CIOCAN Impact Awards
Your opportunity to Recognize and Celebrate Excellence within our Technology Leaders across Canada
The CIOCAN Impact Awards recognize the outstanding contributions of our members. It is together that we tackle the complex issues of our profession and we’re so proud of our members who are leading the way.
Recognizing Excellence in Innovation and Leadership
There’s no other way to put it: CIOCAN’s strength lies in its members. Together, as a community of technology professionals, we collaborate to solve challenges, share expertise, and grow as leaders shaping Canada’s economy.
The energy each member brings to our Association makes a difference to how well we can do that. As the momentum builds at CIOCAN, we just keep getting stronger – because of our members. And we think that’s something to celebrate.
CIOCAN President’s Award
This board member leads by example – they hold themselves to a high standard and motivate others to do the same. The recipient of this award works hard, and with perseverance and enthusiasm shapes both the Association and the profession.
CIOCAN Lifetime Achievement Award
This person is a long-standing CIOCAN member who demonstrates excellence through their commitment to, and leadership in, our community. They propel their organization and the industry forward with their innovation and dedication to the profession.
Congratulations to our 2026 Impact Award Winners!
The Lifetime Achievement Award honours a member who demonstrates exceptional leadership and innovation. This year’s recipient, Dianne Lapierre, has made significant contributions to CIOCAN and Canada’s technology community.
Dianne Lapierre is a retired Chief Information Officer with over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry. She is now utilizing her skills as a Board member and leader to provide governance, leadership and support to various non-profit organizations in the areas of Continuing Education, Community Recreation, the Arts, and Travel & Tourism with a focus on supporting seniors remaining active in retirement. Dianne holds an MBA from Athabasca University.
Dianne started her career in Kitchener, Ontario, then moved to Vancouver, BC where she joined the CIO Association in 2014. As part of CIOCAN, Dianne held the positions of Chapter Board Director, Chapter Vice President, and Chapter President before moving onto the National Board where she held the position of Treasurer. In retirement, Dianne and her husband moved to Nova Scotia where she continued to play a role in establishing the Halifax Chapter of CIOCAN before retiring from the Board in 2023. In addition to her many volunteer activities, Dianne’s primary focus in retirement is her family, particularly her 2-year-old grandson Owen.
The President’s Award is presented to a board member who leads by example, inspiring others to reach new heights. This year’s recipient, Dave Aeri, exemplifies these qualities through his leadership, vision, and commitment to advancing technology and innovation within the community.
Dave Aeri is the Chief Information Officer & CTO at Shoptravel Group Inc. and is responsible for the strategic, technical leadership, and visionary advancing all aspects of the company’s information technology, Artificial Intelligence, data science, product & platform development, digital innovation, enterprise architecture, application development, cyber security, and the underlying strategies that frame the long-term strategic Digital and Technology roadmap.
Dave has extensive experience in digital transformation, data science, machine learning, Artificial Intelligence, supply chain technology and logistics, as well as leading complex multifaceted enterprise information technology groups. Dave is a proven industry leader and keynote speaker on successful organizational digital transformation through strategic technology adoption, product development and delivering innovative IT solutions, cloud migration, and complex ERP deployments. He has held various leadership roles at organizations including Canadian Retail Giant Canadian Tire, Rogers Communications, OLG, Fuller Landau LLP, and most recently prior to joining Shoptravel Group Inc., Dave was the Vice President and Head of Information Technology for Lactalis Canada.
Dave has an extremely exceptional educational background which includes but is not limited to:
- Master of Science (MSc) in Management of Innovation and Technology from Wilfred Laurier University | Lazaridis School of Business, where he was named Class President, and was recognized by the university with the Academic Gold Medal for Academic Achievement and Excellence.
- Applied Design and Innovation Certificate from the University of California, Berkeley & Stanford.
- Advanced Data Analytics for IIOT and Smart Manufacturing Certification from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and;
- SAFE 6 Agile Certification from Scaled Agile.