From accounting to saving lives: The story of John Lynch

His first job on leaving school was an accounting cadetship with the Zinc Corporation in Broken Hill. But an employment condition also required him to spend his nights studying accountancy at the local TAFE college, cementing his future career path. 

“The course was over four years, but with marriage, children, coaching football and other interests, it took me five years to complete,” Mr Lynch recalls. 

After seven years at the Zinc Corporation, he decided it was time to move on and explore other options within accounting and business generally. 

“I was lucky enough to get a job at a family company as an in-store accountant, but I also become very involved in the general management of the store,” Mr Lynch says.

“It was wonderful, because as a local Broken Hill store we had a large turnover, plenty of variety and volume and employed several staff.”

His next career move was into the Mines Dental Clinic, which would eventually lead to an exciting pivot into the Royal Flying Doctor Service, where he remained for 32 years, until retirement.

Mr Lynch joined the RFDS at its Broken Hill Base as an accountant in 1986.

“My roles following the Zinc Corporation probably prepared me for the ultimate role with the RFDS. First was with a family company in retail, and then the Mines Dental Clinic,” Mr Lynch tells Public Accountant. 

“All three roles ensured there was an understanding and a strong foundation that accountability, transparency and appropriate stewardship was essential as they related to a family, a fund for the benefit of workers, and finally with the RFDS - for the community, government funders and donors, both private and corporate, with equal recognition for all without regard to quantum.”

His move to the RFDS opened new doors, prompting him to pick up studies in health administration, which earned him a Bachelor of Health Science Management. 

“That added to my accounting, enhancing my general management skills,” Mr Lynch says.

It wasn’t long until he become an integral part of the RFDS and, in 1991, his hard work and loyalty was rewarded with a transfer to chief financial officer of RFDS Central Operations, a role that required him to leave Broken Hill for Adelaide. 

“I was never really that standard accountant and never wanted to be necessarily in that domain of formal accounting. I always wanted to be more in general management and that’s exactly what I was offered in my roles,” Mr Lynch says. 

He explains that working for the RFDS was a real privilege. 

“You interact with so many people. The staff are likeminded in wanting to make things better and to provide services to people who may not have access to what we take for granted,” Mr Lynch adds.

“I wasn’t a nurse or a doctor or a pilot, but that didn’t make any difference. It was always regarded as a strong team and I like to think of it as a family as the team included many volunteers and people who were strong advocates for our organisation.”

For Mr Lynch, the most important element of his job was to ensure that those that needed help, received it.  

“I always maintain that everyday you got out of bed you knew someone in the organisation would make a difference to somebody, somewhere, sometime during that day. That’s a very powerful way to get out of bed and a wonderful reason to head to work,” he says. 

It was this love for his work and his admirable talent for numbers that earned Mr Lynch the appointment of CEO in 2000. And, just like his previous roles, this one too saw Mr Lynch perform miracles with numbers.

In fact, at one point the RFDS owed the bank $24 million, before Mr Lynch led his team out of the debt. 

“It was the year I became CEO and we had three aircraft that were having maintenance issues which led to an unavailability together with added costs. However, to replace them we needed funds and unfortunately, we didn’t have them and we could not obtain government funding,” he says. 

“Our management team put together a proposal that we should consider going to tender for finance from the banks and our board to their credit endorsed this proposal. 

“This allowed us to purchase new aircraft, which brought lower direct variable costs for each hour flown and a determination to reduce debt, which led to strict expenditure guidelines and pleasingly we cleared the debt within six years.” 

But he refuses to take much credit. 

“Credit should go to our management team, the board, ANZ and Pilatus, the aircraft manufacturer who built the PC12,” Mr Lynch says. 

However, credit is always given where credit is due, and upon his retirement Mr Lynch received the ultimate reward - a purpose-built aeromedical jet now carries his name. 

“This was indeed the greatest honour of my working life. You don’t expect nor seek such reward or recognition. In fact, I presented the board with several names for our first twin engine Pilatus PC24 jet and the board advised me they would decide later,” he adds.

“You don’t achieve anything in life on your own and I have been wonderfully supported throughout by my wife Anita and our two sons and their wives, Daniel and Jess and Jake and Bridgette and later the grandchildren, Eliza, Scarlett, Ruby, Jaxon, Benji and Ted.

“We as a family were very proud, excited and humbled by the whole occasion.” 

However, the honours did not stop there. Earlier this year, Mr Lynch was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to the community through emergency response organisations.

Now technically retired, Mr Lynch still holds many critical, humanitarian roles. 

He is on the board of Foundation Broken Hill, the chairman of the Country Fire Service Foundation, a board member of the Flinders and Upper North Local Health Network, and 

chairman of the Finance and Performance Committee Flinders and Upper North LHN. 

“There are days when I think I have bitten off more than I can chew. But I enjoy it. I enjoy the challenge and I enjoy the opportunity to give back.” Mr Lynch says.

“I look back at my working life and I consider that I was privileged to have the opportunities I had. Anita and I also strongly believe that Broken Hill gave us both our individual and collective starts.”

And to this day, Broken Hill remains special to Mr Lynch and his family.

“Broken Hill is special to us. Whatever start we got Broken Hill provided. Being on the Foundation Broken Hill gives me a chance to give back. We go back regularly, because we want to be involved for as long as we can,” he says. 

As for his love of numbers, Mr Lynch shares an interesting insight. 

“I do love numbers and interpreting what they may say and what they might forecast if you build in some what ifs. I remember one-night waking and the clock read 2:04am and I thought how good is that. The minutes are the hour squared. This led me to ponder on how it continues to 3:09, 4:16, 5:25, 6:36 and 7:49, but nothing after that,” Mr Lynch says with a laugh. 

“I love playing with numbers.”

But, setting aside his career successes and brilliant mind, Mr Lynch tells us there is nothing average about his downtime. He has six grandchildren and a traditional Sunday golfing date with his wife. 

“We do pick-ups and drop-offs two days a week, and that’s lovely. Spending a bit of Nan and Pop time,” says Mr Lynch. . 

“We also grab a game of golf. I play with mates during the week, Anita has her ladies day and we play golf together most Sundays.

“I am also fortunate to maintain contact with some younger people developing their careers with some mentoring or just lending an ear from time to time.”