Had his father accepted a job on the Wollongong coalface Ian would have been an Australian and things may have turned out different but as it was, after completing a BA (Hons) degree in Communications and Media, Ian began his career at Saatchi & Saatchi, London in 1984. Four years later he moved on to become a creative group head at Ogilvy & Mather. Clock wipe to 1995, Australia is on the agenda again and this time the job offer is accepted. Two years at Euro RSCG and a couple of years as a freelance creative consultant act as lead up to Ian being appointed deputy creative director at Whybin Lawrence TBWA in October 2000.