It seems every day another news article is telling us to prepare for the coming strain on the social services infrastructure caused by the aging population. But an aging population is only one of the many challenges that make up the social development matrix. From disability to daycare, homelessness to employment, today's social services, and the high level to which they are delivered, are a fundamental part of the fabric of the Canadian identity.

Whether it's in the development of policies that make Canada a society in which all can use their talents, skills and resources, or in the creation of programs and support initiatives that help Canadians move through life’s many transitions, the underlying goals of every social worker are to deliver service excellence, to create a healthy work environment, to nurture a culture of teamwork, and to enhance the capacity for self sufficiency in each individual.

When Exia thinks about social services, we think about how software can help streamline or eliminate otherwise mundane operations, provide new access to information, or create new opportunities for saving time and money, all of which result in social workers that are more free to deliver critical advice, to apply their skills, and hence to make a real difference in the lives of ordinary Canadians.

That's why, when Exia architected a national system for streamlining the employment insurance process, we didn't just make it easier for the unemployed to receive their benefits. We helped save $40M annually in processing fees and freed the time of hundreds of workers. Now the computers hum quietly in the background doing the time consuming administrative chores, while the workers have been reassigned to far more interesting jobs in which they now play a much more active role, using their skills to providing social assistance.

Creating great software solutions that free your people. In the social services sector, it's a key part of what Exia does.