6 Tips To Help You Build An Accessibility Strategy

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At the time, I was working on a project to help engineers learn how to deploy code. I had just started development of a template to help organize the information. A peer and I were sitting side by side reviewing the project.

A colleague approached us. "Has the site been tested for accessibility?" She asked.

We looked up at her with blank stares. "No." We replied in unison.

A look of dismay crossed her face. She launched into an explanation of the importance of accessibility and what it means in the world of corporate learning.

"Would you build an office without a wheelchair ramp and tell someone in a wheelchair it's too bad you can't work here because we forgot to build a wheelchair ramp?" She questioned. "No, of course not." She replied to her question. "So why would you create a learning experience that does not provide the same opportunities for all?" She inquired. 

My peer and I leaned in as she explained more. 

She was right. As learning professionals we have the power to provide experiences that enable our learners to solve problems in their every day, start on new career paths, and much more. We can be the blocker or we can create experiences that are inclusive of everyone.

When I chat with learning professionals they want to create accessible experiences but large number are not. So what's the problem? The biggest issue is getting buy-in from leadership. Here are a few questions to aid you in gaining buy in.

Answer questions like:

1. What happens if we don't do this now? What happens if we have to do this later? What are the potential legal ramifications?
2. What has stopped us from doing this?
3. What would an accessibility strategy look like? What would it take to implement a strategy?
4. Who is accountable for what in this strategy? How do we keep on track?
5. How will we know we are doing this right? How will we measure success?

You may even want to show your leader what the non-accessible experience looks like for a learner. For example, I recorded myself using a screen reader on a screen reader enabled experience and a non screen reader enabled experience to illustrate how frustrated our customers must be.

But what if your leader claims that no one in your company has a disability? There is no way to say that absolutely no one has a disability. Folks have invisible disabilities that they may not want to disclose. And just because you do not have a disability today does not mean you never will.

That being said, my journey in creating accessible learning experiences is a work in progress. There are things I need to improve on and learn more about. It's important for me to recognize that there are gaps in my knowledge. It's even more important to seek out the answers and to create a plan of action to tackle those gaps. Here are 6 tips that have helped me on my accessibility journey so far. I hope they'll help you too.

1. Build your team's skills

Accessibility starts with you and your team. 

Read up on accessibility and inclusive design.

Microsoft has an amazing site with activities to help you learn more about inclusive design. Inclusive design benefits everyone. For instance, an elevator might help someone with a temporary disability like a broken leg to reach another floor. An elevator also helps people with permanent disabilities and someone like a mother with a stroller. Another great resource on inclusive design is the Inclusive Design Principles site.

Join an empathy lab. 

Two years ago our team participated in an empathy lab to put ourselves in the shoes of our learners with disabilities. We tested our own courses in order to identified what we did well and what we could improve on. There are some empathy labs online that I have not tried, like this one by Deque Systems. The description reads, "Accessibility Empathy Labs show the power of what is possible! How do people with disabilities use computers or navigate websites? What tools do they use? How does it work? What is it like?"

Learn how to use a screen reader. 

Once you get used to operating a screen reader you may find yourself using it more often than you thought. Sometimes In my spare time I find myself testing out how various websites work with my built in Mac VO screen reader. That's right! Macs have built in screen readers but do not fret, there are free screen readers for Windows too. To learn more about downloading and using screen readers check out Codecademy's article Setting Up and Using Screen Readers. They even have activities you can test on. I also really like the article I Used The Web For A Day Using A Screen Reader. It gives an insight into the experience of someone new to screen readers using one.

To get an even better feel for what a screen reader does check out this YouTube video by Google Chrome Developers.

2. Create or curate resources including how tos

To act on your accessibility strategy you need to know what needs to be done and how to do it. For instance, maybe you created an email newsletter. You learn that headings need to be read with a screen reader as headings and you also need to know how to implement that.

One thing our team did was to create a general accessibility checklist that applies to all or most experiences. That means things like color contrast, use of plain language, alt text, and the list goes on.

Next we created a more specific checklist for different types of experiences. For instance, video should have closed captions and audio descriptions (in specific cases).

Next, we'll curate or create resources showing how to implement more complex solutions. For instance, this course on HTML Email development that goes over crafting accessible emails.

3. Conduct an accessibility audit

You may want to conduct an accessibility audit, if you're just getting started in your accessibility journey. Prioritize learning materials that ought to be reviewed first. Identify where your gaps lie and make a plan of action to update the experience so it is accessible.

4. Build checks into your process

Our team has a quality process that includes review in design and development by a teammate. The teammate may use the checklists and other tools to review the project design and then development for accessibility. Two useful tools include Stark for Adobe XD to be used in the design phase and the Wave extension to be used for web based experiences. There are tons more tools out there. Feel free to share some of your favorites in the comments!

5. Create reusable assets as needed

Accessible design does not equal boring or non-engaging products. It doesn't mean you have to create out of the box elearning. Our team has a design system that covers rules about design as well as pre-made templates that are optimized for accessibility. The combination of the checklists and rules helps to make the creative process faster.

6. Start or join a community

You don't have to start your journey on accessibility and inclusive design alone. Chances are there are others in your organization or field that are interested too. Navigate your organization to see if there is a community. Ask for folks from the community to provide you feedback and test your products.

Do you have any great accessibility resources, tips, or strategies? Share them in the comments to help others take action and spread awareness.