A technique and associated mechanism that guides the user through a set of questions relating to operation rules used in the design of Service Oriented Architecture Systems (SOAs). The questions are related to key aspects of a solution—security, maintenance frequency, usage demand/performance and complexity. Preferably, the questions are yes-or-no questions. Based on the answers provided, an appropriate path will be selected categorize into an appropriate category. The category of the rule will require, or at least suggest, the SOA component into which the rule will be implemented when it is implemented by the SOA designer. the technique is technology specific agnostic and helps in selecting an appropriate tool/platform in a standard and consistent manner.