Phillip Strachan

Chief Financial Officer, Rio Tinto Aluminium

My first contact with Rio Tinto (then CRA) was in 1980 at an on campus interview in my final year of a Commerce degree at Melbourne University. I really didn't know what I wanted to do as a career but thought that getting a job with a large company was perhaps a reasonable stepping-stone.

Some 22 years later I am still with the same company but have worked in different parts of the business and in many locations. I first joined the Hamersley Iron Graduate Training Program which took me to West Australia. In that time I experienced life in a rather unique part of Australia at Dampier in the Pilbara.

I completed my four years graduate training in Sydney at a small Biotech company that CRA was dabbling in at the time. From there I managed to get my first full time role with Rio Tinto Aluminium in Melbourne.

More for personal reasons than anything else I then sought a role in Rio Tinto in London and managed to spend nearly six years working in various head office departments as well as attending a Corporate Finance Program at London Business School.

The next step in my career was a return to Melbourne to a role at CRA Finance. Work in that part of the group saw me get involved with our Indonesian operations. I was then asked to undertake a six month assignment in Jakarta which turned into a six year assignment. I enjoyed the experience that Indonesia presented.

Now I am the Chief Financial Officer of Rio Tinto Aluminium in the Brisbane Corporate office. I am still enjoying the opportunities and challenges that a large company presents. I have met many people in my time at Rio Tinto and have found it a very rewarding place to work.