Work groups can be set up to support the briefing team with the development of requirements for specific subject areas. The nature of these subject areas may differ per project and per project phase. For an office building, relevant topics may be facility management, ict and the workplace concept. For a hospital project, it may be specialized rooms like surgeries, laboratories and intensive care. Some work groups will be needed right from the start of the project (e.g. on broad topics like workplace strategies), whereas others have to be set up on an on demand basis as the project evolves (e.g. on specific topics like furniture). Members of the thematic work groups should preferably be subject-matter experts, who may be internal or external experts. Ideally they will be a combination of both, because in-house experts will know all about the day-to-day operation of the client organization, while outside experts can bring in new ideas and insights from other projects. End users may also be involved in work groups that concern general topics. To be successful, it is important that the groups tasks and goals are clearly defined, otherwise work groups may start to drift. It is also important to let the groups know that they are part of a larger whole, because work groups have a tendency to regard their own topic as the most important one, thereby losing sight of the bigger picture and going too much into details. It is the task of the briefing team to integrate and coordinate the efforts of the different work groups. To make the coordination easier, it can be a good idea to have members of the briefing team chair the different work groups. If that is not possible, the briefing team should periodically review the work groups output to make sure that the results are in sync with the rest of the briefing activities.Responsibilities-Delivering input on specific subject areas (e.g. ICT, FM, sustainability) to the briefing team.-Evaluation of design proposals in relation to the work groups subject area.Members-Internal and external experts on the theme/topic at hand.-Optionally, a member of the briefing team as chair of the work group.Recommendations-Make sure that work groups understand how their input fits into the larger whole. -Define clear goals for each work group.-Periodically evaluate progress and content.-Do not allow groups to start formulating design solutions. The emphasis should be on functional requirements.-Combine internal experts (inside knowledge) with external experts (knowledge from other projects/general trends).-Involve the work groups during the design stages for the assessment of design proposals on their particular topics.