Havas unlocks unlimited creativity with Adobe Firefly and Adobe Stock

At Havas, the power of creativity connects 23,000 people across more than 100 countries. Creatives at this leading global communications group are separated by miles, languages, and cultures, yet they share a common passion — a relentless pursuit of inspiration.

Vikki Ward has been leading creative teams within Havas since 2011, witnessing the power that collaboration has in developing meaningful work for clients spanning industries from healthcare to entertainment. As the European chief of operations for Havas Health and Havas Creative Network, she’s passionate about finding new processes and product solutions that give teams more of the one resource they need most — time.

Central to Havas’s strategy to streamline workflows was implementing Adobe Creative Cloud for Enterprise Pro Edition. It became the foundation for an enhanced workflow that gave Havas the ability to make an even more meaningful difference to brands, businesses, and people.

“Creative Cloud with Stock and Firefly allows our teams to expedite processes, so they have the space to think, develop ideas, and craft campaigns that have longevity, meaning, and connectivity,” Ward says.

Creativity at the speed of modern business

Imagination is an integral part of the creative process. That’s where big ideas evolve into fully realized content and campaigns. The teams at Havas have unlimited access to Adobe Stock standard assets, including 300 million royalty-free standard images, illustrations, vectors, templates, and 3D assets. Plus, more than 1 million new, high-quality assets are added every week from global contributors. And with features powered by Adobe Firefly in Adobe Creative Cloud apps, the team can use generative AI technology to make that asset library virtually limitless. All without leaving their app-specific workflows, whether it’s in Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Stock, or Adobe Express.

When it comes to creating a truly unique vision, that limitless capability is key. Nick Wavish, AI creative technologist at Havas London, and Dave DiNuzzo, content director at Havas Red US, work on different teams, on different continents, and serve vastly different clients. Yet their individual creative challenges are solved with the capabilities of Firefly.

Adobe Firefly images generated by Nick Wavish, AI Creative Technologist, Havas.

Gone are the days of spending hours searching for that perfect image. “For creative departments, it was one of the things we’d spend the most time on. Often, we’d find something that was just 70% the right image, which really affects the creative idea,” says Wavish. “With Firefly, we’re able to print that thought, that imagination, straight to the screen and go, ‘Yes, that’s exactly what I’m thinking.’”

“If you need a picture of a dermatologist doing yoga in a desert, there is not a stock site on Earth that has that image,” says DiNuzzo. “Rather than purchasing multiple stock images, compositing them all together, and spending a lot of time on that, we can use Firefly to generate these images. We’ve found a lot of efficiency on that front.”

Adobe Firefly images generated by Dave DiNuzzo, Head of Content, Havas Red US.

Unique ideas, happy clients

DiNuzzo, Wavish, and their colleagues have found success using Firefly within tools they were already familiar with, like Photoshop. Creating and editing content has been more effortless for all teams since the introduction of Firefly models. Generative Expand and Generative Fill, Firefly tools within Photoshop, allow for adding or removing elements from assets with the click of a button. Edits that once took five or six hours now take a fraction of the time.

While the process is more efficient, it has also become more fun. Firefly empowers teams to experiment with their approach to different projects and be less tempted by perfection. Team member camaraderie increases as they learn from each other and discover the best ways to use these new tools.

"I can’t overplay the enthusiasm teams have for Firefly’s capabilities and the fact that these tools are at their fingertips," Ward says. “Creatives who learn how to use AI properly have the potential to literally go stratospheric. There will be no end to what they can do in a safe, secure environment.”

Adobe Firefly images generated by Nick Wavish, AI Creative Technologist, Havas.

Compliance, security, and responsible AI

While compliance and security aren’t usually the hottest topics around the water cooler, they are critical for any creative agency. Remaining compliant takes administrative time, multiple stakeholder approvals, and sometimes a complete do-over, which can disrupt processes.

When licensing is limited, unavailable, or outside of the budget, it can send the entire team back to the drawing board. With Stock, all assets are royalty-free, with enterprise-grade extended licensing, and indemnification, saving time and money for Havas agencies and clients. And Adobe’s commitment to the responsible development of generative AI ensures that Firefly is safe for commercial use. It’s built upon an AI Ethics framework that starts with responsible and ethical training models, ensures transparency with content credentials, and always keeps the integrity and originality of creators in mind.

“We need to be compliant, and we are assured of that with everything we’re doing within the Creative Cloud ecosystem,” Ward says. “It’s fantastic because it means that we’re covered, but not at the expense of creativity.”

Adobe Firefly images generated by Nick Wavish, AI Creative Technologist, Havas.

Growth in collaboration and innovation

Since removing administrative roadblocks and simplifying processes, Havas’s creative teams have become more inventive and discovered new ways to work together. As Ward says, “admin, be gone, creativity, just carry on.” They can learn and experiment with AI in a safe, compliant environment and deliver better client results.

“Everyone will eventually see the joy of generative AI, how it can improve your life and give you better ideas,” Wavish says. “Human-based thinking is just going to become greater.”

Increase productivity with Creative Cloud for Enterprise Edition 4 today. Learn more about Adobe Firefly for Enterprise.