A highly engaged and motivated technical leader, Don Newton is an executive who has a history of forming strategic partnerships and solving real-world problems through the practical application of software and hardware technologies. Wired for success, Don operates with a commitment to continuous improvement and a belief that the status quo is never good enough. By building consensus, partnering with clients, and creating opportunities where none is apparent, he enjoys the well-deserved reputation of a leader who gets things done.
Prior to ONF, Don was lead engineer with AT&T at the Atlanta foundry, where he focused on developing creative solutions and establishing partnerships throughout startup and innovation ecosystems to facilitate growth, new opportunities, and long-term business potential. He also created partnerships with local startups and university research groups pursuing design innovation, including those at Stanford, UC Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon to pursue design innovation.
Previously he was with Cypress Communications where he managed a $25M budget and directed all network engineering, field operations, network tools, network architecture, and provisioning groups. He also collaborated with the FBI, NSA, and DHS to ensure that critical infrastructure remained uncompromised. Committed to modernization of technologies, Don decommissioned more than 100 PBX systems and replaced all of them with a VoIP switching platform that reduced customer expenses and optimized efficiencies.
Don is a prolific speaker and frequently called upon to present on topics ranging from fabrication and manufacturing to cybersecurity to national security.
