Presence and References

International:
Unified Communications Saves Canadian School District $200k/Year

Get the Facts - International PodCast - (Presenter)

CLC - Connected Learning Communities, Quebec City
Canon Expo: Forum on the Future of Printing - New YorkLinux World Conference - San Francisco

Dell  Executive Briefing - Future of Technology - Austin Texas

Published Whitepaper - Reliability: Understanding the Reliability of Evolving Systems

National:
Global Education Technology Symposium Toronto (Presenter) 

Enabling Education Through Technology Symposium (Panelist)

2nd Annual VoIP Summit for Government And Public Sector Organizations - (Presenter)

C.A.S.A. - Canadian Association of School Administrators, Quebec City (Presenter)
C.I.R.A. - Canadian Internet Registration Authority, Ottawa (National Nomination Board Member)

Provincial:

Riding the Wave of Change Technology Conference, Gimli - (Presenter)

M.A.S.S. – Manitoba Association of School Superintendents’, Summer Institute, Hecla - Technology (Panel Member)

 “Don Reece is a visionary who is relentless in forging new ground in the name of progress and innovation. Don is a genuine person who's open and honest communication style is very conducive to getting things done! Don is a great problem solver who is continually striving to achieve the best for his clients in a highly ethical manner.”   

"Don Reece is the meeting place of two very powerful forces: Creativity and Action. Frontier School Division and I have been the benefactors of Don's highly collaborative nature. Don is the type innovator and disruptive change agent that today's educational system needs desperately.Don’s ability to assemble highly focused, skilled, and professional teams is central to his success record. Don has the unique trait of inspiring those around him to want to do better, to self-challenge and grow within a safe environment.
I can’t imagine a team that would not be bettered by Don’s membership.” 

“Don is a major force in technological change in our city. There are so few people willing to lead the way in technology and Don is out in front. His reputation as a change master in connectivity and education technology is second to none.” 

“I had the opportunity to work with Don Reece for almost 10 years at Pembina Trails School Division. His vision was what allowed the school division to progress as one of the leading Information Technology Departments in North America. I was proud to be a part of his team and feel fortunate to have had the occasion to learn so much in our 10 year professional relationship.” 

“Don is an intellectually agile visionary who is a highly respected leader within the Education Information Technology sector. Don’s incredible depth and breadth of knowledge is second to none. Throughout my relationship with Don, I’ve witnessed his talents first hand and can confidently say that he stands apart from the crowd.  Don is blessed with many talents, including analytic brilliance, razor sharp focus and high speed execution. His engaging interpersonal style, infectious optimism and inspirational leadership make Don a pleasure to work with. Bottom line it’s hard to find someone with Don’s array of skills. Don continues to raise the bar and I would highly, highly recommend Don without hesitation.” 

“Don is an innovative leader who pushes technology to the edge of what is possible.” 

“Don has a demonstrated ability to bring about organizational change through effective leadership. A willingness to share his thoughts and suggestions has been appreciated.” 

“Don is a results driven IT professional with exceptional people skills. I've had the pleasure of working with Don over the last 8 years on various IT projects and truly admire his work ethic and ability to help others around him strive to be the best they can be. His passion for the business and loyalty of his employees speaks volumes of his accountability and ethics while achieving his goals. Don is a true leader not only in his profession but in life skills.” 

“I first came to know Mr. Reece just over ten years ago when he became the Supervisor of Technology in Assiniboine South School Division before the amalgamation, which is known now as Pembina Trails School Division.  Mr. Reece has distinguished himself as an extremely dedicated Supervisor of Technology.  Over the decade that I have worked under his supervision, he tirelessly sought to improve the school division with his projects and to assist our learning in a myriad of ways.  One of the aspects of his background that has allowed him to be such an asset to the school division is Mr. Reece's continuous exploration and use of advanced technologies.  Because of his commitment and vision for the future of educational technologies, because of his wealth of experience, and because of his willingness to selflessly dedicate himself to the needs of those whom he supervised He will be an asset to any organization.  In Mr. Reece you will be adding an insightful and motivated leader who has a wide knowledge of the technological tools out there.” 

“I have had the privilege of working with Don for the past seven years. Don operates in the IT sector where many have feared to tread. His commitment to excellence, his continuous drive to challenge the bleeding edge of technology, and the ability to build and develop an exceptional team around him has set him apart in the IT Sector.” 

"Don is a thorough and diligent forward-thinking manager. He has managed to provide cutting edge technology to the entire Pembina Trails School Division while reducing his budgetary expense year after year. He expects and gets the maximum from his staff who see him as a leader and a visionary.”  

