Most people don't quit good jobs to solve problems. Stefan Born did.
After almost three decades in technology and creative operations at one of the world's largest advertising networks, Stefan made a leap that many dream about but few execute: he left the security of a well-established career to join a high-growth AI startup. Today, as Vertesia's Senior Director AI Solutions he's transforming how creative teams work with digital assets by harnessing the power of artificial intelligence.
But what drives someone to make such a significant career pivot? I sat down with Stefan to understand his journey and what we can all learn from his experience.
The technologist behind the transition
Stefan is no ordinary tech leader. With decades of experience driving global business solutions and digital transformation, he's architected and scaled platforms supporting knowledge management, creative operations, workflow automation, legal compliance, and now AI orchestration. At TBWA/Omnicom, a major global advertising agency network, he helped Fortune 500 brands manage creative assets across campaigns, time zones, and stakeholders.
"Living in a very dynamic and challenging workplace environment – my entire career has been trying to bring order to the chaos," Stefan explains, revealing the consistent thread throughout his professional life.
What many don't realize is that Stefan's perspective uniquely spans both technical implementation and business strategy. He's witnessed firsthand the frustrations of creative teams when they were forced to mold their processes and workflows to the technology, and not the other way around. His job was to manage the multi-million dollar budgets allocated to solve these challenges.
Identifying the pattern: creative teams deserve better
When DAM systems become administrative burdens
What ultimately pushed Stefan toward change wasn't dissatisfaction with his role – it was recognizing a pattern that needed disruption.
"I stopped counting how many times we went through the same cycle," he reflects. "New tech, new vendor, you fall in love... and then you're back to the same starting point, over and over."
The pattern became clear: a new technology, or a new process, promised to solve all the “problems”. But the reality? Creative teams were still often utilizing (or NOT utilizing) software systems that weren’t molded to their needs. Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems – the very tools designed to organize creative work – had become administrative burdens themselves. Technology wasn’t solving the problems, even after months and years of work.
Stefan’s vision was to break free of this cycle. "DAM should not be managed by people," Stefan insists. "It should be managed by something that does the management well and does it day and night automatically."
This insight represents a fundamental shift in thinking about creative technology. While traditional DAM systems require constant human intervention – tagging, organizing, retrieving – Stefan envisioned something more intelligent that would free creative professionals to do what they do best: create. It flips Digital Asset Management on its head - it takes the management out of the equation.
From Vision to Vertesia
Stefan didn't arrive at Vertesia by accident. Since 2016, he had been contemplating how AI could transform businesses.
"I've always seen AI as an apprentice," he explains. "Something that works alongside every department, learning and adapting to make people more productive."
When he encountered Vertesia's approach to AI, particularly their solutions for AI-powered digital asset management, it aligned perfectly with his vision. Rather than retrofitting AI onto existing DAM architectures, Vertesia was building from the ground up with AI at the core.
"I've seen big players try and fail," Stefan notes. "But sometimes a small challenger startup can actually get it done." This belief – that nimble innovation could succeed where slow moving enterprises had struggled – ultimately convinced him to take the leap.
What Stefan found at Vertesia wasn't just technical alignment but a different way of working. "In the agency world, as a technologist, you often aren't given a chance to contribute in the way you want to," he reflects. "You have to prove yourself like crazy, again and again."
The startup environment offered something refreshing: less politics, more agility, and the ability to make meaningful contributions from day one.
Lessons from the other side
Stefan's transition hasn't been without challenges, as with every change, but his learnings offer valuable insights for anyone considering a similar leap:
- Understand the limitations of your current environment. "Don't condemn but understand what limited you," Stefan advises. Sometimes systems and structures, not people, create the barriers to innovation.
- Question your happiness. "Be honest with yourself – does this make you happy?" It's a simple question, but one that many professionals avoid confronting directly.
- Embrace continuous learning. "Learn to learn again. Every. Single. Day." This mindset has been crucial as Stefan navigates the fast-paced world of AI development.
- Recognize technology's true role. "Don't think tech will solve problems, but it will enable you to do so." Technology remains a means to an end – a tool for human creativity and problem-solving.
"Unless you are the Ford factory building Broncos, blueprints don't work for companies," he notes. Instead, successful systems must adapt to how people actually work, not how we think they should work.
The road ahead
As Vertesia continues to grow, Stefan's unique perspective – bridging agency experience and AI innovation – helps shape our product direction in ways that directly address the pain points he experienced firsthand.
His journey reminds us that career transitions, while daunting, can be powerful vehicles for solving problems we deeply care about. For creative teams still trapped in outdated DAM systems, manually tagging and searching for assets, Stefan's message is clear: there's a better way. And he left his comfort zone to help build it.
To see the AI-powered DAM solutions he's helping build and learn how Vertesia is transforming creative operations read our white paper.