Does your company have an accessibility team?
If not, look into it, advocate for it, and ensure you have the right focus on accessibility and the right investment, processes, and education needed.
Here’s how we made it happen at @VMware, an important thread 🧵
If not, look into it, advocate for it, and ensure you have the right focus on accessibility and the right investment, processes, and education needed.
Here’s how we made it happen at @VMware, an important thread 🧵
Our investment in accessibility came through our investment in design systems.
The brilliant engineers & designers behind @VMwareClarity worked on it, they continued to push the boundaries of how we ensure Clarity is accessible.
They considered it important & advocated for it.
The brilliant engineers & designers behind @VMwareClarity worked on it, they continued to push the boundaries of how we ensure Clarity is accessible.
They considered it important & advocated for it.
The more we dug into it, the more we realized we needed more experienced accessibility (a11y) leadership.
We started figuring out how we can bring this leadership and experience onboard.
To fund our first accessibility person, we repurposed a user experience requisition for our design system & hired a phenomenal accessibility leader who’s transformed accessibility at @VMware since.
To fund our first accessibility person, we repurposed a user experience requisition for our design system & hired a phenomenal accessibility leader who’s transformed accessibility at @VMware since.
I wrote a bit about the shift in my mindset here: mynameisjehad.com/focusing-on-th…
After we hired that leader, we tasked them with getting a few wins and then advocating for why a full a11y program is needed and what it would do.
We also studied what it would actually take to create that program.
We also studied what it would actually take to create that program.
Our initial focus was on compliance (the typical “you need accessibility if you’re going to sell to the government”) but we knew we needed to think of education, training, and innovation next.
The focus on compliance makes it easier to explain the value behind the investment.
The focus on compliance makes it easier to explain the value behind the investment.
Our accessibility leader delivered. She was an amazing advocate for the cause on the compliance and values level.
We worked together to make a case to decision makers and got our funding: mynameisjehad.com/making-the-cas…
We worked together to make a case to decision makers and got our funding: mynameisjehad.com/making-the-cas…
It was an involved process requiring us to work with business units and the executive leadership team. The case was strong though.
Today, a year and a half later, we have over a dozen people working exclusively on accessibility as part of the @VMwareDesign team!
Today, a year and a half later, we have over a dozen people working exclusively on accessibility as part of the @VMwareDesign team!
They focus on compliance, inclusive design, education, training, and innovation.
We’re doing amazing work on ensuring our products and services are accessible but we also lead the effort on ensuring that we’re building for any app, on any device, on any cloud, for ALL users.
We’re doing amazing work on ensuring our products and services are accessible but we also lead the effort on ensuring that we’re building for any app, on any device, on any cloud, for ALL users.
The team has also been at the core of starting the effort of our disability POD (power of difference group within @VMware) and our work on innovation in accessibility tools and education in inclusive design.
If you’re in a position to do so, advocate for this in your company. Advocate for more accessible designs in your team. Advocate for all users!
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