“Don Reece has shown leadership in the use of technology to improve the learning outcomes for students. His understanding of how to use technology to solve problems and how to be able to explain technology in simple terms creates his success. Don is always trying to strive to the best for his clients and works hard to understand their needs.”  

“Don is a leader in the application and infusion of Information and Communications Technology in education within Manitoba. He has positioned his own school division as an ICT leader, establishing the first dark fibre network in the province. Don has been active in provincial professional organizations to further the infusion of ICT into teaching and learning in Manitoba classrooms. He is always willing to share his expertise and insights with his colleagues. As a result, Don is highly sought after for his advice.”

“During my position with Dell Infrastructure Services, I had the pleasure of doing business with Don Reece, Director of Information Technology at Pembina Trails School Division. I found Don to be extremely passionate and visionary about Technology as an enabler for enhancing student education. Don is a true Professional in his field.” 

"I had the pleasure of working with Don when I led the education sector business for Dell Canada. I have never worked with another IT director in education who was an engaged and passionate about the use of technology to improve learning outcomes for students as Don Reece. To say Don is "high energy" is an understatement; he is constantly challenging his vendors and his team to keep up with his designs on using technology as a tool to help students, faculty and staff within the school district and even at a Provincial and International level. Don is a thought leader who is inspiring to work with.” 

I have worked with Don Reece for nearly six years. During these years he has been the Director of Information Technology with the Pembina Trails School Division in Winnipeg.  I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Don. He has demonstrated excellence in all areas of his role as Director of IT. He is progressive, visionary, and passionate about excellence and service. He also has a wonderful sense of humour.  One of Don's many strengths is his ability to lead the IT Department. He modelled and instilled a strong work ethic. The IT team was not only loyal to Don as Director, but also to the vision that he espoused.  During Don's tenure as Director of IT, Pembina Trails School Division has become a centre of excellence when it comes to both the hardware provided to the schools and the training provided by the IT Dept. Pembina Trails School Division is the envy of most school divisions in Manitoba, and known across Canada as one of the best run and best resoureced IT Dept in the country.  We embarked on many projects during Don's time in Pembina Trails School Division. Without exception they were on time and on or under budget. The list of projects is long. Perhaps the most noteworthy one was the installation of our own buried fibre system across the southwest corner of Winnipeg. I will leave it up to Don to provide an exhaustive list.  In my own area within the Division we embarked on a new automated substitute teacher callout system in 2008. This project depended heavily on the support of our IT Dept. Even though this particular project was not specifically led by our IT Dept, Don was quick to offer his knowledge and support. Our entry into the automated subfinder was seamless. Don made all the resources of the IT Dept available to my Dept. His staff worked tirelessly to ensure that the project was successful.  There is no question that Pembina Trails School Division has benefitted tremendously from Don's leadership. He leaves the Division in better shape than when he started. He will be greatly missed.”  

“Don is one of a very few people I can say is a Leader among Men. Whatever he did was watched very closely by his peers, and they were quick to follow. Highly respected and liked by his employees, co-managers, executives, and industry executives such as myself. He treats everyone with respect, as he is treated himself.  An accomplished speaker, Don was always available to discuss technology to groups and conferences throughout the world. His IT installation at Pembina Trails School Division was among the most sophisticated and cost effective I have ever seen.
With me starting off as a simple vendor we quickly became friends, which I consider to be an honor. Anyone who has the opportunity to work with Don in the future will be a very fortunate person indeed.”  

“I have worked with Don over the last few months, and it has truly been a great experience. Don has shown in his work a desire to always be innovative and is always willing to share his knowledge and ideas. He is very passionate about his work, and that passion shows in his accomplishments. Don has a vast knowledge of not just technology, but more importantly how to apply that technology to his business. Don has been pivotal in changing the way technology is provided within the classroom, and has changed the way that education views technology.”

I had the pleasure of getting to know Don when he brought in Polycom to best represent Pembina Trails School Division of his UC collaborative vision. Along with Polycom, Microsoft and other large vendors Don created a visionary Unified Collaborative school division landscape second to none in Manitoba. One that was self sufficient and that its students could reap the benefits from to better be informed & educated using today's best practice collaborative tools. Don is a leader and visionary, exemplifies what a strong executive is, he gets people interested to get things done! I really enjoyed my time assisting Don on executing his vision to better serve Manitoba Education System; he is a tremendous person and a great leader.

“Don is an innovative and visionary IT Leader within Education. He is also honest and straightforward. Don is always willing to provide valuable feedback, both positive and constructive, to help suppliers better serve his organization.  Don does not simply implement technology. He does so with a broader perspective around advancing student achievement. 

Don's ideas have made him a sought after Public Speaker.
Its my hope that we continue to be business partners for many years.”