Simple steps to buying accessible ICT

The decisions businesses and government agencies make when procuring ICT impacts upon that organisation's ability to:

• attract the best possible talent from the widest possible field
• retain and sustain existing staff as their abilities change with age, illness or accident.
• engage with the customers they wish to reach and serve
• deliver education and training opportunities on the same basis to all learners

The problem is our current processes are flawed. Many organisations think about the requirements of price, support, privacy and security but fail to properly consider the requirements of accessibility and usability. This failure to actively consider the needs of your staff and customers, limits their productivity and potential. It also diminishes your organisation's ability to be the best it can. So how do we include accessibility in the procurement process in a simple and sustainable way?

Before we jump into how to embed accessibility in the procurement process, we need to understand the why.

Why is adding accessibility requirement important?

1. It makes good business sense. Diversity is the norm, not the exception. Each person possesses their own unique combination of attributes such as ability, language, culture, gender, age and other forms of human difference. Understanding the differences and common needs allows us to deliver better products and services. We want to make sure that we buy products and services that are fit for their use and do not unwittingly exclude people. Including accessibility requirements helps to ensure the products are accessible and usable by all. What are essential requirements for people with a permanent disability, benefits people with temporary impairments due to illness or injury as well as those experiencing situation limitations.
2. We have legal obligations to do so. Accessibility requirements supports our obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act (DDA), the Disability Standards for Education (DSE), Marrakesh Treaty, Australian Standard for accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (AS EN301549) as well as the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW). Under these legal obligations it is clear that:

• A person with a disability has a right to obtain goods and use services and facilities in the same way as people without a disability.
• Employers have a responsibility to provide a healthy and safe work environment. (Exclusion through inaccessible technology and process can be a physical and psychological health hazard.)
• Education providers have an obligation to ensure students with a disability can access and participate  in education and training opportunities on the same basis as students without disability.

Embedding accessibility requirements in the procurement process is also a strategic mechanism to improve workforce diversity and inclusion and achieve published targets.

How do I buy digital products that meet requirements?

Accessibility is just another requirement in your procurement process. Like privacy and security, accessibility should be seen as an essential or mandatory requirement. As part of any standard procurement process, we need to:

• include end users on the procurement panel
• embed requirements for the product or service as well as any payment conditions
• assign a weighting to each requirement
• objectively assess the evidence vendors provided against the requirements.
• make an objective decision.

It is as simple as that. Let's take a closer look at the simple sustainable steps you can take. it is also about leveraging the power within Australian Standard for accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (AS EN301549).

Step 1: Set your accessibility business requirement

Irrespective of differences in background and ability, we all share common functional needs and requirements. Any digital product we buy must fit for purpose. In this case it must enable intended users to easily and safely use to complete the tasks they need to complete, regardless of their background and auditory, cognitive, learning, and neurological, physical, speech or visual abilities.

Example business accessibility requirements clause

“The product will enable customers to locate, identify, and operate functions, and access the content provided as well as related support information, regardless of their background and auditory, cognitive, learning, and neurological, physical, speech or visual abilities. Any accessibility features within the product must maintain the privacy of customers using those features at the same level as others. In addition, all accessibility features, can be independently activated by the customer without the need to rely on a method that requires assistance.”

Step 2: Define your accessibility conformance target requirement

Compliance with your business requirement is demonstrated through conformance with:

• Australian Standard for accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (AS EN301549) and / or
• The current version of the W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) AA and appropriate AAA Success Criteria.

Step 3: Clarify proof you want from vendors

Verifiable evidence is required to demonstrate that the digital good or service achieves the business requirement and the conformance target. function performance statements outlined in the accessibility requirement. No single piece of evidence will provide all the answers. The findings of each type of evidence type should correlate with / support the other. 

Mandatory vendor evidence

1. An Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) based on the Information Technology Industry Council’s (ITI) Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT). The ACR is a leading global reporting format for assisting buyers and sellers in identifying accessibility features of a digital good or service. 
2. User manuals or help files which provide practical advice on how people with disabilities can use the good or service regardless of physical, cognitive, or sensory abilities. 

Additional examples of vendor evidence

• A practical demonstration of how the functional performance is achieved through functioning seamlessly with the inbuilt accessibility features/assistive technologies found on mainstream devices. These practical demonstrations provide opportunity to evaluate both the accessibility and usability of a product. It is strongly recommended that people with disabilities who are users of assistive technologies be included in this evidence type. This practical demonstration is best implemented when you are down to the final 2 or 3 choices.  

Step 4. Assess and compare products against the requirements

As with other specialist areas of knowledge such as privacy and security it is best to seek guidance from an accessibility specialist. That said there is much that nay procurement panel can do themselves.

Example steps for assessing and comparing evidence

1. As a simple first pass, tally up each vendor responses to each accessibility criteria in their ACR. Vendors need to mark either, 'Supported' 'Partially Supports' or 'Does Not Support.'  NB: If the product doesn't meet WCAG Level A don't even consider it.
2. Confirm if there are user manuals or help files which provide practical advice on how people with disabilities can use the good or service regardless of physical, cognitive, or sensory abilities. 
3. Based upon the results of step 1 and 2, review the top 3 - 5 vendor's ACR using a requirements checklist* (.xlsx). This is a good time to seek guidance from an accessibility specialist if you don't have the skills within your organisation.
4. Invite your final 2 - 3 vendors to demonstrate that the product/service actually is accessible and usable. A practical demonstration is a verifiable 'proof of life.' It is strongly recommended to have end users of assistive technologies in for this session. 

Step 5. Don’t pay for products that fail to meet requirements

Before buying the good or service being aware of your rights under Australian Consumer law and more broadly, the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. In particular your rights related to goods and services that are either not of acceptable quality, fail to match the provided description or unfit for purpose. 

All vendors must be made aware at time of quote/tender/procurement that we don't accept nor pay for products that don't meet requirements. You should consider including a clause to make sure that this is clear to all parties.

Example clause for payment conditions

Any digital product that fails to meet the technical requirements listed in the tender/contract is deemed not fit for purpose. As such, < insert organisation name >> is entitled to either

1. a full refund under Australian Consumer Law or
2. withhold full payment until the product is proven fit for purpose against the technical requirements.