Articles

Writing on Decision Management — the science, the philosophy, and more. Long-form essays and archived challenge solution documents from practitioners in the community.

231 articles

Optimize the Policy, Not the Forecast

August 16, 2026 · Adam DeJans Jr.

When a business outcome is generated by a policy operating under uncertainty, the most useful optimization target is often downstream economic performance rather than upstream forecast accuracy. Simulation makes it practical to tune the policy directly.

Grid Covering — Pen and Paper

August 1, 2025 · Ken Ritley

Pen and Paper solution by Ken Ritley (Bern University of Applied Sciences) for the Grid Covering challenge.

Pricing Policy — ChatGPT/DMN

December 1, 2024 · Jacob Feldman

ChatGPT/DMN solution by Jacob Feldman (OpenRules) for the Pricing Policy challenge.

Pricing Policy — OpenRules

December 1, 2024 · Alex Mirtsyn

OpenRules solution by Alex Mirtsyn (OpenRules) for the Pricing Policy challenge.

Cheryl's Birthday — CPLEX

October 1, 2024 · Alex Fleischer

CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Cheryl's Birthday challenge.

Rental Boats — Copilot

September 1, 2024 · Jacob Feldman

Copilot solution by Jacob Feldman (OpenRules) for the Rental Boats challenge.

Rental Boats — CPLEX/Java

September 1, 2024 · Guillaume Chagneau

CPLEX/Java solution by Guillaume Chagneau for the Rental Boats challenge.

Rental Boats — Excel Solver

September 1, 2024 · Guillaume Chagneau

Excel Solver solution by Guillaume Chagneau for the Rental Boats challenge.

Rental Boats — Llama/CPLEX

September 1, 2024 · Alex Fleischer

Llama/CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Rental Boats challenge.

Rental Boats — OPL/CPLEX

September 1, 2024 · Alex Fleischer

OPL/CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Rental Boats challenge.

Analyzing Employees — OPL

March 1, 2024 · Alex Fleischer

OPL solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Analyzing Employees challenge.

Family Riddle — OPL/CPLEX

January 1, 2024 · Alex Fleischer

OPL/CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Family Riddle challenge.

Family Riddle — MS Copilot

January 1, 2024 · Microsoft Copilot

MS Copilot solution by Microsoft Copilot for the Family Riddle challenge.

Coins — MiniZinc

October 1, 2023 · Florian Sikora

MiniZinc solution by Florian Sikora for the Coins challenge.

Miss Manners — CPLEX

June 1, 2023 · Alex Fleischer

CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Miss Manners challenge.

Grid of Bulbs — Python

May 1, 2023 · Julien Pradier

Python solution by Julien Pradier (IBM) for the Grid of Bulbs challenge.

Grid of Bulbs — OPL/CPLEX

May 1, 2023 · Alex Fleischer

OPL/CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Grid of Bulbs challenge.

Permit Eligibility — Oracle

March 1, 2023 · Charlotte Bouvy & Martijn Tromm

Oracle solution by Charlotte Bouvy & Martijn Tromm (Rabobank) for the Permit Eligibility challenge.

Where is Gold? — DT5GL

June 1, 2021 · Jack Jansonius

DT5GL solution by Jack Jansonius for the Where is Gold? challenge.

Where is Gold? — GAMS

June 1, 2021 · Alireza Soroudi

GAMS solution by Alireza Soroudi for the Where is Gold? challenge.

Where is Gold? — IBM ODM

June 1, 2021 · Andrew Macdonald

IBM ODM solution by Andrew Macdonald for the Where is Gold? challenge.

Where is Gold? — JSR331

June 1, 2021 · Jacob Feldman

JSR331 solution by Jacob Feldman (OpenRules) for the Where is Gold? challenge.

Where is Gold? — Pyomo

June 1, 2021 · Alireza Soroudi

Pyomo solution by Alireza Soroudi for the Where is Gold? challenge.

Doctor Planning — OPL

April 1, 2020 · Alex Fleischer

OPL solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the Doctor Planning challenge.

NIM Rules — IBM OPL

January 1, 2020 · Alex Fleischer

IBM OPL solution by Alex Fleischer (IBM) for the NIM Rules challenge.

Crack the Code — Python

September 1, 2019 · Jack Jansonius

Python solution by Jack Jansonius for the Crack the Code challenge.

Map Coloring — DMN

May 1, 2019 · Thierry Guerin

DMN solution by Thierry Guerin for the Map Coloring challenge.

Map Coloring — Java

May 1, 2019 · Alex Goldin

Java solution by Alex Goldin for the Map Coloring challenge.

Map Coloring — SQL

May 1, 2019 · Damir Sudarevic

SQL solution by Damir Sudarevic for the Map Coloring challenge.

Recreational Fee — DMN DRD

April 1, 2019 · Martin de Villiers

DMN DRD solution by Martin de Villiers for the Recreational Fee challenge.

Balanced Assignment — OPL

September 1, 2018 · Alex Fleischer

OPL solution by Alex Fleischer for the Balanced Assignment challenge.

Monkey Business — CPLEX

November 1, 2015 · Alex Fleischer

CPLEX solution by Alex Fleischer for the Monkey Business challenge.

Monkey Business — JSR331

November 1, 2015 · Rick Schreiber

JSR331 solution by Rick Schreiber for the Monkey Business challenge.

Collections of Cars — Corticon

September 1, 2015 · Michael Parish

Corticon solution by Michael Parish (Progress Software) for the Collections of Cars challenge.

Collections of Cars — R

September 1, 2015 · Riccardo Hertel

R solution by Riccardo Hertel for the Collections of Cars challenge.

Make a Good Burger — Corticon

June 1, 2015 · Michael Parish

Corticon solution by Michael Parish (Progress Software) for the Make a Good Burger challenge.

Who Killed Agatha? — Corticon

November 1, 2014 · Mike Parish

Corticon solution by Mike Parish (Progress Software) for the Who Killed Agatha? challenge.