes within one entity impact on another entity, or the requisite degree of coordination between entities. Tight Coupling is contrasted with Loose Coupling.

One of the central concepts of service orientation (distribution and federation) is that of decoupling. Encapsulating some business function inside a component or service partially decouples this function from the rest of the business.

Advantages of decoupling

Coordination & clustering

Articulation

Evolution & genetic coupling

Decoupling as response to contradiction

component-based business

service-oriented architecture

component-based
software engineering

Advantages of Decoupling

veryard projects > cbse > coupling & decoupling > advantages

Here are some potential advantages of detaching a rule from its business process context.

Complexity
Hiding

In some cases, a very complex set of business processes may be governed by a relatively simple set of rules. Separating the rules from the processes allows the rules to be properly confirmed and verified, without getting into the complexity of the process.

For example, in food processing, the rules about the correct labelling of products apply across a wide range of different manufacturing and packaging processes.

Conversely, there may be relatively simple business processes that are governed by a complex array of rules.

This is often the case in financial applications, where the same basic process is used to sell everything from car insurance to pensions, but with complicated rules attached to each product.

Separation
of Concerns

Rules and procedures may be owned by different groups of managers.

For example, there may be rules adminstered by the company secretariat or by external auditors. Some commentators on the Enrol scandal have noted that accounting practice in the USA is complicated and tightly coupled to business structures and procedures, and have suggested that a more detached rules-based approach to audit might have been more successful in spotting problems earlier.

Differential
Rate of Change

The rules may evolve on a different timescale to the business process. Externally imposed rules evolve on a legislative cycle, internally generated rules evolve with business strategy; meanwhile business processes should be adjusted to the prevailing market forces and the current state of business partnerships. Even for internally generated rules, it may make sense to freeze the rules while changing the tactical implementation of the business process, or vice versa, so that the effects of the change can be properly monitored and understood.

veryard projects > sebpc > coupling