As with all areas of human service, the Canadian substance abuse field must answer to both its clientele and taxpayers, and aim to provide services effectively and efficiently. This challenge, shared by individual practitioners, their organizations and the systems within which they operate, requires that a variety of activities and measures aimed at developing and supporting the addictions workforce be implemented and monitored across all levels of the service delivery platform.  To this end, "Sustaining Workforce Development" has been identified as a priority of the National Framework for Action and this has prompted CCSA to seek collaborative ways to effectively engage with both addiction "specialists" and "allied professionals" in order to enhance the level of professionalism within and across the field while supporting the ongoing implementation of best and promising practices.