Creating accessible and inclusive software
Digital products that work for everyone is not only important, it is also the right thing for every software delivery effort to focus on. It means considering multiple factors, baking considerations into the product, and validating those affordances along the way. It extends the product’s reach and drives best practices in development.
Accessibility means providing access across abilities.
Usability considerations include all abilities.
Inclusive design makes products available to all people.
Accessibility means great usability
It is easy for teams to fall into the trap of approaching WCAG standards and compliance as a checklist. Instead, accessibility must be taken on as a core usability consideration for it to be truly successful. This approach impacts the design of the product, the structure of the code, and how the product performs across various devices and platforms.
Approach accessibility as a mindset.
Successful products integrate accessibility into their design process, their story writing approach, their testing strategy, and their development principles. It is not something that can or should be papered over an application. Instead, it should be integral to the way it is constructed.
Accessible software offers more than readability.
There are many ability considerations, such as screen readers, contrast levels, device fidelity, cognitive ability, connectivity, and more. By having a set standard, and a strong validation and testing approach behind it, teams can be confident in the accessibility of their products.
Engage your audience.
Applications that simply treat accessibility as a checklist fall short. Teams that seek to build truly accessible products must involve multiple user groups in their testing cycles and validation efforts—as with any aspect of software delivery, engaging the people who will use it is key to successful development.
Start building fast with Lean Requirements.
About our workshops
Actionable product metrics for digital transformation
Get PowerUpBook
The Secret Source: The culture, skills, and process to make great digital products
This book was written to help our team and clients build mission-critical applications faster. The book offers a transparent look at the full product lifecycle at Devbridge. It details our methodology, tools, and best practices that enable our teams to ship product fast.
Read the book
