Gartner Insights Abstract

3 Digital Accessibility Steps to a More Inclusive User Experience

Published: 15 July 2024

Summary

Software engineering leaders are required to make digital products accessible to people with disabilities, yet the path to achieving this is often unclear, risking potential legal action. Start with accessibility scanning, and use this research to adopt accessible design and development practices.

Included in Full Research

Overview

Key Findings
  • Organizations are required to offer accessible digital products, but many software teams don’t know how to go about this or where to start.

  • Misunderstandings about the adequate level of accessibility required for digital products often result in noncompliant, less usable products, potentially excluding users with disabilities.

  • The misconception that accessibility can be added as an afterthought leads to fundamentally inaccessible products, necessitating costly and time-consuming revisions.

Recommendations
  • Initiate your accessibility journey by conducting an accessibility scan.

  • Fix software products by fully complying with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Version 2.1 level “AA” as a baseline for accessibility.

  • Sustain accessibility in your product

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Analysts:

Will Grant Brent Stewart

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