Karen Maidment, chief financial and administrative officer of BMO Financial Group, has been chosen as Canada’s CFO of the Year for 2006. Maidment will be honoured at a gala dinner on May 4 in Toronto.

Canada’s CFO of the Year Award is presented annually by Financial Executives International Canada (FEI Canada) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, in association with The Caldwell Partners International, to honour and recognize the quality, insight, direction and leadership of Canada’s senior financial leaders.

Candidates for the award were nominated in all business sectors by CEOs, members of boards of directors, financial analysts and other senior executives. This is the fourth year the award has been presented.

Maidment was named Canada’s CFO of the Year by an independent committee composed of some of Canada’s most prominent business leaders. The criteria by which nominees were judged centred around five key attributes: vision and leadership; corporate reporting and performance; social responsibility; innovation; and global competitiveness.

The committee made particular note of the impact that Maidment has had on the overall strategic direction of the organization, a contribution that is not always within the traditional role of the CFO.

The award gala will be held May 4 at The Fairmont Royal York in Toronto.