Award-Winning CFOs
2016 BC CFO of the Year Awards
Celebrating Excellence in Financial Leadership
On June 2, CPABC and Business in Vancouver
(BIV) co-presented the BC CFO of the Year
Awards gala at the Four Seasons Hotel in
Vancouver. The event recognized seven of
BC’s outstanding financial leaders, who were
honoured in the following award categories:
• Large Public Company:
Erfan Kazemi, CPA, CA
CFO, Sandstorm Gold Ltd.
• Large Private Company:
Janice Comeau, CPA, CA
CFO, LMS Reinforcing Steel Group
• Small Public Company:
Jennifer Archibald, CPA, CA
CFO, Cardiome Pharma Corp.
• Small Private Company:
Craig East, CPA, CA
CFO, Primex Manufacturing Ltd.
• Non-Profit:
William Hallett, CPA, CA
VP finance & operations, Vancouver
Foundation
• Publicly Accountable:
Samson Lim, CPA, CA
Exec. VP & CFO, Peoples Trust Company
• Transformation Agent:
Clayton Buckingham, CPA, CMA
Senior VP & CFO, BCAA
50 CPABC in Focus • July/August 2016
“These awards recognize the importance
of strong CFOs in business who bring value
to the organizations they work for, in
creative ways, in complex industries,” said
John Crawford, CPA, CA, CFO and senior
vice-president of Pacific Blue Cross and one
of this year’s judges.
At the gala, each honouree was invited to
share leadership lessons and give thanks to
those who’ve supported them in their careers.
Many echoed Erfan Kazemi, who said: “You’re
truly only as good as the people you surround
yourself with.”
Prior to the gala, Business in Vancouver profiled the award winners in a special supplement
included with its May 10th issue. You can
read these profiles at biv.com/profiles.
What follows are some select comments
from the award winners.
Jennifer Archibald on maintaining perspective: “There’s always an option and there’s
always a solution. Always keep the bigger
picture in mind.”
Clayton Buckingham on the pivotal nature
of the CFO role: “Given our skill set and
central role in the organization, CFOs have
the opportunity to be enablers within the
organization and to play a key part in developing corporate strategy.”
L to R: William Hallett, Erfan Kazemi, Janice Comeau, Samson
Lim, Jennifer Archibald, Clayton Buckingham, and Craig East.
Photo courtesy of Business in Vancouver.
Janice Comeau on respect: “[LMS] trusted
me in terms of knowing who the right people
were, what the right processes were. They
got out of my way and let me do what needed
to be done.”
Craig East on taking the path less travelled:
“Recognizing I have a curiosity about things
around me, I learned to have the courage to
follow what I am curious about. This has
taken me on many different highways in my
business career.”
William Hallett on the art of diplomacy:
“Don’t be afraid to say no. I’m not afraid to
challenge people, but I do it in a professional
way.”
Erfan Kazemi on collaboration: “Where I
drew my energy was working with teams and
people. And I wanted to focus on what types
of roles and careers would draw from those
strengths.”
Samson Lim on support: “As important as it
is to build extensive networks, surround
ourselves with great people and teams, to work
hard but smart, and have a bit of fun along
the way, we would not be able to sustain
what we do without the support system of
family and friends.”