They may not be in same stratosphere as CEOs but these two can afford to shout the bar next time you run into them. Plus, news from the Health Workforce Taskforce, Hola Health and the ANMF.
Former CSL chief financial officer Joy Linton and Resmed’s long-term incumbent CFO Brett Sandercock have made it to the list of the 20 highest-paid CFOs in the country, according to a new report from OpenDirector.
Ms Linton, who retired from the CFO role in October 2025 and is now the company’s strategic advisor, lobbed up in seventh place on OD’s “highest reported pay” list at $5,568,069, a 1% decrease in her pay from the previous year.
Mr Sandercock was hard on her heels in eighth place with a reported salary of $5,381,965.
In terms of actual take-home pay – what a CFO is estimated to have taken home in cash, with short-term and long-term incentives – Ms Linton was 12th ($4.431 million) and Mr Sandercock 19th ($3.617 million).
The pair were the only healthcare representatives on either list, both of which were topped by Macquarie’s CFO, Alex Harvey, who also retired at the end of 2025, with a highest reported pay of $10.1 million and a staggering actual pay of $11.4 million.
CFO remuneration increased modestly since last year’s OD report.
Median pay for CFOs in S&P/ASX 200 companies rose 6.5% to $1.71 million, while S&P/ASX 300 CFO median pay increased 3.4% to $1.40 million.
“This represents a stronger outcome than the prior survey period, when S&P/ASX 200 CFO pay rose just 0.8% and S&P/ASX 300 CFO pay showed no growth,” said the report.
CFO pay growth nevertheless lagged CEO remuneration increases. CEO median pay rose 10.1% in the S&P/ASX 200 and 9.8% in the S&P/ASX 300. Across both indices, CFO median pay is approximately 44% of CEO median pay.
Compared with economic measures — including the Wage Price Index increase of 3.4% (September 2025) and inflation of 3.8% — CFO pay growth is tracking wage movements rather than exceeding them.
Health Workforce Taskforce
A new chair and deputy chair of the federal government’s Health Workforce Taskforce have been named.
Dr Shirley Bowen, director-general of Western Australia’s Department of Health has been appointed as chair.
Dale Webster, secretary of Tasmania’s Department of Health is deputy chair.
The HWT provides advice and recommendations to the Health Ministers Meeting and Health Chief Executives Forum and develops and oversees the implementation of strategic priorities to “ensure there is a sufficient, sustainable and productive current and future health workforce to meet the health needs of Australians”.
Both chair and deputy chair are state/territory members of the HCEF and are appointed for two-year terms.
Related
Speaking of CFOs …
There are two new ones on the scene.
Woolworths-backed telehealth platform Hola Health has appointed former interim CFO of Novatti Group Hayden Vowell as its new CFO.
Mr Vowell has also served as senior director of commercial finance at Culture Amp.
“Hola Health’s mission to make quality healthcare accessible resonates strongly with me personally and professionally,” he said.
“I see an opportunity to scale up our financial foundations that support both rapid growth and long-term sustainability.
“I look forward to partnering with the executive team to enhance our financial performance, deepen commercial partnerships and unlock new avenues for investment in better outcomes for customers and partners.”
According to the company, Hola Health now serves more than a million customers across Australia and has delivered over two million telehealth consultations nationwide, all while maintaining an average wait time of under 15 minutes.
“Hola Health’s recent growth has been partially driven by expanding its enterprise business,” said the company announcement.
“What began as a consumer-facing telehealth platform has evolved to become a partner of choice for employers, insurers and health organisations looking to embed virtual care into their own offerings. Some of Hola’s partners now include Woolworth’s Healthylife, Bupa, Cricket Australia, and HotDoc.”
Meanwhile, Amplia Therapeutics has appointed Bio101 Financial Advisory director Hamish George as its new CFO, effective from today.
It’s a return to the role for Mr George, who last held the job from October 2021 to September 2023.
Other appointments
Catelyn Richards, until recently the president of Climate Action Nurses, has been appointed as the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s federal assistant secretary.
She has been ANMF’s first ever climate change officer for the past year.
“It’s a great privilege to be appointed to represent our ANMF member nurses, midwives and carers at the national level,” Ms Richards said.
“We know that our nursing and midwifery professions are facing a number of significant challenges, particularly chronic workforce shortages and their unsustainable workloads.
“But there’s also enormous potential for the ANMF to develop future-facing solutions, which is why I will work hard to ensure our members have a voice in helping shape the national health and aged care reform agenda.”
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has named Amy Young and Anne-Marie Rushby group heads.