The Creative Brief as a Tool for Organizational Management
Posted Tuesday November 24th, 2015 by Peter Kozodoy in Analysis + Strategy.Typically, the creative brief has been a guiding device for marketers, but it can also be a fantastic tool for organizational management. Here's how to use creative briefs in your everyday business strategies.
The creative brief is a document that, to a certain extent, answers the 5 W's and the H: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How? Every initiative that passes through GEM is assigned via creative brief, in which we distill the project down to its core. What is it that the client wants? When will it be delivered? What assets are needed to complete the project? Why is it being done? What does it hope to accomplish, and how will we accomplish it?
When properly written, the creative brief increases efficiency and efficacy across the entire team. For a creative environment, the brief's structure is perfect for keeping ideas and talent firmly within the bowling lane boundaries, where it is easy to imagine that tangents are easy to come by. However, using the structure of a brief can also lend well to finance, accounting, operations, sales, and strategic decision-making across the entire organization.
To use a creative brief for your organizational management, first craft the brief's questions to get to the heart of the issue. Use the 5 W's and the H as a starting point from which you can create specific questions for your brand and industry. Remember that this is the most critical step; if you ask the right questions, you'll get the right answers.
If each department requires its own set of questions, draft those with specificity as well. The true power of the creative brief is in creating boundaries, but make sure you don't limit creative thinking by being too restrictive. This careful balance deserves some time and attention, but once drafted, your creative briefs will serve for many months and even years to come.
Although creative briefs can become quite specific, some can be left to address a broad spectrum, particularly if they pertain to high-level strategic thinking. For instance, Mike Michalowicz, author of the must-read The Pumpkin Plan, wrote a creative brief for his employees to follow whenever they confronted a decision-making situation. It consisted of only three questions:
1. Does this decision further distinguish our company's uniqueness?
2. Does this decision further serve our best clients?
3. Does this decision maintain or enhance profitability?
Most importantly, the fact that these questions exist, and that they were communicated to his team in the first place, marks the presence of a great organization that asks the right questions. So, go forth and use the creative brief as a tool for organizational management. If you ask the right questions, you'll get the right answers.
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