Creative briefs come in every shape and size. Some are brief statements on a single sheet of paper, while others fill a briefcase.

They also reflect drastically different philosophies of creativity and the politics of creation.

If I were going to classify them — and you know that is exactly what I’m going to do — I’d put them in two categories:

• Briefs that specify, by sketching out a creative answer to be fully fleshed out by the team.
• Briefs that problematize, by sketching out a productive question to be answered by the team.

I won’t pretend I don’t have a very strong personal preference, but I admit that both approaches when applied well with the right team can produce great results.