What does a CFO understand only after joining the board?
Teresa Sparks spent decades as a healthcare finance leader, serving as CFO of Symbion, Surgery Partners, Brookdale Senior Living and Envision Healthcare. Today, as an independent board director, she has the distance to help executive teams recognize patterns they may miss while running the business day to day.
In this episode of Backstory Sessions, Teresa joins Jarrard President and Founding Partner Anne Hancock Toomey for a candid conversation recorded live at Healthcare Sessions 2026 in Nashville, sponsored by the Nashville Health Care Council.
Key topics:
- Why companies should prepare for maximum optionality ahead of an IPO or sale
- The risk of betting on outpatient surgery before payers and hospitals were ready
- What separates people who reach the C-suite from equally talented peers
Teresa closes with advice to her younger self: “Listen and retain.” Plus, why she’s the one on the ground checking the roots in her family farm’s blackberry rows.
Watch the full episode now, then subscribe to our YouTube channel to follow the seven-part series.
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