Don Dupuis, Founder of Acadiana Computer Systems, Discusses Business Success and the Early Days of Business Computing in Acadiana

Don Dupuis is a Louisiana technology pioneer whose work quietly shaped how businesses across Acadiana and far beyond learned to operate in the early days of the digital age.

Don founded Acadiana Computer Systems in 1969, at a time when most offices still relied on adding machines, paper ledgers, and manual calculations. Long before “IT services” was a common phrase, Don saw that businesses, especially medical practices, needed help navigating billing, coding, payroll, and data management.

What began as a small, homegrown operation became a regional force, supporting doctors, lawyers, oilfield companies, universities, public offices, and even the horse racing industry.

In this conversation, Don walks us through a remarkable journey that begins in Carencro, where he grew up and still lives on the very property where he was born.

He shares stories from his early career in banking, including helping launch the credit card business in central Louisiana, complete with a secret U-Haul trip to Baton Rouge to retrieve credit cards during a rainstorm, and how that experience opened his eyes to the power of automation.

Without a formal computer science degree, Don built his company by pairing business insight with technical brilliance. He credits early partner Roy Arwood, a mathematician and programmer, as “a genius” who wrote the software while Don sold, ran, and personally operated the systems. Together, they computerized payrolls with hundreds, sometimes thousands, of employees, ultimately processing more than one million W-2s in a single year.

Don explains how Acadiana Computer Systems served a wide range of clients:

• Oilfield companies with massive payrolls
• Medical practices struggling with complex coding and insurance reimbursement
• Universities and medical schools, including LSU systems
• Registrars of voters and tax assessors
• The horse racing industry, where his team produced race programs before tote boards existed

In medical billing, Don describes uncovering widespread inefficiencies, and sometimes outright fraud, costing physician practices tens of thousands of dollars each month. His company didn’t just process claims; it helped doctors understand diagnosis codes, CPT procedures, and compliance, often recovering revenue that would otherwise be lost. “A doctor’s bill is one of the most complicated things to produce,” he explains, emphasizing how critical accuracy became once Medicare and government oversight entered the picture.

The episode also captures the culture of Lafayette’s boom years. Don recalls a time when oil money flooded the region, businesses were expanding rapidly, and opportunity felt “wide open.” He also speaks candidly about downturns, particularly the late-1970s and early-1980s oil collapse, when many left Lafayette in search of work elsewhere.

After decades of growth, Don sold Acadiana Computer Systems in 2021, staying on briefly before stepping away for good. He reflects on the realities of modern consolidation, offshore labor, and automation, noting that while technology keeps advancing, it often comes at the expense of long-term employees.

In late 2025, Don made local news again when he sold the former ACS’ headquarters (nearly 30,000-square-foot building on Dulles Drive) for $3.6-million deal to South Louisiana Community College, allowing the campus to expand classrooms, offices, and student services.

Beyond business, Don shares stories of generosity and community, from housing Lafayette’s mounted police horses on his rural property to building lifelong relationships based on handshakes rather than contracts. “If you’re nice to somebody, it comes back,” he says, reflecting on clients who became partners simply because he helped when they needed it most.

The conversation closes with Don’s thoughts on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and the future of work. Having witnessed the evolution from mainframes to personal computers to AI, he sees enormous potential, particularly in medicine, alongside serious risks if technology is used carelessly. He also laments the massive shift of jobs to foreign countries where people making $2.50 per hour are gladly taking jobs once held by America’s talented workforce.

This episode is a rare oral history of Acadiana’s early technology era, told by someone who helped build it: one payroll run, one program, and one handshake at a time.

We thank our dear friend, Don Dupuis, for his generous spirit and the contributions he has made to our business climate in Acadiana. Avec beaucoup d’amour!