Sarah Petty
CFO, Leader & Founder.
Helping business owners lead, grow and build financial success.
The path to CFO & Founder
My career didn’t follow a straight line, but it did follow the numbers.
I started out in corporate finance, working alongside top CEOs and leadership teams inside some of the world’s most recognisable organisations including GE, Kraft Foods, Lion, Bega, Kellogg’s and Wesfarmers.
That experience gave me a clear view of what strong financial leadership looks like when it’s done well, and the consequences when it isn’t.
What I saw outside the corporate world was different. Business owners were growing revenue and working hard, yet still carrying the pressure personally, often unsure about cash, profit and whether the business was truly working for them. Too often, the owner was the last to be paid and the first to absorb the risk.
That’s why I founded Olive Business Partners.
Today, I bring CFO-level thinking into growing businesses in a practical, and human way, helping owners make confident decisions, build financially strong businesses and pay themselves properly for the role they’re in.
When 99% of Australian businesses are small businesses, access to CFO-level thinking shouldn’t be limited to corporate boardrooms.
Speaking, podcasting, and presenting
With experience speaking on stages, podcasts and virtual platforms, there’s nothing I love more than sharing what I’ve learned from working with businesses at every stage, from early-stage startups figuring things out as they go, to global, multi-billion-dollar organisations (sometimes still figuring things out as they go!).
I’m often invited to talk about growing businesses without chaos, building leadership capability as you scale, and creating a business (or career) that actually supports you. I bring a CFO’s lens to these conversations, minus the boring charts and the finance jargon no one actually wants.
What people tend to comment on most is that I share the real stories, the moments that went well, the ones that didn’t, and the lessons that only come from being in the room when decisions are made. I use humour where it helps, because finance and leadership don’t need to be heavy to be taken seriously.
Whether it’s a keynote, panel, podcast or webinar, my goal is to leave the audience clearer, more confident and better equipped to lead their business or career like a CEO.
