Garin Bisschoff’s route into finance (and then advertising) began not in a boardroom but on a cricket pitch. Originally from South Africa, he arrived in the UK 21 years ago — “I came to the UK for a gap year and to play cricket, but quickly realised I needed to get a proper job if I was going to stay in London.”
That job was at the travel business Flight Centre — a far cry from the creative centre of excellence where he now works. Bisschoff started in the post room before being moved into finance within a couple of months. The company sponsored his professional qualifications. He later gained experience across sectors including travel, telecoms and recruitment before advertising became a calling.
It was solid grounding — but it wasn’t until he landed a commercial role at The Marketing Store that his career properly clicked.
“That was my first advertising role, which just blew my mind,” he says. “It opened my mind to what’s possible working in the creative industries — and to the role that commercial teams play. It’s not that stale, stereotypical finance function. It’s the teams that are moving and shaking and doing all the deals. It’s kind of the sexy side of finance.”
Eight years ago, Bisschoff joined BBH, where he is now a partner and CFO. What keeps him there, he says, is the pace. “I think we’re all secretly addicted to the adrenaline rush that is advertising.” Agencies move fast, he adds — far faster than many people outside the industry realise. “You realise how adaptable you need to be to be successful. With technology, pitching, clients moving — you’re constantly reassessing your offering.”
That pace fundamentally changes what finance looks like inside an agency. “From a finance point of view, you’re not just running the numbers and going through the motions,” he says. “It’s very engaging and very fast-moving.”
This is why he thinks the biggest misconception about CFOs and FDs is that the job is purely about accounting. “A lot of people just think it’s a numbers role,” he says. “But particularly in larger businesses, it’s a very diverse role that borders on a COO position.”
At BBH, Bisschoff oversees not just finance, but technology, HR, legal, property, facilities and business transformation. “Pretty much everything that sits outside of production, strategy, account management and creative comes through me,” he says. “You are really running the business — and you’re a true partner in making the best work possible.”
AI has only intensified that responsibility. Eight years ago when he started, (obviously) it wasn’t part of the picture. Now, it’s everywhere. “We’re embedding it across the business,” he says. “From language models interrogating our datasets to AI tools built into our daily workflows.”
The impact has been transformative — though not in the way many fear. “It hasn’t necessarily reduced headcount,” he explains, “but it’s made everyone a lot more efficient and effective, and able to move at a much higher pace.”
Crucially, Bisschoff believes agencies must use AI properly themselves before selling it to clients. “If we’re going to sell AI, we need to make sure it’s embedded in our business first — and done properly here before we move to that stage fully.”
Despite the commercial and operational focus, creativity remains central to his MO. Asked about favourite BBH work, Bisschoff points to Audi ‘Clowns; from earlier in his tenure — “a masterpiece”.