A short brief gives the conversation something concrete to improve. You can leave unknowns as questions.
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Task and current process: What happens today? What is repetitive, slow or difficult?
Desired result: What should someone receive at the end? How will you know it is good enough?
Input and volume: What starts the task? What formats, frequency and approximate volume are involved?
People and review: Who uses the result? Who checks it? Who can approve a consequential action?
Existing tools: Which systems, files or accounts need to connect?
Data and access: What information is involved? Who may see it? Where should it be retained or deleted?
Workflow draft: List the steps from input to reviewed result. Name likely building blocks and mark unverified assumptions.
Exceptions: What should happen when something is unreadable, missing, duplicated or unavailable?
Delivery preference: Setup and handoff, help with configuration, or an agreed managed service?
Commercial assumptions: Expected usage, setup scope, recurring responsibilities and any budget constraints.
Success measure: Baseline time, quality or turnaround, and the improvement you would like to test.
Open questions and next decision: What needs to be learned before committing?
Save a reviewed version
Check the summary before it becomes a project brief. A conversation and an email address do not establish ownership of a customer account. Pat needs the appropriate authorized account context to save commercial planning information there.
A planning brief does not approve a quote, begin paid work or create a payment. See estimates and value.