9 hours ago
The curious CFO: CT Johnson on listening and learning
One might not expect a chief financial officer to quote a 19th-century humourist when reflecting on their career to date, but for CT Johnson of Catholic Healthcare, Mark Twain said it best.
'It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble; it's what you know for sure that just ain't so,' Johnson quotes.
The words ring true for a leader who says his ability to stay curious and keep an open mind has made all the difference.
'Living and working in different countries taught me that people don't think the way you believe they do,' he says.
'If you're not listening to people, or not trying to understand the way they think, you can end up in so much trouble.'
One of many sliding doors moments came early in Johnson's career, when he received some candid feedback on his career prospects.
'One of my partners said I talked too much to be an auditor,' he recalls with a grin.
'I got moved over to the professional services side, and one of the things I gravitated towards was transformation and turnarounds.'
CT Johnson is CFO at Catholic Healthcare
From there, Johnson's career took him to technology startups in the United States, a family office in Russia and a stint in China.
This career trajectory, he explains, wasn't guided by an ambition to become a CFO, but rather to do the type of work he was most drawn to.
'For me, it hasn't been about particular titles,' he says.
'It's been about particular challenges and the roles that allowed me to tackle them. The great thing about the CFO role is that it tends to have its fingers in a lot of pies. You can decide how you want to define it. I really like that part of it.'
It's this very notion that surprised Johnson the most when he took up his first CFO role. He didn't expect to be given so much leeway, and the challenge to define his own path — rather than have it laid out for him — was one he welcomed.
The further he progressed, the clearer he became on the type of financial leader he wanted to be.
'In my mind, there are generally two flavours of CFO,' he says.
'You have really technical people who are detailed on regulations. They're very good in stable situations where clever strategies around the rules can make a big difference.
'Then you have those who are more operational, with the experience and the personality to want to dig into and fix a financial problem, which often has a non-financial source.
'I gravitated towards the latter quite early in my career.'
Johnson admits he was also surprised by the degree to which personal relationships and human interactions defined the success or failure of what he did.
But his thirst for learning kept him in good stead as he honed his ability to connect with others, particularly outside of finance, in order to be a more effective CFO.
'You can't just lay down the law and tell people what to do,' he explains.
'You need to listen to, speak with and learn from them. Everyone loves when someone comes to them and wants to learn. I think my curiosity has helped me build many important relationships.
'That's also why I've enjoyed jumping between industries. In my current role, I spend a lot of time with our chief property officer because it's by far the biggest part of our balance sheet. I also spend a lot of time with the chief people officer to understand industrial relations. I have to learn things, and I love that.'
Since becoming CFO of Catholic Healthcare, Johnson has been spearheading a major IT transformation program to help the company evolve in the ever-changing aged care sector.
'It's about automating many of those tasks so we can dedicate more time to care,' he says.
'We can also position ourselves to take advantage of artificial intelligence (AI) applications. You can't do so when the underlying data and systems aren't in a fit state. The cleaner it is, and the more it's integrated, the easier it is to add AI functions that will make it faster, less expensive and better.
The program began before generative AI was thrust into the spotlight, but Johnson is grateful they started when they did.
'Even though we wish we had started earlier and done some things better, we know where we'd be today if we hadn't done it at all,' he says.
When asked what he'd say to an aspiring CFO, Johnson is quick to respond.
'One, it pays to be good at math, because not everyone is numerate,' he says.
'Two, it pays to be able to explain things to people in a simple way. It's not about showing that you're smarter than everyone else. It's about helping someone understand what isn't natural to them or something they don't do every day.
'Finally, focus on building relationships. That's what I would tell them.'
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