HOW
JANCO THERON
Creative Director, Brand Systems & AI-Driven Creative Operations. 15 years building work that moves the business.
I
A USER MANUAL
Not a cover letter. A user manual for anyone considering working with me.
WORK*
If it's a fit or you just like my style let's talk.
+
15 YEARS
+
MAKE THE WORK MOVE
+
DIRECT
+
WARM
+
SYSTEMS THINKER
+ 15 YEARS + MAKE THE WORK MOVE + DIRECT + WARM + SYSTEMS THINKER
THE SHORT VERSION
I lead creative with a point of view. And I do it with people, not at them.
A colleague once wrote that working with me wasn't just a pleasure it was a learning experience. That's what I'm aiming at, every time.
If you want a Creative Director who shows up, takes ownership, ships work that moves the business, and leaves the team better than they found it read on.
HOW I COMMUNICATE
Async-first.
Direct always.
Human throughout.
I default to written communication a good doc beats a meeting nine times out of ten. When we do meet, I come prepared, I say what I think, and I move fast.
If you want a Creative Director who shows up, takes ownership, ships work that moves the business, and leaves the team better than they found it read on.
WHAT BRINGS OUT MY BEST WORK
01
A CLEAR PROBLEM AND ROOM TO SOLVE IT
Give me the brief, the constraint, the business goal then trust me. I do my best work when I'm not second-guessed mid-process but held accountable to the outcome.
02
A ROOM WORTH BEING IN
I work best alongside people who care about the work, about each other, about getting it right. I synthesize a room full of ideas into a direction everyone can rally behind.
03
DECISIONS THAT ACTUALLY GET MADE
Fast feedback loops matter. I thrive where things ship, iterations happen, and "let's circle back" isn't a way of saying no without saying no.
WHAT SLOWS ME DOWN
Design by committee.
I'm not precious about feedback. Give me a strong point of view, not a crowd.
When there's no clear decision-maker and everyone has an opinion, quality suffers and so does the team. I work best with one accountable stakeholder on the business side and clear creative authority on mine.
HOW I SHOW UP
I listen before I touch anything.
01 LISTEN
When I join a new project or company, I audit first the brand, the work, the systems, the gaps. More importantly, I talk to the people who know where the problems actually are.
02 ALIGN
I get in a room with the real stakeholders, understand what success looks like for them specifically, and build the creative strategy around that not my personal aesthetic preferences.
03 MOVE
Once I know where we're going, I move fast. Not because speed is the goal because clarity is. Once you have it, speed follows.
WHAT SLOWS ME DOWN
Design by committee.
I'm not precious about feedback. Give me a strong point of view, not a crowd.
When there's no clear decision-maker and everyone has an opinion, quality suffers and so does the team. I work best with one accountable stakeholder on the business side and clear creative authority on mine.
HOW
I
SHOW
UP
HOW I GIVE FEEDBACK
In a creative review, I'll ask what you were going for before I tell you what I think. Not because I don't have a point of view I do but because good feedback lands better when it connects to your intent.
My goal in a review isn't just better work. It's that you walk out knowing more than you walked in with.
I ask questions before I give answers.
HOW I GIVE FEEDBACK
I'm not a pair of hands. I'm a thinking partner.
I'll tell you when I disagree with the brief, flag when the strategy doesn't support the creative, and push back when I think we're solving the wrong problem. Early and directly not passive-aggressively in the work.
And for the people I lead: I measure my leadership by what my team can do after working with me, not just by what we shipped.
WHO I'M NOT RIGHT FOR
I also work best where people's ideas are genuinely heard. Not just my ideas. Everyone's. If the culture punishes pushback or shuts down the room before it's had a chance to think that's not an environment where I'll do my best work.
If brand is an afterthought at your company, we'll clash.
I've worked in places where design is a cost centre. I know what that looks like. If creative sits at the end of the process executes someone else's strategy, doesn't have a seat at the table, is measured by output volume I'm not the right person.
THE THING THAT'S NOT ON MY RESUME
Every brand problem I solve, I'm also building the infrastructure around it the template, the process, the repeatable framework that means we don't have to solve it again. The system is part of the creative to me.
But the system I care about most is the team. If you've ever worked with someone whose approach made each individual on the team better at their job not just the output, but the person that's what I'm aiming at.
I'm a systems thinker wearing a creative's clothes.
WHAT I BRING
15
Years across SaaS, tech & fintech
15 years across SaaS, technology, and financial services. A track record of building brand systems that scale, campaigns that convert, and creative operations that don't fall apart when the team grows.
I also build AI-enabled creative infrastructure not as a trend, as a tool. I've cut content production cycles 10x and reduced per-piece costs 50% without sacrificing quality or burning out the people doing the work. I don't just run creative. I connect it to the business and I bring the team with me when I do.
10x
Faster content cycle
50%
Reduced per-piece cost
$1M+
Campaign revenue
IF THIS SOUNDS LIKE THE KIND OF CREATIVE DIRECTOR YOUR TEAM NEEDS