Saskatoon tech company gets a leg up from Google

A new Saskatoon tech company has a big leg up in trying to help people deal with grief.

Cadence has developed a new software to help close out estates. It helps people with things like closing accounts, going through insurance and pension claims, and dealing with taxes.

The company has been chosen for the Google for Startups Accelerator program.

That program will help connect the local company with experts from one of the biggest companies in the world.

Cadence CEO Rachel Drew joined Gormley to discuss what that means, and give more information about the program.

She was inspired to start the company after the loss of her mother.

“It was my first direct experience with death. As (with) many people who have gone through this before, it was extremely challenging, much more than I could have ever anticipated. And that’s really where Cadence came from,” she recalled.

So how exactly does the program work?

“You’re prompted with questions so that the software can better understand what your unique circumstances are, because as we know, everyone’s life is very individual, so it really needs to be addressed in a very specific way,” she said. “And so people are prompted with questions, and then based on that, we can automate, streamline and organize all of their estate settlement tasks and documents.”

It has taken the company about two years to build the program and only recently launched it.

The software does most of the work, but the company also has people on hand to help answer questions. Drew recommends that people still speak with a lawyer.

While the heartbreak of losing a family member is tough enough, Drew wants to help minimize all of the other problems that pop up after a death.

“We had a will for my mom, we had everything planned out as best as you possibly can. What I hadn’t realized is that regardless of how well you have planned, you still have to take all those steps,” she said.

“You have to close every single account that they’ve ever had, from telecommunications accounts all the way to Facebook … You have to deal with passports, driver’s licence, accessible parking permits — the list goes on and on.

“People really need to understand that even if you have a will and you have an executor, they’re going to have a big job ahead of them.”

She’s also proud of how local the company is.

“The talent is incredible. We’ve been able to build a really amazing team, most of (whom) live in Saskatoon, so I think it’s a really great place,” she said.

“I think Saskatoon and Saskatchewan are starting to get on the map for technology. People are starting to see some really big success stories here and I think that will just continue as we continue to grow.”