David Johnston CFO

As a former CFO, David Johnston is a well-known name in the life sciences industry, having spent over three decades as a corporate CFO for several Massachusetts biotech and life sciences firms. In 2019, he founded dbj Consulting LLC, a consultancy that provides fractional CFO services to smaller, fledgling life sciences firms that cannot afford a full-time, experienced CFO. With clients with 10 or fewer staff and are virtual, his business offers the services of an experienced CFO on a fractional, part-time basis, allowing him to quickly establish and implement action plans for his clients.

He believes that having part-time C-level executives in growing enterprises benefits the firms and the executives. Working as a fractional CFO for multiple firms helps him better combine his job and family life, avoid burnout, and be healthier and more productive in the long run. It also keeps his attention since it provides him with various experiences.

As a CFO, he assists small, growing biotech enterprises in creating financial ties, managing financial resources, and giving financial planning guidance. Companies pay part-time CFOs hourly or flat-fee solely for their work hours. Companies may engage an experienced part-time CFO for less than they would pay full-time since they just pay for time spent. CFOs have a variety of crucial tasks in biotech firms, including obtaining financing and monitoring grants, financial reporting, budgeting, leading compliance, and assisting in planning the company's future market trajectory.

As a former CFO, David firm's clients have CFOs but hire him for strategic guidance, where he feels that a focused and professional approach with a sense of humor works well for entrepreneurs. He is also a regular writer and author on biotechnology and finance-related issues. Some of his essays are featured on Medium, Tumblr, the Buckeye Business Review, DrBioScience, and other business and medical websites.

Johnston's senior-level financial positions with life sciences organizations date back to 1998, working in finance at several firms before assuming his first senior-level position at a biotech company. He has received several honors for his financial and strategic understanding.

At dbj Consulting, his extensive knowledge benefits his clients through experience in leading Initial Public Offerings, creative, non-dilutive royalty financing, advising companies on strategic stock buy and sell solutions, managing SEC reporting and financial analysis, investor relations, corporate finance, strategic planning and setting of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), financial modeling, mergers, and acquisitions, advising startups on how to raise funding and plan their financial future, corporate development, financial analysis, acquisition integration, revenue recognition, due diligence, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, developing and rethinking capital allocation strategies, improving operational efficiencies by analyzing bottlenecks, and helping companies use financial data to make decisions.

He received a bachelor of science degree from Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, and an MBA from the University of Michigan's Stephen M. Ross School of Business in Ann Arbor. Alongside his professional work, he volunteers his financial and strategic experience to various non-profit organizations, including RAW ArtWorks and Tissue Banks International Inc., the world's largest provider of ocular tissue.

Former CFO David Johnston enjoys reading in his free time, with The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey by Rinker Buck being one of his favorite novels. While the book is intriguing for its information about traversing the Oregon path on a mule-drawn wagon, it is equally useful for entrepreneurs of tiny biotech enterprises. The book shows how the two travelers deal with obstacles and uncertainties while remaining focused on finishing the path. He resides with his family in Marblehead, Massachusetts, which is part of the Greater Boston region.