About Shift2
We are Shift2!
Shift2 was created from the merger of SIM Group and Procura , bringing together our years of expertise in government services. Our goal is to make government digital services easier and more accessible every day.
We support local governments with our modern software and services to be close to residents when needed, and stay at a distance where possible.
Our USP: in addition to modern, reliable and secure software, we distinguish ourselves with personal and accessible service to governments. We are truly in touch with you, because what makes Shift+2 on your keyboard? Indeed, the @ sign, the international symbol for contact.
A piece of history
Procura
Procura, founded in 1972, began as a publishing company specializing in printed materials for local governments in the Netherlands. From securities such as deeds to folders for personal data registrations and financial records - Procura developed and delivered it all. Soon after its founding, the owners discovered that automation, then with mainframes and computers, would take over much of the paper processing. So in the late 1970s, early 1980s, the software branch of Procura was established. Paper registrations were almost all converted to software, which governments could use alongside paper. This created applications for pupil transport, taxes, financial administration, personal registration and elections. Over the past ten years, Procura's software branch has focused solely on the areas of expertise of Civil Affairs (BRP) and Elections, two domains where knowledge, accuracy and service go hand in hand.
"Did you know that Procura was the first connected GBA (in 1989) and BRP (in 2014) vendor in the Netherlands?"
Procura Software vs. Procura Publishing (materials and printing)
Until October 2023, the worlds of materials and printing and software coexisted within Procura. From that date there has been a significant change in the organization. Conxillium, the parent company of Procura, focuses all of its businesses on software. The materials and printing branch of Procura was an important but also somewhat exceptional business branch. For this reason, "the publishing business" was transferred to DataB mailservices in Leek. The name Procura is still used for the materials and printing branch by DataB as well.
SIM Group
In 2000, the year when Facebook did not yet exist and World Online went public. The Dutch version of Google was not there yet; it came online only two years later. We had just survived the millennium bug. It was during this time that seven enthusiastic young dogs founded SIM.
The first municipalities already had their websites online, but most were still at the beginning of their Internet adventure. Together with our clients, we set to work. Especially with the smaller organizations, there was room to experiment and discover what worked best.
In recent years, the online world has changed tremendously and having a government website has become the most normal thing in the world. The function of the government website has transformed from a place where you just pick up information to a platform where you can do all your business with the government digitally. SIM has grown with this transition and has now proven itself as a complete and reliable provider for local governments for almost 25 years. Our core competency is accessible digital services and our mission is to make government services simpler every day.
"Did you know that SIM Group manages over 750 government domains and more than 7 million residents of the Netherlands are in contact with the government through SIM?"
Start of our cooperation in 2022
Before our behind-the-scenes collaboration began in 2022, we already had a strong connection because we are part of Conxillium. Conxillium is a group of companies that specialize in high-quality software for governments in the field of public affairs and public space management. That we are now joining forces from SIM Group (since 2000) and Procura (since 1972) feels more than logical to us. Over the past two and a half years, the SIMgroep and Procura teams have worked together intensively and successfully, and a lot has changed internally as well. Although it is not easy to successfully merge two companies with their own cultures, by now everyone is ready for the next step: continuing under the new name Shift2.
What will change?
The services you have come to expect from us remain unchanged. You can count on the same high quality and reliability of our solutions and the personal contact in our services. Our corporate identity and logo have been updated to reflect our new identity, but our commitment to you, the customer, remains the same.
By combining the companies' strengths we do think we can deliver even more value to our clients in further digitizing government services where we can. Shift2 stands for innovation, collaboration and connectedness, and that is reflected in our new look.
Our mission
We help local governments be close to citizens where they need to be, and stay at a distance where they can. We make it simpler to do business with government.
"A world where taking care of government business is as easy as using your favorite app."
Looking up information, arranging something or viewing progress at the touch of a button. This is what we are already used to in many aspects of our lives. Unfortunately, in government affairs, this is not always so easy yet. We want to change that and strive to make local government services as easy as other digital matters.
We do this with government and partners in the safest, most inclusive and accessible way, for everyone.
TOGETHER WE IMPROVE
SIM Caribbean has been a trusted supplier in the Dutch Caribbean region for 15 years, specializing in digital solutions. Effective June 24, 2024, our parent company, SIM Group, is changing its name to Shift2 following a merger with Procura. SIM Caribbean will continue to operate under the same name as a subsidiary of Shift2 due to our strong local brand identity and thus will not change to Shift2 Caribbean.
"We remain a wholly owned subsidiary of Shift2 and remain committed to providing local support and services that perfectly meet the needs of our clients in Aruba, Curaçao, the BES Islands and St. Maarten," said Wesley Eleonora, managing director, SIM Caribbean.